Definition
FAA Form 7233-1, titled 'Flight Plan,' is the official FAA paper form used to file a flight plan with Flight Service. It contains the fields required to record flight type (VFR, IFR, DVFR), aircraft identification and equipment, departure and destination points, route, altitude, true airspeed, estimated time en route, fuel on board, alternate airport, pilot information, and souls on board.
Plain English
It is the FAA's official paper flight plan form. A pilot fills it out with the details of the planned flight, then files it with Flight Service so air traffic control and search and rescue have the information on record.
Context Anchor
Seen in IFR flight-planning discussions and in Figure 10-20 as the paper-style flight plan form; the same basic information is often entered today through electronic flight-planning tools.
Derivation
FAA means Federal Aviation Administration. The number 7233-1 is the FAA’s form identifier; it is a filing form number, not a code that describes a procedure or clearance.
Why Pilots Care
Proper completion ensures the flight receives an ATC clearance and is tracked correctly, which is required for legal and safe IFR operations in controlled airspace.
Intuition Check
FAA Form 7233-1 is not a clearance or permission to fly. It is the information used to file a flight plan; for an IFR flight, the pilot still needs an IFR clearance from air traffic control before operating where that clearance is required.
Example Sentence 1
Before her IFR cross-country, she completed FAA Form 7233-1 and filed it with Flight Service an hour before departure.
Example Sentence 2
After reviewing the weather, the instructor helped the student complete FAA Form 7233-1 for their cross-country IFR training flight.