pushback

A tug attached to the nose gear pushes the aircraft onto the taxiway while the crew starts engines, and the whole sequence needs a clearance because it puts the aircraft across a movement area. Some airports use towbarless tugs that lift the nose wheel instead. Pushback is the first photograph of a departure sequence and the one where the whole aircraft is still clean of heat haze.

Nearby in Aviation

• narrowbody — An airliner with a single-aisle cabin, typically three to four metres across.
• NOTAM — A notice telling crews about a temporary hazard or change — a closed runway, unserviceable lighting, an airspace restriction.
• QNH — The altimeter setting that makes an altimeter read height above mean sea level.
• registration — The unique alphanumeric identity painted on an airframe, allocated by its country of registry.