A ramp is a dedicated space at an airport where an aircraft is parked after its arrival at the airport. It is the place where passenger boarding or disembarkation takes place and where different aircraft servicing activities are performed to prepare the aircraft for its departure. The ramp is typically paved and leased by a particular company for storing, holding, and tying down their aircraft. Some people refer to ramps as an apron, and both terms are interchangeable and typically correct. The use of the term ramp has its roots in airports that serve both seaplanes and traditional airplanes as a literal ramp from the water to the airfield. The apron, ramp, or tarmac is the area of an airport where aircraft are parked, unloaded or loaded, refueled, boarded, or maintained. Passenger gates are the main feature of a terminal ramp, and the word apron is the ICAO and FAA terminology, so the word ramp is not used with this meaning outside the US, Canada, the Maldives, and the Philippines.