Definition
A pre-departure clearance (PDC) is an IFR clearance delivered to the pilot in text form — typically through a datalink service such as ACARS or via the operator's dispatcher — instead of being read aloud by a controller over the radio. It contains the same elements as a voice clearance: cleared route, initial altitude, departure frequency, and transponder code. PDCs are issued at participating towered airports to reduce frequency congestion on the clearance delivery channel.
Plain English
Instead of calling clearance delivery on the radio and copying down your IFR clearance by hand, you receive it as a printed or on-screen message before pushback. You read it, confirm it, and then contact ground when ready to taxi.
Context Anchor
You encounter PDCs at tower-controlled airports, especially before an IFR departure when clearance delivery information is sent by data message instead of copied entirely by radio.
Why Pilots Care
It reduces radio congestion on the clearance frequency and lets the crew review the route and altitudes before taxi.
Intuition Check
Do not read “clearance” here as permission to take off. A PDC clears the planned IFR departure instructions; the tower still gives the separate takeoff clearance.
Example Sentence 1
Before pushback, the crew received their PDC on the ACARS printer and cross-checked the route and altitude against the filed flight plan.
Example Sentence 2
After reviewing the PDC the pilot confirmed the assigned departure procedure before calling for taxi.