cruising altitude
noun
: the height in the sky at which an airplane stays for most of a flight
The pilot announced that we'd reached cruising altitude.
a cruising altitude of 40,000 feet
Examples of cruising altitude in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At cruising altitude, your sense of taste and smell can dull due to low cabin pressure and dry air. —
Jill Robbins, Travel + Leisure, 18 Apr. 2026 Contrails form when hot aircraft exhaust mixes with very cold, humid air at cruising altitude, causing water vapor to freeze into tiny ice crystals that can spread into thin cirrus clouds. —Ingmar Rentzhog, Forbes.com, 14 Mar. 2026 In that case, a United Boeing 737 Max 8 traveling from Denver to Los Angeles diverted to Salt Lake City after the crew discovered a crack in the aircraft’s multilayer windshield at a cruising altitude of 36,000 feet. —Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 11 Mar. 2026 From the cruising altitude of aircraft like Melnyk's, high above the clouds and far from city light pollution, auroras can appear brighter, sharper and more expansive than from the ground, with clouds and city lights far below. —Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 21 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cruising altitude
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Jill Robbins, Travel + Leisure, 18 Apr. 2026 Contrails form when hot aircraft exhaust mixes with very cold, humid air at cruising altitude, causing water vapor to freeze into tiny ice crystals that can spread into thin cirrus clouds. —Ingmar Rentzhog, Forbes.com, 14 Mar. 2026 In that case, a United Boeing 737 Max 8 traveling from Denver to Los Angeles diverted to Salt Lake City after the crew discovered a crack in the aircraft’s multilayer windshield at a cruising altitude of 36,000 feet. —Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 11 Mar. 2026 From the cruising altitude of aircraft like Melnyk's, high above the clouds and far from city light pollution, auroras can appear brighter, sharper and more expansive than from the ground, with clouds and city lights far below. —Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 21 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cruising altitude
Cite this Entry
“Cruising altitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/cruising%20altitude. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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