holding pattern

剑桥词典

a route followed by a plane above an airport while it waits to land
等待航线，待命航线
We were kept in a holding pattern for 45 minutes at Heathrow. 我们在希思罗机场附近盘旋了45分钟。
 in a holding pattern

temporarily unable to act because you are waiting for something to happen or be decided
等待；待命
We're in a holding pattern while we wait for City Council approval . 在市政局批准之前我们只有等待。 返回 holding pattern