Airedales are great dogs, but they are almost entirely Otterhound, and are not true terriers. They do a hound’s job on bear and mountain lion, and have never been used for true terrier work.
Confused? It’s not hard: dog dealers added the term “terrier” to a number of breeds to try to boost interest and sales. Terriers, however, are self-defining: they are small dogs capable of being able to go to ground, hence the root of the word terre or tera (earth). No 50 pound dog is a true terrier.
Airedale’s were once tried out as military and police dogs before German Shepherds proved to be far more biddable.
An old article of mine from Dogs Today spells it out a bit longer.
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