Definition
A heading issued by air traffic control to provide navigational guidance by radar. The controller observes the aircraft on radar and instructs the pilot to fly a specific magnetic heading to achieve a desired ground track, separation, or routing.
Plain English
A heading the controller tells you to fly because they are watching you on radar and steering you where they need you to go.
Context Anchor
Seen in instrument departures when departure control gives headings after takeoff, including situations where vectors are used instead of, or after, a published departure path.
Derivation
Vector' comes from Latin 'vehere,' meaning 'to carry' or 'to convey.' In navigation it refers to a directional line, a course to follow. 'Radar vector' simply means a course given to you by a controller using radar.
Why Pilots Care
Radar vectors allow safe routing around obstacles, traffic, or weather when no published procedure applies or when the pilot is in instrument conditions.
Intuition Check
A radar vector is not just a suggestion or a general route. It is a controller-assigned direction to fly, based on what the controller sees on radar.
Example Sentence 1
After takeoff, departure control issued a radar vector to keep the aircraft clear of arriving traffic.
Example Sentence 2
Instead of flying the published ODP, we received radar vectors that guided us directly to the en route airway.