Glossary — P

P&W Pratt & Whitney (US).

P&WC Pratt & Whitney Canada.

PAC Pakistan Aeronautical Complex.

PAH PanzerAbwehr-Hubschrauber (Army [anti-] tank helicopter).

Pallet (1) for freight, rigid platform for handling by forklift or conveyor (2) for missile, interface mounting and electronics box outside aircraft.

Panavia Tri-national consortium formed to produce Tornado, comprising MBB of Germany (now EADS/DASA), Aeritalia of Italy (now Alenia Aerospazio) and BAC (now BAE Systems).

Pascal SI unit of pressure =1 Nm^-2 (one Newton per square metre).

payload Disposable load generating revenue (passengers, cargo, mail and other paid items): in military aircraft loosely used to mean total load carried of weapons. cargo or other mission equipment.

PDLCT Day/night TV/thermal imaging laser-designation pod produced by Thomson-CSF.

Performance Aircraft capabilities after S/L take-off at MTOW in ISA with normal full tankage, except as otherwise specified, and with landing data at MLW (where different).

PFA Popular Flying Association (UK).

PGM Precision-guided munition.

phased array Radar in which the beam is scanned electronically in one or both axes without moving the antenna.

Pirate Passive infra-red airborne tracking equipment.

PLA (1) People’s Liberation Army (China) (2) Prelaunch activities.

PLAAF People’s Liberation Army Air Force (China).

PLANAF People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force (China).

plane A lifting surface (for example wing, tailplane).

plc Public limited company (company constitution).

PLSS Precision Location Strike System.

plug door Door larger than its frame in pressurised fuselage, either opening inwards or arranged to retract parts before opening outwards.

plume The region of hot air and gas emitted by a helicopter jetpipe.

ply Indication (ply rating) of tyre strength in a specific application; not necessarily the actual number of carcass plies in the tyre.

pneumatic de-icing Covered with flexible surfaces alternately pumped up and deflated to throw off ice.

port Left side, looking forward.

power-by-wire Using electric power alone (not electro-hydraulic) to drive control surfaces and perform other mechanical tasks.

power loading Aircraft weight (usually MTOW) divided by total propulsive power or thrust at T-O. For helicopters, based on transmission rating rather than total engine power.

power train A complete mechanical drive system, for example the sequence of gearwheels, clutches and shafts transmitting power from one or more engines to the rotors of a helicopter.

PPV Pre-production verification.

prepreg Glass fibre cloth or rovings pre-impregnated with resin to simplify layup.

pressure fuelling Fuelling via a leakproof connection through which fuel passes at high rate under pressure.

primary flight controls Those used to control trajectory of aircraft (thus, not trimmers, tabs, flaps, slats, airbrakes or lift dumpers, and so on).

primary flight display Single screen bearing all data for aircraft flight-path control.

propfan A family of new-technology propellers characterised by multiple scimitar-shaped blades with thin sharp-edged profile. Single and contrarotating examples promise to extend propeller efficiency up to an aircraft Mach number of about 0.8.

proprotor Large propeller, tilting for forward or vertical flight.

PT Pesawat Terbang (Indonesian company constitution).

Pty Proprietary (company constitution).

pulse Doppler Radar sending out pulses and measuring frequency-shift to detect returns only from moving target (s) seen against background clutter.

PVO Protivovosduzhnaya Oborona (Part of Russian air force).

pylon Structure linking aircraft to external load (engine nacelle, drop tank, bomb, and so on).

PZL Polskie Zadlady Lotnicze (Polish Aviation Factory).