copilot

American  

[koh-pahy-luht] / ˈkoʊˌpaɪ lət /

noun

copilots plural

1. a pilot who is second in command of an aircraft.

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copilot British  

/ ˈkəʊˌpaɪlət /

noun

1. a second or relief pilot of an aircraft

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• copilots
  plural

Etymology

Origin of copilot

First recorded in 1925–30; co- + pilot

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

copilot copilots

Last month a small plane crashed into the side of a building in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte, killing the pilot and copilot.

From Barron's ● Jun. 14, 2026

But at the moment Burt called on the radio, copilot Yeager gave a speed report, drowning out the message.

From Seattle Times ● May 4, 2024

Autopilot is an evolution of Luminance's copilot tool, which colour-codes clauses for legal professionals as they review a contract in Word.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2023

He served in Afghanistan as an Apache helicopter copilot gunner in 2012-2013.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 9, 2023

“If I live A hundred years, I’ll never quite get these few minutes out of my mind,” said Robert Lewis, copilot of the Enola Gay.

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

“Fictitious friends and mannequin copilots won’t cut it,” said CHP officials.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026

Alphabet declined to comment on agent-related work, while Microsoft said its vision is to keep humans in control of AI copilots, rather than autopilots.

From Reuters ● Jul. 17, 2023

The new assistants - often called "agents" or "copilots" - promise to perform more complex personal and work tasks when commanded to by a human, without needing close supervision.

From Reuters ● Jul. 17, 2023

We're like copilots, there is no captain, and what we're saying, with greater or lesser degrees of urgency is: "Look out! Pull up!"

From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2018

He went on: “One thing I personally try to do is, I try to put myself a little down. I say to my copilots, ‘I don’t fly very often.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell