What you need to know about airplane lighting

Curious about how airplanes communicate through their lighting? White lights, red lights, and green lights: why so many colors and what do they mean exactly? You'll find out in this blog.

For airplanes, lights are essential. Not only to see a few meters ahead in the darkness but also for safety and communication. The different colors of lights play an important role in avoiding collisions and conveying the pilot's intentions. But how does it work exactly?

Airplanes have multiple types of lights. I will discuss the most important ones with you:

1. Anti-collision lights

Anti-collision lights are designed to enhance safety both during the day and at night. There are two types of anti-collision lights: white and red.

At night, you often see white flashing dots in a dark sky. These are the white anti-collision lights that can be seen from miles away. These lights are not used during the taxiing process because they are so bright and can blind other pilots. Pilots activate the white anti-collision lights just before take-off and turn them off immediately after landing.

Secondly, there are red anti-collision lights. As soon as an aircraft starts its engines, these lights must be on. They remain on throughout the entire flight until the aircraft is back at the gate and its engines are shut down. These lights serve as a powerful visual signal for ground personnel to indicate that the engines are running and that it is not safe to approach the aircraft.

2. Navigation or position lights

Navigation lights, also known as position lights, help other aircraft determine your position and direction relative to them. These lights are vital for quickly identifying collision risks and conveying the pilot's flight intentions.

When you encounter another aircraft in the air, you can see which direction it is flying thanks to the colors. The left wingtip has a red light, the right wingtip has a green light.

"A mnemonic to remember this: your "red" heart is on the left side of your body".

In addition the rear of the aircraft has white lights.

• If you see a white light, the aircraft is flying away from you.

• If you see green on the left and red on the right, the aircraft is flying directly towards you.

3. Landing and taxi lights

Landing and taxi lights are bright, forward-facing white lights, similar to car headlights. Landing lights are aimed higher to illuminate the landing zone during the final phase of landing. Taxi lights are aimed slightly lower to illuminate taxiways without blinding other pilots.

In addition to these three types of lights, there are several other types of lighting on airplanes. It is important to be able to distinguish these lights clearly and quickly. While most people can distinguish colors without any issues, many people, especially men, suffer from color blindness. What is that exactly? Let me explain it to you.

As a little boy, I always looked up at the sky. I would immediately spot airplanes and be completely captivated by them. "I become a pilot when I grow up", I promised my parents. Unfortunately, this dream was shattered after an unexpected discovery.

An unforgettable lesson

During biology class, we were dissecting the eye. We learned all about the retina, rods, and cones. But what if the cones didn't work properly? "No problem, you see perfectly, except for a few color combinations", said my teacher. He showed a picture:

I looked at the picture, and while he explained, "Someone who is colorblind will read the number 21 here. Normal people see 74." I paused for a moment, thinking I must have misunderstood. "Normal people see 74", I repeated in my head.

"Oh no!" I thought to myself. “I see 21!” And that's how I discovered that I have difficulty distinguishing certain colors.

Red and green

The dream of becoming a pilot in commercial aviation had to be turned down. But why exactly? At night, colors play a more critical role than during the day in an aircraft. When you encounter another aircraft in the sky, you can determine its direction based on colors.

At the end of the left wing, there's a red light, and at the end of the right wing, there's a green light. Secondly, if the radio equipment fails, air traffic control communicates using red and green colors. The ability to distinguish these colors is crucial.

Especially during nighttime flights, the significance of distinguishing colors takes on heightened importance. In the absence of natural light, the colors of navigation lights serve as a language that pilots use to maintain safe distances and orientations. Red and green lights on wingtips not only indicate the direction a fellow aircraft is traveling but also help in preventing collisions.

Approximately 1 in 12 men have color blindness, corresponding to 8%. For women, this condition occurs in only 0.4% of cases. This discrepancy arises because the genes for color blindness are more likely to manifest in men due to the anomaly being located on the X chromosome.

Naturally, there are various variations in Daltonism. Some variants allow individuals to see certain colors, while others may impede perception. In the photo above, for instance, I read the numbers in chronological order as 12, 2, 42, 21, 6. Some are perceived accurately, while others are not, illustrating the diversity in Daltonism.

In summary

Although Daltonism, or partial color blindness, stands in the way of my dream to become a commercial pilot, it doesn't mean the end of my passion for flying. In 2022, I became a flight attendant, passed a (less strict) color test, and now I fly across Europe with a smile on my face.

So, don't let setbacks in life discourage you, but instead, use them as opportunities to explore other careers!

Safe flight and see you soon!

By: Rico Valkenborgh | June 27, 2024