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air cover

American  

noun

  1. the use of aircraft to protect ground or naval military operations.

  2. the protection given by such aircraft.


air cover British  

noun

  1. Also called: air support

    1. the use of aircraft to provide aerial protection for ground forces against enemy air attack

    2. the aircraft used in this

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

But “it also has given air cover, more importantly, to execute on the right-sizing that you probably needed to do a long time ago.”

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 16, 2026

Smaller vessels such as destroyers and frigates would be best suited for the mission, which could also involve air cover from helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, or both.

From Barron's Mar. 16, 2026

“It feels like what they are saying may simply be air cover as they are trying to get this deal through regulation,” he said.

From MarketWatch Mar. 7, 2026

But there has been no such public offer of air cover from the White House.

From BBC Feb. 28, 2025

The revised plan called for a quieter landing, at night without air cover, at a rural spot on the southern coast called Bahía de Cochinos.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

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