Plain English Meaning

These are arrival procedures that let a plane glide down from cruise to the runway in one continuous descent, instead of stepping down in stages. The pilots get the whole arrival plan up front, set it in the autopilot, and the aircraft flies down efficiently with the engines pulled back near idle.

Full Definition

Tailored Arrivals Procedures (TAPs) and Continuous Descent Arrivals (CDAs) are arrival procedures designed to allow an aircraft to descend from cruise altitude to the runway in a smooth, near-idle-power descent, with minimal level-off segments. Air Traffic Control issues a clearance — often uplinked via data link — that contains the full arrival path and / constraints, allowing the to fly an optimized . The result is reduced , lower emissions, and quieter operations compared to traditional -down arrivals.