flight recorder

American  

noun

1. an electronic device aboard an aircraft that automatically records some aspects of the aircraft's performance in flight.

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flight recorder British  

noun

1. Also called: black box. an electronic device fitted to an aircraft for storing information concerning its performance in flight. It is often used to determine the cause of a crash

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Etymology

Origin of flight recorder

First recorded in 1945–50

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flight recorder

As part of the investigation into the incident, the agency confirmed that it’s gathering radar, weather and flight recorder data.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2025

Investigators have recovered flight recorder data from the Air India crash earlier this month, the civil aviation ministry has confirmed, marking a key step in the probe.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2025

The plane is not required to have a flight recorder but it is possible that there are other avionics equipment that will have data that they can examine, Gerhardt said.

From Washington Times ● Jun. 5, 2023

Investigators will make an all-out effort to collect evidence, with a focus on finding the flight recorder, Tao said.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 23, 2022

Here is the flight recorder transcript of the final thirty minutes of KAL flight 801: It begins with the captain complaining of exhaustion.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

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