flight-tested; flight-testing; flight-tests

transitive verb

: to test (an airplane, a spacecraft, etc.) in flight

Examples of flight-test in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The program suffered another setback in June when one of the flight-test aircraft involved in the radar modernization effort crashed shortly after takeoff from Edwards Air Force Base. Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026 Another major technological initiative to break cover at the recent Farnborough International Airshow was the upcoming flight-test phase of Airbus’s Wing of Tomorrow program. David Szondy august 04, New Atlas, 4 Aug. 2026 Edwards is the Air Force's premier flight-test center, and B-52s stationed there are frequently used for developmental and modernization testing rather than routine operational missions. Sophia Compton , Morgan Phillips, FOXNews.com, 15 June 2026 For that final certificate, Vertical plans to build seven preproduction Valo aircraft, a new model similar to the VX4 but modified based on three years of flight-test data. Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 25 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for flight-test

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of flight-test was in 1930

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Cite this Entry

“Flight-test.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flight-test. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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