Definition
A method of receiving an IFR departure clearance as a text message in the cockpit, delivered through ACARS — a digital data link between the aircraft and ground stations — instead of by voice over the radio. The clearance is printed or displayed onboard, and the crew acknowledges receipt through the same data link.
Plain English
Instead of writing down your IFR clearance as a controller reads it over the radio, you receive it as a text message in the cockpit and confirm it electronically.
Context Anchor
Seen during IFR departure planning at airports and in aircraft that support electronic clearance delivery through ACARS.
Derivation
PDC stands for Pre-Departure Clearance — the IFR clearance issued before the flight departs. ACARS stands for Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System, a data link developed in the 1970s to send short text messages between aircraft and airline or ATC ground stations. Together, PDC ACARS simply means 'the pre-departure clearance, delivered by data link.'
Why Pilots Care
Cuts radio congestion and lowers the risk of misheard instructions before engine start.
Intuition Check
PDC ACARS is not a departure procedure or a kind of RNAV route. It is a way of receiving the departure clearance.
Example Sentence 1
Before pushback, the first officer requested the clearance via PDC ACARS and printed it for the captain to review.
Example Sentence 2
After the PDC ACARS message arrived, the pilots loaded the assigned departure into the flight management system.