Definitions, as published
The definition of each term exactly as its official source words it, with the article or page it comes from.
| Term slug | Definition text | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| mail-carried-on-an-aircraft | Dispatches of correspondence and other objects carried on an aircraft, which have been dispatched by and intended for delivery to postal administrations. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-27, p. 135 |
| mail-loaded-onto-and-unloaded-from-an-aircraft | Any mail loaded onto or unloaded from an aircraft. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-28, p. 135 |
| mail-on-board-an-aircraft | All mail on board during each flight stage, including mail loaded and direct transit mail. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-29, p. 135 |
| diplomatic-bag | Mail pouch used by governments to send official letters and dispatches. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-30, p. 136 |
| mail-tonne-kilometres-performed-by-flight-stage | Metric tonne of freight revenue load carried one kilometre. Tonne-kilometres performed are obtained by multiplying the total number of tonnes of mail revenue load carried on the flight stage by the airport-to-airport distance. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-31, p. 136 |
| mail-tonne-kilometres-performed-by-on-flight-origin-destination-airports | Metric tonne of freight revenue load carried one kilometre. Tonne-kilometres performed are obtained by multiplying the total number of tonnes of mail revenue load carried between two airports as the initial origin and the final destination by the airport-to-airport distance. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-32, p. 136 |
| total-freight-mail-at-reporting-airport | Sum of the total freight and mail, both loaded and unloaded, at the reporting airport. All trucking operations using an air waybill should be excluded. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-33, p. 136 |
| categories-of-goods-carried-by-air | Goods in transport may be classified according to type. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-34, p. 136 |
| dangerous-goods-carried-by-air | Classes of dangerous goods carried by air are those defined by the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods: ʱ class 1: explosives; ʱ class 2: gases; ʱ class 3: flammable liquids; ʱ class 4: flammable solids; substances liable to spontaneous combustion; substances that, on contact with water, emit flammable gases; ʱ class 5: oxidising substances and organic peroxides; ʱ class 6: toxic and infectious substances; ʱ class 7: radioactive material; ʱ class 8: corrosive substances; ʱ class 9: miscellaneous dangerous substances and articles, including environmentally hazardous substances. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-35, p. 136 |
| payload-carried-on-an-aircraft | Revenue load of passengers, baggage, freight and mail carried on an aircraft as measured in metric tonnes. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-36, p. 136 |
| revenue-tonne-kilometres-performed-by-an-aircraft | Metric tonne of revenue load carried one kilometre. Tonne-kilometres performed equal the sum of the products obtained by multiplying the total number of tonnes of each category of revenue load carried by the airport-to- airport distance. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-37, p. 136 |
| weight-load-factor-of-an-aircraft | Total revenue tonne-kilometres performed by an aircraft (see F.V-37) expressed as a percentage of tonne- kilometres available on an aircraft (see F.IV-33). ## F.VI. Air accidents | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.V-38, p. 137 |
| air-accident | Occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft that, in the case of a manned aircraft, takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight until such time as all such persons have disembarked or, in the case of an unmanned aircraft, takes place between the time the aircraft is ready to move with the purpose of flight until such time it comes to rest at the end of the flight and the primary propulsion system is shut down in which any of the following occurs. a) A person is fatally or seriously injured as a result of being in the aircraft, or direct contact with any part of the aircraft, including parts that have become detached from the aircraft, or direct exposure to jet blast, except when the injuries are from natural causes, self-inflicted or inflicted by other persons, or when the injuries are to stowaways hiding outside the areas normally available to passengers and crew. b) The aircraft sustains damage or structural failure which adversely affects the structural strength, performance or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component, except for engine failure or damage, when the damage is limited to a single engine, (including its cowlings or accessories), to propellers, wing tips, antennas, probes, vanes, tires, brakes, wheels, fairings, panels, landing gear doors, windscreens, the aircraft skin (such as small dents or puncture holes) or minor damages to main rotor blades, tail rotor blades, landing gear, and those resulting from hail or bird strike, (including holes in the radome). c) The aircraft is missing or is completely inaccessible. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-01, p. 137 |
| air-incident | Occurrence, other than an accident, associated with the operation of an aircraft that affects or could affect the safety of operation. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-02, p. 137 |
| serious-air-incident | Air incident involving circumstances indicating that an accident nearly occurred. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-03, p. 137 |
| fatal-air-injury | Injury resulting in death within 30 days of the date of the air accident. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-04, p. 137 |
| non-fatal-air-injury | Injury, other than a fatal injury, sustained by a person in an air accident. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-05, p. 137 |
| serious-air-injury | Non-fatal injury, sustained by a person in an air accident and that: a) requires hospitalisation for more than 48 hours, commencing within seven days from the date the injury was received; or b) results in a fracture of any bone (except simple fractures of fingers, toes or nose); or c) involves lacerations that cause severe haemorrhage, nerve, muscle or tendon damage; or d) involves injury to any internal organ; or e) involves second- or third-degree burns, or any burns affecting more than 5 % of the body surface; or f) involves verified exposure to infectious substances or injurious radiation. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-06, p. 137 |
| slight-air-injury | Non-fatal injury, other than a serious injury, sustained by a person in an air accident. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-07, p. 138 |
| state-of-occurrence-of-an-air-accident-or-incident | Country in the national territory of which an air accident or incident occurs. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-08, p. 138 |
| state-of-the-air-transport-operator | Country in which the air transport operator’s principal place of business is located or, if there is no such place of business, the air transport operator’s country of permanent residence. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-09, p. 138 |
| state-of-registry-of-the-aircraft | Country on whose register the aircraft is entered. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-10, p. 138 |
| air-accident-on-national-territory | Air accident on the national territory of a country. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-11, p. 138 |
| air-accident-on-a-nationally-registered-aircraft | Air accident involving an aircraft on the national aircraft register of a country. ## G.I. Introduction to intermodal transport | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), F.VI-12, p. 138 |
| mode-of-freight-transport | Means of transport used for the carriage of goods. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-01, p. 140 |
| multimodal-freight-transport | Transport of goods using at least two modes of transport. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-02, p. 140 |
| intermodal-transport | The movement of goods in one and the same ITU (see G.II-01), which uses several modes of transport successively without handling the goods themselves when changing modes. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-03, p. 140 |
| combined-transport | Intermodal transport where the major part is by rail, inland waterways or sea and any initial and/or final legs carried out by road are: ʱ between the point where the goods are loaded and the nearest suitable rail loading station for the initial leg and between the nearest suitable rail unloading station and the point where the goods are unloaded for the final leg; or ʱ within a radius not exceeding 150 km as the crow flies from the inland waterway port or seaport of loading or unloading. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-04, p. 141 |
| piggyback-transport | Transport of road vehicles by rail. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-05, p. 141 |
| rolling-road | Transport of complete road vehicles, using ro-ro techniques, on trains normally composed entirely of low-floor wagons. Rolling road is a specific type of piggyback transport. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-06, p. 141 |
| transhipment | Operation of moving ITUs (see G.II-01) from one mode of transport to another. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-07, p. 141 |
| roll-on-roll-off-ro-ro | Loading and unloading of a road vehicle, a wagon or an ITU (see G.II-01) onto or off a train or vessel on its own wheels or wheels attached to it for that purpose. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-07.1, p. 141 |
| lift-on-lift-off-lo-lo | Loading and unloading of an ITU (see G.II-01) using lifting equipment. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-07.2, p. 141 |
| intermodal-transport-terminal | Facility equipped for the transhipment (see G.I-07) of ITUs (see G.II-01) serving at least two modes of transport. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-08, p. 142 |
| logistics-centre | Geographical grouping of companies and bodies that are involved in freight transport (e.g. freight forwarders, shippers, transport operators and customs) and have accompanying services (e.g. storage, maintenance and repair), including at least one terminal. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.I-09, p. 142 |
| intermodal-transport-unit-itu | Container, swap body, semi-trailer, trailer or goods road motor vehicle suitable for intermodal transport. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-01, p. 142 |
| container | Special box designed to carry freight and constituting a type of ITU. It is strengthened and stackable, allowing both horizontal and vertical transfers. A more formal technical definition of a container is: article of transport equipment that is: a) of a permanent character and accordingly strong enough to be suitable for repeated use; b) specially designed to facilitate the carriage of goods, by one or more modes of transport, without intermediate reloading; c) fitted with devices permitting its ready handling, particularly its transfer from one mode of transport to another; d) so designed as to be easy to fill and empty; e) stackable; and f) having an internal volume of one cubic metre or more. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-02, p. 142 |
| loaded-container | A container is considered loaded when any kind of goods is transported inside the container. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-02.1, p. 143 |
| empty-container | A container is considered empty when the container does not have any goods inside. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-02.2, p. 143 |
| tare-weight-of-container | The tare weight of a container is included in the total weight of the containerised goods transported, also called the gross-gross weight of goods. The gross weight of containerised goods transported can be calculated from the gross-gross weight by deducting the tare weight of the container and vice versa. If information about the tare weight is missing, then the tare weight may be estimated using the averages below. The tare weight of a container may be estimated as: a) 20-foot ISO container: 2.3 tonnes; b) 40-foot ISO container: 3.7 tonnes; c) ISO container over 20 feet and under 40 feet in length: 3.0 tonnes; d) ISO container over 40 feet in length: 4.7 tonnes. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-03, p. 143 |
| types-of-containers | The main types of containers, as defined by the ISO Standards Handbook on Freight Containers, are: 1\. general purpose containers; 2. specific purpose containers: ʱ closed ventilated container; ʱ open top container; ʱ open-sided platform-based container; ʱ open-sided platform-based container with complete superstructure; ʱ open-sided platform-based container with incomplete superstructure and fixed ends; ʱ open-sided platform-based container with incomplete superstructure and folding ends; ʱ platform (container); 3\. specific cargo containers: ʱ thermal container; ʱ insulated container; ʱ refrigerated container (expendable refrigerant); ʱ mechanically refrigerated container; ʱ heated container; ʱ refrigerated and heated container; ʱ tank container; ʱ dry bulk container; ʱ named cargo container (automobile, livestock, etc.); ʱ air mode container. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-04, p. 143 |
| twenty-foot-equivalent-unit-teu | Statistical unit based on a 20-foot-long (6.10 m) ISO container to provide a standardised measure of containers of various capacities and for describing the capacity of container ships or terminals. ʱ One 20-foot ISO container (length of 20 ft and width of 8 ft) equals 1 TEU. ʱ One 40-foot ISO container (length of 40 ft and width of 8 ft) equals 2 TEU. ʱ One container with a length between 20 ft and 40 ft equals 1.50 TEU. ʱ One container with a length of more than 40 ft equals 2.25 TEU. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-05, p. 144 |
| high-cube-container | Container with a height of nine feet, six inches. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-06, p. 144 |
| super-high-cube-container | Container that exceeds the ISO dimensions. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-07, p. 144 |
| swap-body | Freight-carrying unit optimised to road vehicle dimensions and fitted with handling devices for transfer between modes, usually road/rail. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-08, p. 144 |
| unit-load | Group of individual packages bonded, palletised or strapped together to form a single unit for more efficient handling by mechanical equipment. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-09, p. 144 |
| flat-container | Loadable platform having no superstructure whatsoever but having the same length and width as the base of a container and equipped with top and bottom corner fittings. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-10, p. 144 |
| pallet | Raised platform, intended to facilitate the lifting and stacking of goods. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-11, p. 144 |
| wagon-for-intermodal-transport | Wagon specially built or equipped for the transport of ITUs (see G.II-01). Types of wagons are: ʱ pocket wagon: rail wagon with a recessed pocket to accept the axle/wheel assembly of a semi-trailer; ʱ basket wagon: rail wagon with a demountable subframe, fitted with devices for vertical handling to allow the loading and unloading of semi-trailers or road motor vehicles; ʱ spine wagon: rail wagon with a central chassis designed to carry a semi-trailer; ʱ low-floor wagon: rail wagon with a low loading platform built to carry, inter alia, ITUs; ʱ rolling-road wagon: rail wagon with low floor throughout which, when coupled together, form a rolling-road; ʱ double-stack wagon: rail wagon designed for the transport of containers ʱ stacked on top of each other; ʱ bimodal semi-trailer: a road semi-trailer that can be converted into a rail wagon by the addition of rail bogies. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-12, p. 145 |
| ro-ro-unit | Wheeled piece of equipment for carrying goods, such as a goods road motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer, which can be driven or towed onto a vessel or train. | Glossary for transport statistics, 6th edition (2026), G.II-13, p. 145 |
Sources
- Glossary for Transport Statistics — 6th edition (2026) — Eurostat, UNECE ve ITF-OECD · Reusable with attribution
- UNCTADstat maritime/transport metadata — UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) / UNCTADstat · Reusable with attribution
- IMO conventions and maritime definitions — official definition clauses and terminology pages — International Maritime Organization (IMO) · Reusable with attribution
- U.S. federal air cargo/security definitions associated with ICAO scope — International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO); auxiliary U.S. federal regulatory sources · Public domain
- United States federal transport and customs definitions — GPO / Office of Federal Register / PHMSA-DOT / FMCSA-DOT / FMC / CBP-DHS / U.S. Congress · Public domain
- European Union transport and customs definitions — European Parliament and Council instruments; Publications Office of the EU / EUR-Lex · Reusable with attribution
- Hague–Visby Article I via UK legislation.gov.uk — UN Treaty Collection/UN, UNCITRAL, UNECE, ICAO, OTIF ve UK legislation.gov.uk · Reusable with attribution
- BTS/FMCSA/FMC/CBP/MARAD federal-authored glossary rows — BTS; FMCSA; FMC; CBP; MARAD · Public domain
- United Kingdom official transport and customs terms — HMRC; Department for Transport; Traffic Commissioners/DVSA; UK Parliament/legislation.gov.uk · Reusable with attribution
1,049 further records are on file but not shown, because the publisher's terms do not clearly allow them to be republished.