Definition
A formal review of current and forecast weather conditions obtained by a pilot before a flight, covering the departure, en route, and destination areas, plus alternates. It typically includes adverse conditions, synopsis, current and forecast weather, winds and temperatures aloft, NOTAMs, and any other information relevant to the planned route and time of flight.
Plain English
Before flying, the pilot gets a complete weather picture for the trip — what the weather is doing now, what it will do during the flight, and anything unusual to watch out for.
Context Anchor
Used before departure, especially before instrument flying, when the pilot is checking for conditions such as turbulence, low clouds, poor visibility, storms, icing, and strong winds along the planned flight path.
Derivation
Preflight means “before flight.” Briefing comes from “brief,” meaning short or concise. Together, the phrase points to a focused review of the weather before takeoff, not a long weather lesson.
Why Pilots Care
Reveals areas of turbulence, icing, or convective activity so the pilot can adjust routing, altitude, or departure time before takeoff.
Intuition Check
Do not think of a preflight weather briefing as just looking outside or checking one weather icon. In aviation, it means deliberately reviewing the weather information that could affect the whole flight before taking off.
Example Sentence 1
During her preflight weather briefing, she noted a line of thunderstorms forecast to move across the route within two hours of departure.
Example Sentence 2
After reviewing the preflight weather briefing, she decided to delay departure until the frontal passage had moved east.