Jump seat

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A jump seat (or "jumpseat"), officially known as an auxiliary crew station, is a seat in an aircraft cockpit for individuals not operating the aircraft. These might include training pilots, off-duty crew in transition to another airport, government officials (such as Federal Aviation Administration staff), or other airline staff.

Sometimes the term is also used to refer to the crew seats located in the cabin, occupied by a flight attendant or other cabin crew during takeoff and landing. These cabin jump seats usually fold up and out of the way when not in use to keep aisles, workspaces, and emergency exit routes clear.

Some aircraft have no jump seats in the cockpit, while others have one or even two. These might be stand-alone seats, or fold out or up like flight attendant jump seats. Either type of jump seat may sometimes be used by authorized off-duty staff (and in some cases the employee of another airline, or some other specifically authorized person) engaging in personal non-revenue travel, when no passenger seats are available in the cabin (a practice known as jumpseating). Increased security requirements for the flight deck since September 11, 2001 have meant a tightening of restrictions on who is allowed to use the jump seat.