general terminology:

LMC: "living machine community", a term used to describe people who draw anthropomorphic machine artwork

aeromorph: an umbrella term used to describe *all* anthro airplane art (however has become associated more with those of a humanoid design)

anthro plane: an umbrella term used to describe *all* anthro airplane art (however has become associated more with those of a non-humanoid design)

dire machine: a specific type of anthro plane that is composed of a real world machine vehicle infected with alien nanites. dire machines have specific features such as tendrils and mostly stiff, mechanically accurate bodies. dire machines are a concept created by the user Ratbat and you can learn all about them here: https://www.titanatelier.com/faq/ note: just because a living vehicle character is non-humanoid in design, does NOT mean it is a dire machine. this is something E621 and most outsiders to the LMC almost always get wrong.

demi machine: a specific type of anthro plane created by the user IvXair3p (aka Combust) which is also non-humanoid in design, however is of a different composition than Ratbat's dire machines. dire machines are NOT demi machines and vice versa...

aerosaur: a specific type of living aircraft that combines the features of an airplane with those of a dinosaur, typically a pterodactyl of some sort (but not always)

airplane dragon/planedragons: a specific kind of anthro plane that combines aircraft features with furry type characters. they can come in a variety of forms but always appear cartoonish and are typically furry/chibi. this design was created by the user Scpkid and the reference can be found here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/16872234/

pixar/disney: a specific style of anthro plane done in the style made popular by Disney/Pixar for their Cars and Planes film series

stylistic terminology:

humanoid: anthro planes that are humanoid in design, with a bipedal stance and humanoid bodies/limbs

semi-anthro: anthro planes that are not humanoid, but might have other animal-like features (such as 4 legs, dragon wings, etc...) often confused with feral types (but can sometimes be interchangeable)

feral: anthro planes that are non-humanoid in design, resembling a living version of their real-world counterparts (to a varying degree of accuracy)

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this could have been a lot more detailed, but i figured i'd clear up the major terms/styles seen in the LMC (from the perspective of an outsider just discovering the concept) cuz all too often people get this stuff wrong and then it only leads to further confusion, especially on places like E621 or Youtube.

like with anything there are exceptions to these terms, and there are more specific examples based on individual users and their own unique takes on the concept of an anthro vehicle. the variety is basically endless for those attempting to make the concept their own rather than emulating some of the more popular styles, so you basically have to take it on a case by case basis...however knowing these terms will give you a good foundational approach towards living aircraft related art =D