Definition
The backup flight instruments retained on an aircraft equipped with an electronic flight display, used to fly the airplane safely if the primary electronic display fails. They typically include a separate attitude indicator, an altimeter, and an airspeed indicator that operate independently of the primary electronic system, often with their own power source.
Plain English
A small set of standby flight instruments that work on their own, so the pilot can still see attitude, altitude, and airspeed if the main electronic display goes dark.
Context Anchor
Seen in discussions of instrument flying with electronic flight displays, especially when the handbook explains what to use if the main display fails.
Derivation
Emergency comes from a Latin root meaning “to rise up” or “come out.” That fits the aviation use: these instruments are meant for a problem that suddenly comes up and must be handled right away. Instrument comes from an older word meaning a tool or piece of equipment, which fits a cockpit device used to measure and show flight information.
Why Pilots Care
Enables continued instrument flight and safe recovery when the primary display fails in IMC.
Intuition Check
Do not read “emergency instruments” as instruments used only after a crash or only for a declared emergency. Here it means backup flight instruments used when the normal display or system is not available.
Example Sentence 1
When the primary flight display went blank, the pilot transitioned to the emergency instruments and continued flying straight and level.
Example Sentence 2
The checklist directs a transition to emergency instruments if electrical power to the electronic displays is lost.