Definition
A ground-based radio navigation aid that transmits VHF signals in every direction, allowing a suitably equipped aircraft to determine its bearing to or from the station along any of 360 selectable courses called radials. VORs are a primary component of the federal airway system and are depicted on aeronautical charts as compass-rose symbols centered on the station's location.
Plain English
A radio beacon on the ground that lets your aircraft know what direction it is from the beacon. By tuning it in and selecting a course, you can fly directly to or away from the station along a precise line.
Context Anchor
Seen on aviation charts, navigation radios, instrument procedures, and route descriptions that use VOR stations as navigation points.
Derivation
Stands for VHF Omnidirectional Range. 'VHF' is the radio band used (Very High Frequency). 'Omnidirectional' means it broadcasts usable signals in all directions, not just one. 'Range' here is the older aviation sense of a navigation aid that defines courses through space — the same sense used in the earlier four-course low-frequency 'radio ranges' that VORs replaced in the 1950s.
Why Pilots Care
Provides reliable navigation along airways and during approaches, serving as a primary backup when GPS is unavailable or unreliable.
Intuition Check
A VOR is not the same as GPS. A basic VOR tells you direction information relative to a ground station; it does not tell distance by itself unless paired with separate distance-measuring equipment.
Example Sentence 1
After takeoff, she tuned the VOR, identified the Morse code, and tracked the 090 radial outbound toward her first checkpoint.
Example Sentence 2
When GPS signal was lost, the crew switched to VOR navigation to maintain the airway.