Definition
An aircraft attitude in which the nose is pitched below the horizon, lowering the angle of attack of the wings and typically resulting in a descent and an increase in airspeed if power and trim are unchanged.
Plain English
The aircraft's nose is pointed downward relative to the horizon. The plane is angled to look toward the ground rather than the sky.
Context Anchor
Seen in trim-system discussions, trim indicators, and cockpit checks where the pilot verifies whether the airplane is trimmed nose-up, neutral, or nose-down.
Why Pilots Care
Correct nose-down trim reduces control pressure, lowers pilot workload, and maintains consistent airspeed or descent rate without constant yoke input.
Intuition Check
Nose-down does not always mean the airplane is already diving. In trim-system use, it can mean the control or trim setting is trying to lower the nose.
Example Sentence 1
After the stall warning sounded, the pilot lowered the aircraft into a nose-down position to reduce the angle of attack and recover flying speed.
Example Sentence 2
With the elevator trim tab set in the nose-down position, the airplane maintained a steady descent without further control input.