![]() On top of that, lighting must have the requisite intensity to be fully visible during your current lighting and weather conditions. In order to get the angles right, runway lights must show at angles of 15 degrees above the horizontal. Lights intended to help pilots with circling need to be visible from all possible azimuths. On the most basic level, this means your lights must be visible from 0 to 15 degrees to help pilots take off or land. You must also ensure that you have proper coverage from those lights. Simply having the right light spacing and color outputs is not enough to create a safe airport runway lighting system. And this creates the kind of safe environment that pilots and passengers deserve. Safe runway lighting involves keeping the lighting colors simple and consistent. When the touchdown zone is not near the physical start of the runway, runway landing lights between the displaced threshold and where the runway begins should show red on the approach.Īdditionally, the take-off area may show yellow lighting. In less than 10% of all airports, an obstruction or environmental concern may shift the preferred landing zone, otherwise called a displaced threshold. At airports offering nighttime flights, normal thresholds require red runway end identifier lights (REIL lights) and green runway threshold lights. In more than 90% of runways, the threshold is near the physical start of the runway. Runway threshold lights and markings indicate the aircraft-landing zone. For the most part, runway edge lights are varying shades of white. The actual color of the runway lighting system is very important. Under the FAA’s lighting standards, runway light spacing is 200 feet for both Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) and Visual Flight Rules (VFR) runways. For non-instrument runways, it should be at intervals of no more than 100 meters. For an ICAO instrument runway, the lighting rows should be in intervals of no more than 60 meters. Light spacing is an important part of the configuration. Lights must be placed along the entire length of the runway, in two rows parallel to each other across and equal distance from the runway centerline. In the context of the four Cs, the runway lighting configuration refers to the distance and spacing of the lights on the runway. And that uniformity starts with the configuration of the airport runway lights. If an airport uses federal grants or specific fees to maintain and upgrade their facilities, however, the FAA standards become mandatory.Īirport lighting regulations create a uniform and safe experience for pilots no matter where they fly. ![]() For many airports, including smaller and private fields, these standards are guidelines. In the United States, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) governs airport lighting standards. ![]() This organization is a United Nations agency devoted to the safety and regulation of air transport. While specific regulations may vary slightly from country to country, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) studies and issues international airport lighting standards. It may sound simple, yet a surprising number of those in the air travel industry don’t understand how these elements combine to form a runway lighting system. The performance of airport runway lights is comprised of 4 key attributes: configuration, color, coverage and candela. If you could sum up the most important parts of a plane taking off and landing in four words, they would be the “4 Cs.” ![]()
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