vocabulary: name: Rockwell Collins / Collins Aerospace Vocabulary description: >- Domain vocabulary for Rockwell Collins (now Collins Aerospace) and its FlightAware AeroAPI. Covers aviation data terminology, flight tracking concepts, AeroAPI-specific terms, and aerospace industry vocabulary. version: 1.0.0 modified: '2026-05-02' terms: - term: AeroAPI aliases: [FlightXML] definition: >- FlightAware AeroAPI (formerly FlightXML) is the commercial aviation data API from FlightAware, acquired by Collins Aerospace in 2021. Provides real-time and historical flight data, airport information, and ML-based predictive ETAs via REST. related: [FlightAware, Foresight, Flight Tracking] - term: ICAO Code aliases: [International Civil Aviation Organization Code] definition: >- A 4-letter alphanumeric code assigned by ICAO to identify airports (e.g., KORD for Chicago O'Hare) and airlines (e.g., UAL for United Airlines). AeroAPI uses ICAO codes as the primary identifiers. related: [IATA Code, Airport, Airline] - term: IATA Code aliases: [International Air Transport Association Code] definition: >- A 3-letter code assigned by IATA to identify airports (e.g., ORD) and airlines (e.g., UA). AeroAPI supports both ICAO and IATA codes for lookups. related: [ICAO Code, Airport, Airline] - term: Flight Identifier aliases: [ident, Flight Number] definition: >- A string that identifies a specific scheduled flight, typically composed of the airline's ICAO code and the flight number (e.g., UAL123 or UA123). AeroAPI's `ident` field accepts both ICAO and IATA format identifiers. related: [fa_flight_id, ICAO Code, IATA Code] - term: FlightAware Flight ID aliases: [fa_flight_id] definition: >- A unique identifier assigned by FlightAware to a specific flight instance (a specific aircraft on a specific date). Unlike a flight number which may repeat daily, the fa_flight_id uniquely identifies one flight operation. related: [Flight Identifier, AeroAPI] - term: Foresight definition: >- FlightAware Foresight is a machine learning system that provides predictive ETAs and flight event predictions. Foresight-enhanced AeroAPI endpoints include ML predictions for departures, arrivals, and en-route events. Available only to Premium tier AeroAPI customers. related: [AeroAPI, ETA, Predictive Analytics] - term: Out/Off/On/In Times aliases: [OOOI Times, Block Times] definition: >- The four key milestones of a flight: Out (gate departure/pushback), Off (wheels off ground/takeoff), On (wheels on ground/touchdown), In (gate arrival). AeroAPI reports scheduled, estimated, and actual values for each milestone. related: [Departure Delay, Arrival Delay, Gate] - term: Gate Departure aliases: [Out Time, Pushback] definition: >- The time when an aircraft departs from the gate (pushback). Also called the "Out" time in OOOI notation. AeroAPI reports scheduled_out, estimated_out, and actual_out for this event. related: [Out/Off/On/In Times, Gate Arrival] - term: Departure Delay definition: >- The difference between the actual and scheduled departure time in seconds. A positive value indicates a delay; negative means the flight departed early. AeroAPI returns departure_delay as an integer number of seconds. related: [Arrival Delay, Out/Off/On/In Times] - term: FIDS aliases: [Flight Information Display System] definition: >- Digital displays at airports showing real-time departure and arrival flight information. FlightAware AeroAPI airport endpoints are designed to support FIDS-style applications with scheduled arrivals/departures data. related: [Airport, Flight Tracking, AeroAPI] - term: Transponder definition: >- An electronic device on an aircraft that responds to radar interrogations and broadcasts its position. ADS-B transponders transmit GPS-based position data used by FlightAware for real-time tracking. related: [ADS-B, Position, Flight Tracking] - term: ADS-B aliases: [Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast] definition: >- A surveillance technology where aircraft broadcast their GPS-derived position, altitude, and velocity. FlightAware operates a global network of ADS-B receivers that feed the AeroAPI flight tracking data. related: [Transponder, Position, Flight Tracking] - term: Operator aliases: [Airline, Air Carrier] definition: >- In AeroAPI, an operator is an airline, cargo carrier, charter operator, or general aviation flight department identified by its ICAO code. AeroAPI's /operators endpoints provide fleet and schedule information per operator. related: [ICAO Code, Flight Identifier, Fleet] - term: ETE aliases: [Estimated Time En Route, Filed ETE] definition: >- The planned duration of a flight from takeoff to landing as filed in the flight plan. AeroAPI's filed_ete field is expressed in seconds. related: [Flight Plan, Out/Off/On/In Times, Foresight] - term: Avionics definition: >- Electronic systems used on aircraft, including navigation, communication, flight management, and display systems. Collins Aerospace (formerly Rockwell Collins) is a leading manufacturer of avionics systems for commercial and military aircraft. related: [Flight Deck, Collins Aerospace] - term: Collins Aerospace aliases: [Rockwell Collins, UTC Aerospace Systems] definition: >- A subsidiary of RTX Corporation (formerly Raytheon Technologies) formed from the 2018 merger of Rockwell Collins and UTC Aerospace Systems. Provides avionics, cabin systems, communications, and data services including the FlightAware aviation data platform. related: [FlightAware, AeroAPI, Avionics] - term: Collins Digital Exchange definition: >- The API developer portal operated by Collins Aerospace at developer.collins.com, providing API products for aerospace integration to authorized partners, customers, and suppliers. related: [Collins Aerospace, API, Developer Portal] - term: Push Notification aliases: [Webhook, Alert Delivery] definition: >- AeroAPI can deliver flight event alerts via HTTP POST to a configured endpoint URL when configured events occur. The target_url on an alert determines where push notifications are sent. related: [Alert, AeroAPI, Webhook]