1. the body of an aircraft without the engine, fuel, or other equipment
Usage: aviation

Examples

• The airframe was manufactured in Seattle before being shipped for final assembly.
• Engineers inspected the airframe for stress fractures after the hard landing.
• The new composite airframe is lighter than traditional aluminum construction.
• Maintenance crews removed the engines to access the airframe structure.
• The airframe design must withstand extreme temperature variations.
• Boeing’s airframe division employs thousands of skilled workers.