Definition
A DME-derived readout showing the estimated number of minutes required to reach the selected DME station, calculated from the aircraft's current groundspeed toward that station and its slant-range distance from it.
Plain English
How many minutes the DME thinks it will take you to reach the station you have tuned, based on how fast you're closing on it right now.
Context Anchor
Seen on DME displays and in discussions of DME distance, groundspeed, and navigation to or from a radio navigation station.
Derivation
“Station” in radio navigation means a fixed ground facility that sends or receives radio signals. So “time-to-station” means the time remaining to reach that fixed radio navigation point, not just any place along the route.
Why Pilots Care
Supports fuel planning, arrival sequencing, and maintaining situational awareness of flight progress.
Grounding Statement
If the DME station is straight ahead and the distance is decreasing steadily, time-to-station is the DME’s estimate of how long it will take to get there.
Intuition Check
Do not read this as a general trip-time estimate. It is an estimate to the selected DME station, and it is most reliable when you are flying directly toward that station.
Example Sentence 1
With a groundspeed of 120 knots and 20 NM to run, the DME showed a time-to-station of 10 minutes.
Example Sentence 2
The pilot monitored the decreasing time-to-station to time the descent for the approach.