Talk:Flight recorder

Origin of Black Box Terminology

As it stands, the sources in the terminology section of the article only provide support for individual cases where the term "black box" was in use and do not specifically establish when the phrase was in widespread use nor that there is a connection between earlier non-flight recorder aviation uses. For example, the reference for the claim: When modern flight recorders were proposed to the British Aeronautical Research Council in 1958, the term "black box" was in colloquial use by experts actually states [o]ne of the officials, a Mr E. Newton of the Accident Investigation Branch, made the earliest recorded description of the device as a 'black box'. If anything, this sounds like the opposite of what the sentence in the article suggests, as "earliest recorded description" of implies the term was not in widespread use. The other sources are simply instances of the use of the term at a single point in time and do not make broader inferences about how the term developed or was used. The cited 1944 "Aerial Eavesdropper" article, does not use the term "black box", for instance. (Furthermore, despite what the article suggest for future usage, note that public awareness of wire recorders during World War II came from recordings of aerial combat, not accident investigation.) Similarly, the 1945 "Radar for Airlines" article is in regards to navigation aids, not flight safety. There is a level of WP:SYNTH going on with the original authors of the section arguing A → B → C → D, when in fact the references only support A → B and C → D, but not B → C.

To be clear, I believe that the claims made in the section are correct, it is just that the sources don't support this. The term very likely began with the philosophical concept of a "black" box as referring to a system in which the internal processes are opaque to the outside viewer. (cf. black project for another aerospace related use of the term "black" in this manner) Although I cannot support this, one possibility is that the phrase arose from pilots, who may have been flying aircraft equipped by engineers with boxes that they were not were not told or did not understand the exact purposes of. Therefore, the boxes would have been "black" to the pilots. Another is that it would have been a useful way of obscuring the true purpose of the devices during World War II when secrecy was paramount. (cf. etymology of the word "tank" or the designation of the FP-45 pistol. Indeed, it seems that British scientists were already keenly aware of the descriptive importance attached to a name, as evidenced by the conjecture about the Wotan radio system.)

A "terminology" section is a necessary a portion of the article, as one of the most common questions asked about flight recorders is "why are they called black boxes". So it can't be eliminated. The problem is that it's hard to find references that support the entire chain of connections from the philosophical concept to the modern crash investigation devices. This is likely for a number of reasons: there are so many levels of abstraction, only one link in the chain is relevant to the subject discussed in the reference (i.e. most papers on flight recorders are focused on technical aspects, not the history), the author is simply not aware of the full sequence of connections, and/or the process by which the modern meaning of the term was constructed was not an intentional choice (as is the case with many technical terms in aviation) and was sufficiently extensive that no individual was involved in the entire process.

Again, fully aware that I myself have done a significant amount of WP:OR in the course of this post and to return to the question at hand, what we need is a source that can tie each piece of the story together. –Noha307 (talk) 16:57, 16 December 2025 (UTC)

The most obvious improvement to me is to revise the first claim to "...British phrase, associated with..." As for when the term came into general use: 1967 as I claimed and supported as it is dubious to believe the phrase preceded the general adoption of the FDR and CVR devices. As for the missing B>C connection I'd have to fall back on two conversations I participated/listened in with the late Col. Jesse P. Jacobs, Jr., USAF (1923-2016) and Lt. Col. Dallas L. Jacobs, Jr. USAF (1923-2013). Col. Jacobs (Test Pilot Hall of Fame and VT engineering grad) completed Empire Test Pilot School in 1953 in Boscombe Down, England flying over 20 British aircraft types during his tour there. Lt. Col. Jacobs did not fly on the 1943 B-17 mission testing the wire voice recorder but was a pilot in the squadron, flew other missions with the crew, and saved the newspaper report on the mission consistent with his interest. I do not want to suggest or claim without support that the term "black box" originated with CVR/FRD development but explain why something orange today is called "black." It seems I have the advantage of personally knowing two gentlemen who were present during key developments. Without Wikipedia, that historical knowledge dies with me. What do you suggest? Let's get this right. ChristopherLJacobs (talk) 21:07, 8 July 2026 (UTC)