Plain English Meaning

It is the pilot's ability to feel what the airplane is doing through their body — the seat-of-the-pants sense of climbing, descending, turning, or accelerating, without needing to look at the instruments.

Full Definition

The sense by which a pilot perceives motion, position, and acceleration of the airplane through bodily feel — pressures on the seat, pull on the controls, and the sensation of the body being pushed, lifted, or rolled as the aircraft maneuvers.

Context Anchor

Seen in discussions of the “feel of the airplane,” especially when learning to sense control pressures, attitude changes, and airplane response without relying only on instruments.