Definition
The four-letter ICAO airport identifier for Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California. Under the ICAO system, airports in the contiguous United States are assigned a four-letter code beginning with 'K' followed by the airport's three-letter FAA identifier — in this case, K + LAX.
Plain English
KLAX is the official four-letter code that pilots, controllers, and flight planning systems use to refer to Los Angeles International Airport.
Context Anchor
Seen on instrument procedure materials, airport information, flight plans, and standardized taxi route examples that refer to Los Angeles International Airport.
Derivation
ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) assigns four-letter location indicators worldwide. The 'K' prefix covers airports in the contiguous 48 U.S. states; 'LAX' is the airport's three-letter FAA identifier, originally derived from 'Los Angeles' with an 'X' added when three-letter codes became standard.
Why Pilots Care
Correctly identifies the destination airport in procedures and prevents confusion with nearby fields during high-traffic operations.
Intuition Check
Do not read KLAX as a word or as a taxi route. It is an airport identifier, and in this context it means Los Angeles International Airport.
Example Sentence 1
We filed our IFR flight plan from KSFO to KLAX with a planned arrival on the Bravo arrival.
Example Sentence 2
Flight plans filed to KLAX include specific arrival procedures due to the airport's complex layout.