air traffic

American  

noun

1. aircraft moving in flight or on airport runways.

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air traffic British  

noun

1. the organized movement of aircraft within a given space

2. the passengers, cargo, or mail carried by aircraft

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Etymology

Origin of air traffic

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

“We’re going to be addressing that, because that was not good,” the air traffic controller responded.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Across the United States, major airports have been inundated by flight disruptions, security lines spilling out of terminals, air traffic control outages, and overworked and understaffed employees struggling to keep it all running.

From Slate • Mar. 24, 2026

Regulators have tried for decades to stamp out hazards leading to close-call incidents at airports—from poor communications to poorly lit airfields to adequate staffing to oversee air traffic.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

An air traffic controller was heard saying: "'Truck One, stop, stop, stop!" seconds before the crash.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

That research, and other investigations like it, led to changes in air traffic regulations, mandating minimum distances between flight paths so as to prevent that kind of wake turbulence accident.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly