kick the tires and light the fires
(US, military slang, used by fighter pilots) To take off.
Definitions
#1·Apr 27, 2026
(US, military slang, used by fighter pilots) To take off.
1998, Jimmy Buffett, A Pirate Looks at Fifty (2000 Random House edition), , [https://books.google.ca/books?id=yL_ugvhprYcC&pg=PA108&dq=pilot+%22kick+the+tires+and+light+the+fires%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwix1qu5yMzPAhUq0oMKHX_yBfAQ6AEIITA…
Origin: From kick the tires, referring to a preflight check of the landing gear, and light the fires, referring to the ignition of the afterburners, a part of the engine which burns extra fuel for a speed boost. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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Other words near "kick the tires and light the fires" (K)
kick rockskicks and giggleskick shitkick someone's asskick some tailkicksterkick tokick upkick up the arsekick withkick with the other footkiddhoge
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