Glossary of Transportation Law Terms

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Fairlie Locomotive: An articulated type of locomotive designed by Robert F Fairlie in 1865.  The design was popular on narrow gauge lines.  The frame was mounted on to one or two engine units which could move independently.  The engine units could have leading and trailing trucks.  A double Fairlie had two engine units, a single Fairlie one, the other being replaced by a bogie.  The double Fairlie appeared to have two boilers but this was not the case.  They had a single boiler with a firebox and cab in the middle and a smokebox at each end.  The cab was in the middle, and the boiler barrel ran right through it, with the driver on one side and the fireman on the other.  The driver on a double Fairlie controlled the water supply to the boiler as well as driving, leaving the fireman to look after the fire.  This saved space on the fireman's side of the cab.  Over 500 Fairlies were built in the USA including, in 1871 the Mason-Fairlie locomotive.  They were also used in Russia, India, Australia, and New Zealand.  The Fell locomotives used in New Zealand were Fairlies.

Fair Use: The use of a portion of copyrighted material in a way that does not infringe the owner's rights. The use of a portion of material for educational purposes, literary criticism or news reporting is often considered a fair use.

Fiduciary Duty: An obligation to act in the best interest of another party. For instance, a corporation's board member has a fiduciary duty to the shareholders, a trustee has a fiduciary duty to the trust's beneficiaries, and an attorney has a fiduciary duty to a client.

Final Judgment: The written ruling on a lawsuit by the judge who presided at trial. This completes the case unless it is appealed to a higher court. May also be called a final decree or final decision

Firebox: The compartment at the rear of the boiler which houses the fire.  The firebox is where the fuel, usually coal, but it can be wood or oil, is burnt to provide the heat to boil the water in the boiler.  The firebox consists of two copper or steel enclosures, the outer firebox and the inner firebox.  They are connected by 'stays', bolts which keep the inner box rigid within the outer box.  Normally, the stays are threaded at each end and are screwed into the steel plates of the firebox.  The ends are hammered down as a seal.

Flight Controls: Controls in a cockpit for flying an aircraft; primary flight controls are wheel, yoke, cyclic, pedals, throttle, and collective; secondary flight controls are flight controls other than primary, such as flaps, slats, stabilizer, and landing gear.

Flight Engineer: A flight engineer is responsible for maintaining his assigned aircraft and performing non-rated crew duties. He is the supervisor and primary trainer for the crew chief and mechanics assigned to the aircraft. The commander selects NCM's to perform FE duties based upon proficiency, experience, and rank.

Flight Plan: A predetermined route, possibly including guidance modes, communications, and mission objectives, used by guidance and mission management for moding and planning; Series of navigation reference points, waypoints, and mode commands for navigation, radio navigation, guidance, and flight director.

Force Majeure: The title of a common clause in contracts, exempting the parties for non-fulfillment of their obligations as a result of conditions beyond their control, such as earthquakes, floods or war.

Foremast: Mast closest to the front of the ship.

Foreseeability: A key issue in determining a person's liability. If a defendant could not reasonably have foreseen that someone might be hurt by his or her actions, then there may be no liability.

Frame: A transverse timber, or line or assembly of timbers, that described the body shape of a vessel and to which the planking and ceiling were fastened. Frames were sometimes called timbers, or erroneously, ribs.

Freeway: Generally a freeway is a grade separated divided highway designed for high speeds. Contrary to popular belief, a freeway is not a highway "free" from tolls. The "free" in freeway instead refers to a legislative definition passed by in California, which provided for a highway that would be free of encroaching properties and which provided for control of access. At the time this was very controversial since property owners next to the road could have no rights of direct access.

Freight: Refers to either the cargo carried or the charges assessed for carriage of the cargo.