What is the act of starting an aircraft's engine while in flight, especially after flameout, called?

• A. Air start
• B. Ground start
• C. In-flight ignition
• D. Engine restart

Answer: (A)

Air start is the act of starting an aircraft engine in flight using a source of compressed air to turn the engine over until ignition can occur again. When an engine flames out, there’s no rotation by the starter from the ground, so a pneumatic starter—supplied by the aircraft’s bleed air system or an external air source—is used to spin the engine and re-establish the airflow and ignition. This distinguishes it from starting on the ground, which uses ground equipment, and from a generic engine restart, which doesn’t specify the in-flight, air-driven method. In-flight ignition isn’t the standard term for initiating the restart; the accepted name for this procedure is air start.