Landing,taxi and logo lights

[pkonowrocki]

Do u have to turn on your logo, landing and taxi lights everytime u are landing ??? I saw an LOL763 landing today on YYZ about 6pm with landing, taxi and logo lights off. And it was the only aircraft with those lights off ??? Is required to turn them on ???

[G-DALE]

Most of the time, yes. The taxi light goes on once you commence your taxi to the runway and then once you get there the landing lights are also switched on. After takeoff, both will have been switched off by the time of reaching 10,000ft.

For landing, both the landing and taxi lights are on during the approach until vacating the runway after landing. Then the landing lights are switched off and the taxi light remains on until reaching the gate.

As for the tail logo light, it seems to be either used at the flight crew's discretion or it may even be down to airline SOPs? I've seen hundreds of aircraft on approach into Manchester at night and some do and some don't have it switched on. Can anyone confirm?

Cheers,

Dale

[Genessee]

Some time ago someone on one of these aviation boards was talking about an airline whos pilots weren't happy with the airline (US Airways seems familiar to me) and refused to turn the tail lights on. One pilot forgot to leave them off and other pilots we're flashing theirs to get his attention/remind him to turn the lights off.

From sitting around the airport or on my balcony at dusk/night, Air Canada tail lights are mixed, sometimes they're on, sometimes not. Westjet tails are almost always lit.

[screaming_emu]

Not that many people here care about little planes, but with the planes we have here, this is how we operate the lights.

During the day, before we start the engines, we turn on the strobe lights. This signals to everybody around that we're about to start the engine. If the airplane has a rotating beacon (most here dont) we turn that on too.

Landing light and recognition lights (like landing lights but on the wingtips) come on before we take the runway. The Landing light goes off after we're about 4-5 miles from the airport. Recog lights are at pilots discretion. If there are a lot of planes out using the practice area I'm going to, I keep them on.

On approach for landing, recogs come on (if they're not already on) when we start heading back towards grand forks (or wherever we're goin). Landing light comes on within 4-5 miles from the airport.

At night things are a little different. Before start the nav lights (red and green on the wingtips, and white on the back) come on. If we have a rotating beacon that comes on as well. You dont want to turn the strobes on at night because it can ruin other people's night vision. Strobes come on as you cross the hold short line onto the runway.

[ptbodale]

Nav lights are a no-go item. They must be lit.

Strobes are turned off when you exit the taxi-way (on when you get out to the taxiway). Never use them on the Ramp.

The rotating beacon may be inop, however your strobes must be operational.

This quote is an insult to all Air Canada employees...even when used in jest.
"the moral: WestJet pilots are proud, Air Canada pilots are ashamed"


Dale

[pkonowrocki]

Thx people. Yea when I watch airplanes landing most of them have tail lights on (BA, Lufthansa, AC, Westjet, Aeroflot, AA, UA etc.) but this one really shocked me cause i thought they are mendatory.

[AJ]

Our company SOPs call for Nav and Logo lights to be on during hours of darkness. Logo lights go off above 10,000 feet except when transiting Indonesian, PNG and Afgani airspace.

Some aircraft do not have logo lights fitted. In our fleet many of the Boeing 737-476s do not have logo lights as they were an option not taken up.

[Airbus_A320]

Our company SOPs call for Nav and Logo lights to be on during hours of darkness. Logo lights go off above 10,000 feet except when transiting Indonesian, PNG and Afgani airspace.

Some aircraft do not have logo lights fitted. In our fleet many of the Boeing 737-476s do not have logo lights as they were an option not taken up.
Whats the reason the lights are to be turned on when passing over those countries?

[AJ]

Collision avoidance basically.

[pkonowrocki]

Collision avoidance basically.
Is it because these countries' airspace is so small or the ATC is so bad ??? Or maybe other reason ?. Btw. how about "runway turnover lights" or something like that. R those considered to be taxi or landing ???

[AJ]

Due to non-radar ATC or tense airspace.

Runway Turnoff Lights ar often used in conjunction with taxi lights, they generally shine at about 45 degrees to the aircraft to illuminate the taxiway you are about to turn in to.

[pkonowrocki]

Due to non-radar ATC or tense airspace.

Runway Turnoff Lights ar often used in conjunction with taxi lights, they generally shine at about 45 degrees to the aircraft to illuminate the taxiway you are about to turn in to.
Oh ok. Is it very dangerouse to fly over these countires ???

[LRJet Guy]

Here's ours:

Logo lights: Pilots discretion
Nav lights: on when the aircraft is powered up
Beacon: on before engine start.
Taxi light: on for night taxi while aircraft is moving, turn it off when its not. Also turn it on when cleared to land.
Flare lights: On when cleared for the approach.
Landing lights: On below 10k or cruise alt if lower.

Takeoff with everything on, shut off flare and taxi lights at 1500ft.

[ojjunior]

Here's ours:

Logo lights: Pilots discretion
Nav lights: on when the aircraft is powered up
Beacon: on before engine start.
Taxi light: on for night taxi while aircraft is moving, turn it off when its not. Also turn it on when cleared to land.
Flare lights: On when cleared for the approach.
Landing lights: On below 10k or cruise alt if lower.

Takeoff with everything on, shut off flare and taxi lights at 1500ft.

Excuse me, which lights are the Flare lights?

[Myriad]

When moving an aircraft its always Navigation Lights, Beacon Lights and Logo Lights... the latter being a personal preference...

Thats from an engineering P.O.V.

[meneses24]

Regarding the landing lights, some airlines have different "internal regulations"that may let the pilot turn on/off the ldg light above/below 10k. I think Ryanair turns them off/on at 12k, I'm not sure, and also AA and all the companies may have a different altitude for that

[Crunk415balla]

I rarely see an airliner land at night with no lights on, the only one I can recall was a WN 733 at SJC, not even the lights on the wingtips were on, I wonder if they just decided not to use them.

[LRJet Guy]

I rarely see an airliner land at night with no lights on, the only one I can recall was a WN 733 at SJC, not even the lights on the wingtips were on, I wonder if they just decided not to use them.

The logo lights on some 37's are on the wingtips.

The Dash has 2 lights in the leading edge of each wing. One is the approach light, the other is the flare light. I think that's Canandian talk for landing light since officially there is no such thing on a Dash 8.

[screaming_emu]

I rarely see an airliner land at night with no lights on, the only one I can recall was a WN 733 at SJC, not even the lights on the wingtips were on, I wonder if they just decided not to use them.

only plane I've seen land without any lights on is a C-130 at night time and not even the runway lights were on. Damn cool...I want me some night vision goggles.

[uy707]

only plane I've seen land without any lights on is a C-130 at night time and not even the runway lights were on. Damn cool...I want me some night vision goggles.

Before the end of Apartheid in South Africa, South African private owned operators used to land in lots of locations up north to deliver what were termed locally as
- "untalkable supplies" in french "Fournitures inavouables" and officially registered as such in the economic yearly reports !!!
Dely of unmentionable imports were usually made by Safair Herkies which landed in the middle of the night and took off before dawn off-course. Everything to make them unoticed included among others
- landing lights off
- closure to public of the otherwise open terminal.

Other reported/mentioned cases of landing and taking lights off
- some TAP 707s evacuating Portugese nationals from Luanda in 75
- Biafra civil war 67/70, some DC.6s and Connies pilots practicing the airstrip at Uli this way to avoid being localized by Nigerian Air Force Mig 21s and Hawker Hunters.

Alain