Definition
A published low-altitude airway that serves as both a conventional Victor (VOR-defined) airway and an RNAV (area navigation) route along the same charted path. Aircraft equipped only with conventional VOR navigation may fly it as a Victor airway, while RNAV-equipped aircraft may fly it using GPS or other approved area navigation systems, often with an associated T-route designation shown alongside the V-route designation on the IFR En Route Low Altitude Chart.
Plain English
A single charted low-altitude route that can be flown two ways: the old way using VOR ground stations, or the new way using GPS. One line on the chart, two ways to navigate it, depending on what your aircraft is equipped with.
Context Anchor
Seen on IFR En Route Low Altitude Charts where Victor airway and RNAV route labels appear together on the same route segment.
Derivation
"Joint" means shared between two systems. "Victor" comes from the phonetic letter V, used because these airways are defined by VOR stations. "RNAV" stands for area navigation -- flying directly between any two points rather than station-to-station. The name simply tells you the route belongs to both navigation systems at once.
Why Pilots Care
Gives pilots with different navigation equipment the option to use the same published route without needing a separate clearance or chart.
Intuition Check
“Joint” does not mean this is only a crossing point or junction. Here it means the Victor airway and RNAV route are combined on the same charted segment.
Example Sentence 1
Because today's flight is on a joint Victor/RNAV route, the GPS-equipped Cirrus and the older VOR-only Cessna can both file and fly the same airway.
Example Sentence 2
ATC cleared the flight direct via the joint Victor/RNAV route shown on the low-altitude chart.