XC stands for cross-country, a category of flight where an aircraft lands at an airport other than its departure point. For pilot certification, these flights must exceed a specific straight-line distance, typically 50 nautical miles in the United States. Pilots log these hours separately to meet the requirements for advanced ratings and commercial licenses.
I need to build another ten hours of solo XC time before I can schedule my instrument checkride.
Student pilots often try to combine their required solo XC hours with flights to airports that have cheap fuel or legendary airport diners.
Related terms
PPL
The Private Pilot Licence is a certification that permits an individual to fly an aircraft for non-commercial purposes.
GA
General aviation covers all civil flying except scheduled passenger airlines and military flights.
Fix
A fix is a specific geographical position determined by visual reference or navigational instruments.