Definition
A solid or hollow metal fastener used to join two or more sheets of metal permanently. A rivet is installed by passing its shank through aligned holes in the materials being joined, then deforming the tail end so it spreads out and clamps the materials tightly between the original head and the newly formed head.
Plain English
A small metal pin used to permanently fasten pieces of metal together. One end has a head; the other end gets squashed flat after it's pushed through the parts, locking everything in place.
Context Anchor
Seen during preflight and maintenance when checking aircraft skin, control surfaces, and other joined metal parts.
Derivation
From Old French 'river,' meaning to fix or fasten. The word reflects the fastener's job: holding things permanently in place.
Why Pilots Care
Rivets maintain the structural integrity of the airframe; loose, missing, or damaged rivets can lead to skin separation or loss of airworthiness.
Intuition Check
A rivet is not a screw or bolt. It normally cannot be unscrewed; it usually has to be drilled out or cut to remove it because one end is formed in place.
Example Sentence 1
During preflight, the pilot noticed a row of rivets with dark streaks running aft along the fuselage skin and wrote it up for inspection.
Example Sentence 2
During the preflight walk-around the pilot checked the rivets along the fuselage for signs of looseness or corrosion.