Radar equipment in some ATC facilities operated by the FAA and/or the military services at joint-use civil/military locations and separate military installations to detect and display azimuth, elevation, and range of aircraft on the final approach course to a runway. This equipment may be used to monitor certain nonradar approaches, but is primarily used to conduct a precision instrument approach (PAR) wherein the controller issues guidance instructions to the pilot based on the aircraft’s position in relation to the final approach course (azimuth), the glidepath (elevation), and the distance (range) from the touchdown point on the runway.

Listed in the Pilot/Controller Glossary as a cross-reference to PRECISION APPROACH RADAR, whose text is shown above.

Source FAA Pilot/Controller Glossary↗ · checked 2026-08-25