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Glite Dictionary
pilotless aircraft

pilotless aircraft

6.2
A flying vehicle with no person on it that someone controls from the ground or that runs on a computer
  • noun
  • /ˈpaɪlətləs ˈɛrkræft/
  • Specialized
translation icon : avión sin piloto
  • Researchers are exploring the potential of pilotless aircraft for agricultural monitoring and crop management.

Examples

  • The development of pilotless aircraft has revolutionized the way we conduct military operations.

  • Using a pilotless aircraft as the determination of "What is a drone," the first drones were Nazi V-1s.

    Blog text (30)

  • Ever heard of pilotless aircraft?

    The Sound Barrier (1952)

  • Samuel Langley, for example, built steam-powered, pilotless aircraft in the late 19th century.

    Academic text (2002)

  • Many companies are investing in pilotless aircraft to enhance their delivery services and reduce costs.

Synonyms

drone
vspilotless aircraft
267 3.7

A small flying machine that people control from the ground, often with a camera

includes remote control but can also operate autonomously
radio-controlled aircraft
vspilotless aircraft
4.4

An aircraft flown without a pilot and controlled remotely by radio

includes remote control but can also operate autonomously

Antonyms

manned
9 3.8

With people on board to operate it

How Automated

pilotless aircraft
  • Specialized
6.2
flight control
  • Specialized
1 4.1
autopilot
  • Specialized
36 3.9

Surface Forms

pilotless aircraft singular
pilotless aircrafts plural

Morphology

pilotless + aircraft

The meaning 'an aircraft that flies without a pilot onboard' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'pilotless' (without a pilot) with 'aircraft' (a flying vehicle). The negational morphology (-less) plus the noun is a straightforward, cross-linguistically common compositional pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Pilotless aircraft comes from early remote-control planes used in wars and tests; these were real planes with no pilot on board. That's why the name literally meant 'without a pilot' and now describes any plane flown from the ground or by a computer.