Aircraft wake categories

Term · Aviation and air traffic control · MLC-T-AVN-000061

For the purposes of Terminal Wake Turbulence Separation Minima, ATC classifies aircraft as Category A through Category I as follows:

a. CATEGORY A. The Airbus A-380-800 (A388) is classified as a super aircraft.

b. CATEGORY B, C, and D. Aircraft capable of takeoff weights of 300,000 pounds or more whether or not they are operating at this weight during a particular phase of flight. These are categorized as heavy aircraft.

c. CATEGORY E. All B757 aircraft.

d. CATEGORY F, and G. Aircraft weighing 41,000 pounds or more maximum certificated takeoff weight, up to but not including 300,000 pounds.

e. CATEGORY H and I. Aircraft of less than 41,000 pounds maximum certificated takeoff weight.

Table 1. Record
Identifier	MLC-T-AVN-000061
Field	Aviation and air traffic control
References	AIM; FAA Pilot/Controller Glossary

Record as JSON

{
  "id": "MLC-T-AVN-000061",
  "term": "Aircraft wake categories",
  "field": "Aviation and air traffic control",
  "definition": "For the purposes of Terminal Wake Turbulence Separation Minima, ATC classifies aircraft as Category A through Category I as follows:\n\na. CATEGORY A. The Airbus A-380-800 (A388) is classified as a super aircraft.\n\nb. CATEGORY B, C, and D. Aircraft capable of takeoff weights of 300,000 pounds or more whether or not they are operating at this weight during a particular phase of flight. These are categorized as heavy aircraft.\n\nc. CATEGORY E. All B757 aircraft.\n\nd. CATEGORY F, and G. Aircraft weighing 41,000 pounds or more maximum certificated takeoff weight, up to but not including 300,000 pounds.\n\ne. CATEGORY H and I. Aircraft of less than 41,000 pounds maximum certificated takeoff weight.",
  "references": [
    "AIM",
    "FAA Pilot/Controller Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/aviation/aircraft-wake-categories/"
}

Record 61 of 1,122 in Aviation and air traffic control terminology (MLC-0104). Request the full dataset.