: the speed (as of an airplane) with relation to the air compare ground speed
Examples of airspeed in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In 1976, a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird set an airspeed record of 2,193 mph, which has also never been bettered.
—
Ben Oliver, Robb Report, 27 Apr. 2025
Many technologies have had phases where customers eagerly embrace every improvement in some parameter—until a saturation point is reached and improvements are ultimately met with a collective shrug.
Consider a very brief history of airspeed in commercial air travel.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Feb. 2025
Passenger aircraft today fly at around 900 kilometers per hour—and have continued to traverse the skies at the same airspeed range for the past five decades.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Feb. 2025
Here's what to know about how a plane can go missing:
How officials can lose a plane's location
Airplanes fly with a transponder, which sends continuous data on its current altitude, airspeed, latitude and longitude to receivers on the ground.
—Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for airspeed
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Ben Oliver, Robb Report, 27 Apr. 2025
Many technologies have had phases where customers eagerly embrace every improvement in some parameter—until a saturation point is reached and improvements are ultimately met with a collective shrug.
Consider a very brief history of airspeed in commercial air travel.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Feb. 2025
Passenger aircraft today fly at around 900 kilometers per hour—and have continued to traverse the skies at the same airspeed range for the past five decades.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Feb. 2025
Here's what to know about how a plane can go missing:
How officials can lose a plane's location
Airplanes fly with a transponder, which sends continuous data on its current altitude, airspeed, latitude and longitude to receivers on the ground.
—Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for airspeed
Cite this Entry
“Airspeed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/airspeed. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
airspeed
noun
air·speed
-ˌspēd 
: the speed of an airplane according to measurements of the surrounding air rather than of the ground below
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share