airworthy

adjective

air·​wor·​thy ˈer-ˌwər-t͟hē How to pronounce airworthy (audio)
: fit for operation in the air
kept the historic aircraft in airworthy condition
airworthiness noun

Examples of airworthy in a Sentence

The agency considered the plane airworthy.
Recent Examples on the Web Commercial delivery will require a safe, airworthy craft to scale. Stephen Pastis, Fortune, 12 July 2023 Authorities say the Cessna was airworthy and had the technical requirements for the flight. USA TODAY, 14 June 2023 Indonesian officials insist that the aircraft was airworthy, but others question that assertion. IEEE Spectrum, 30 Nov. 2018 The Netherlands keeps all its F-16 jets airworthy through regular maintenance. Cagan Koc, Bloomberg.com, 26 May 2023 Pipistrel’s Alpha Elektro, the first electric general aviation plane to be certified as airworthy by the Federal Aviation Administration, can carry two people for up to 90 minutes. Daniel Oberhaus, Popular Mechanics, 8 May 2023 As a result, the airline’s inspection program didn’t ensure that the planes were in airworthy condition and had been properly maintained for over 102,000 flights from June 2018 to April 2021, the FAA said in a letter Monday to United Chief Executive Scott Kirby. Alison Sider, WSJ, 6 Feb. 2023 Still, what the team has accomplished to arrive at an airworthy Modification 2 is no small feat. Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Jan. 2023 In plain English, that means that Matternet’s M2 drone fleet has been deemed airworthy and safe to transport cargo and make deliveries over people. Byjessica Mathews, Fortune, 18 Jan. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'airworthy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of airworthy was in 1829

Dictionary Entries Near airworthy

Cite this Entry

“Airworthy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/airworthy. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

airworthy

adjective
air·​wor·​thy -ˌwər-t͟hē How to pronounce airworthy (audio)
: fit or safe for operation in the air
a very airworthy plane
airworthiness noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!