Definition
An FAA airworthiness certificate issued for an aircraft that has a provisional type certificate, authorizing operation for specific limited purposes — such as flight testing, crew training, market surveys, or demonstration — while the aircraft type is still being evaluated for full certification.
Plain English
A temporary permission that lets a new aircraft type be flown for limited reasons while the FAA is still working through its full approval.
Context Anchor
Seen in aircraft certification and airworthiness discussions, especially when learning what documents make an aircraft legal to operate.
Derivation
Provisional comes from the Latin providere, meaning 'to provide for' or 'arrange in advance.' In law and certification it means 'temporary, pending final approval.' That captures it exactly: the aircraft is approved for now, with full approval still in progress.
Why Pilots Care
It enables limited but legal flight operations before an aircraft receives full approval, which is essential for testing new designs and advancing certification.
Intuition Check
Provisional does not mean unofficial or optional. It means temporary and limited, but still issued by the FAA and still legally controlling how the aircraft may be used.
Example Sentence 1
The manufacturer operated the new turboprop under a provisional airworthiness certificate while completing the flight test program required for full type certification.
Example Sentence 2
Before the final inspection, the manufacturer operated the aircraft with a provisional airworthiness certificate to demonstrate compliance.