Definition
The act of a pilot or controller seeing and positively identifying another aircraft visually, out the window, well enough to track it and maintain separation from it.
Plain English
Spotting another aircraft with your own eyes and being sure of which one it is.
Context Anchor
Seen in instrument approach procedures, especially simultaneous offset approaches to closely spaced parallel runways, where a pilot may need to see the other aircraft or the runway environment before continuing.
Derivation
From Latin 'acquirere,' meaning 'to obtain' or 'to gain.' In radar and military use, 'acquisition' means locking onto a target. 'Visual acquisition' simply means gaining that target with your eyes instead of with radar.
Why Pilots Care
Allows continued approach under visual separation rules instead of breaking off the approach.
Grounding Statement
Visual acquisition happens when the required outside reference changes from something you expect to see into something you have actually seen and identified.
Intuition Check
Do not read “acquisition” as just noticing something out the window. In this context, it means positively seeing and identifying the correct required reference.
Example Sentence 1
After ATC called traffic at two o'clock and three miles, the pilot reported visual acquisition and was cleared to maintain visual separation.
Example Sentence 2
Failure to achieve visual acquisition required the crew to execute the missed approach.