Does the term "leg" have a precise meaning in air-travel?

11/29/2017 4:51:11 PM

To see how the term “leg” is useful (and used), consider flight numbers.

It is typically the case (at least in US domestic flights; probably everywhere) that an airline’s “flight”, i.e. what an airline identifies with a flight number, actually takes off and lands at several airports consecutively on the same day – say, from airport A to B to C to D. So going from B to C is not, in that sense, a flight, but a flight leg (or flight segment).

9/19/2016 12:10:11 PM

So, there’s really no ‘one true’ dictionary. Terms are used differently by different people, airlines apps and situations. Like other contributors, I’m answering based on what I’ve learned in and out of the industry.

In air travel, a ‘leg’ is a defined piece of the passengers journey. The problem is the exact meaning can change with context. So, a Travel Agent might say, the first leg of you trip is from JFK to NRT. That there might be a technical stop in ANC but that is not really relevant. If you’re on the aircraft and the flight attendant says “this leg of the trip is 6.5 hours” they are referring to the JFK-ANC flight.

Further complicating this is the overlapping term ‘segment’ which at some point way back mostly referred to one leg of a direct flight. The two are often used interchangeably now.

Then of course, you will hear ‘flight’ very often used to refer to what ever it takes to fly from one place to another.

For whatever reason, I actually would not use ‘leg’ in the examples you provide. I would say “This flight has two segments. We have to stop in Anchorage for fuel.” But, others might say something completely different.

In casual speak, ‘leg’ can really refer to anything. “The first leg of our trip is by train, then we fly to Dublin.”

You will find the terms:

  • leg
  • flight
  • segment
  • departure
  • stage

mashed up in collections called

  • flights
  • itineraries
  • routings
  • sequences
  • lines.

There’s also a bunch of other more technical terms used by specific groups or apps within the airline.

9/18/2016 7:13:54 AM

In general travel usage a “leg” is a transport section, for flights it would be one flight (take off to landing), for a land connection (train, bus) it would be from boarding until you disembark, for a cruise (or ferry) it would be port to port.

Credit:stackoverflow.com‘

About me

Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

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