Avionics
/ˌeɪviˈɒnɪks/noun
The electronic systems used in aircraft, especially for communication, navigation, and flight control.
Did you know?“Avionics” is a 20th-century blend, not a mystical old root—but it fuses the French word for airplane with the science-suffix that powers words like electronics, making it a very modern “spell” of flight.
Etymological Timeline
20th Century
French
avion
“airplane”
20th Century
English
-onics
“a science or branch of technology, modeled on words like electronics”
1940s
English
avionics
“electronic equipment used in aircraft”
Modern English
English
avionics
“the electronic systems of an aircraft”
Explore more surprising origins