airside

American

[air-sahyd] / ˈɛərˌsaɪd /

noun

the part of an airport used by aircraft for loading and unloading and takeoffs and landings.
the area beyond security checks and passport and customs control in an airport terminal.

airside British

/ ˈɛəˌsaɪd /

noun

the part of an airport nearest the aircraft, the boundary of which is the security check, customs, passport control, etc Compare landside

"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

Etymology

Origin of airside

First recorded in 1955–60; air ¹ ( def. ) + side ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

airside

The one year pay deal covers Menzies dispatchers, allocators, airside agents, and controllers.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

Members of the Unite union due to walk out had included airside support officers, engineers and managers.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2025

“All people who go airside are subject to security screening, including the individual involved in this case,” a spokesperson told the outlet.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 11, 2024

Ms Kitcher has two airside tickets and said she wanted to be there because "it's something completely new to Cornwall".

From BBC ● Jan. 9, 2023

The 700 workers - involved in ground-handling, airside transport and cargo, and employed by Emirates Group's airport services subsidiary dnata and Menzies - will strike for three days starting from Nov. 18, Unite said.

From Reuters ● Nov. 14, 2022

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023