Definition
An alert issued by a Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) or by air traffic control indicating that another aircraft is nearby and warrants the pilot's attention. A TA notifies the crew of potential conflicting traffic but does not direct any specific evasive maneuver; it is a heads-up to look for the traffic and be prepared for further action.
Plain English
A warning that another aircraft is close enough to be worth watching. The pilot is told where to look but is not yet told to climb, descend, or turn.
Context Anchor
Seen or heard when using onboard traffic-alerting equipment, especially during instrument flying, approach, or busy airspace operations.
Derivation
Advisory comes from advise, meaning to give notice or guidance. That helps here: a Traffic Advisory gives important notice about nearby aircraft, but it is not the same as a maneuver command.
Why Pilots Care
Allows quick visual identification of potential traffic conflicts and supports safe separation in visual conditions.
Intuition Check
Do not read advisory as unimportant or optional. In this context, advisory means important traffic information that needs attention, not a command to move the airplane a specific way.
Example Sentence 1
Approaching the terminal area, the crew received a TA from TCAS and immediately began visually scanning for the reported traffic.
Example Sentence 2
We acknowledged the TA and began scanning outside to locate the reported traffic.