split S

noun

An aerobatic maneuver in which an aircraft, starting from upright level flight, rolls inverted and then performs one-half of an inside loop, ending up in upright level flight in the opposite direction at a lower altitude; equivalent to an Immelmann turn (modern sense) performed in reverse.

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Meanings

nounsplit S (plural split Ses)

plural split Ses · alternative split-S

  1. aeronauticsAn aerobatic maneuver in which an aircraft, starting from upright level flight, rolls inverted and then performs one-half of an inside loop, ending up in upright level flight in the opposite direction at a lower altitude; equivalent to an Immelmann turn (modern sense) performed in reverse.

Origin

Named for the resemblance of the aircraft's flightpath to the upper or lower half of the letter S (an aircraft performing two split Ses in sequence, with the first split S leading immediately into the second, would trace out a flightpath in the shape of a vertical S).

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Cite this entry
APA

split S. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/split%20S

MLA

“split S.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/split%20S. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “split S,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/split%20S.

Source: split S on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.