Plain English Meaning

Anything that goes wrong in flight badly enough that the pilot has to stop following the normal plan and start dealing with the problem right away.

Full Definition

Flight situations that require immediate, non-routine action to protect the safety of the aircraft and its occupants, such as engine failure, fire, system malfunction, or loss of control. In training contexts, the term refers to the practice and handling of these abnormal scenarios, where the pilot must apply checklist procedures, sound judgment, and learned responses under stress.

Context Anchor

You will see this term in training discussions about stress, , , and actual in-flight problems.