A typical commercial airplane features several types of exterior lights. In addition to tax lights, for instance, most of them feature landing lights. When preparing to land at night, pilots will use these lights to improve their visibility.
What Are Lighting Lights?
Landing lights are the equivalent of automotive headlights for airplanes. They are exterior lights that, when activated, provide nighttime illumination.
Not all landings take place during the daytime. Research shows that there are over 100,000 flights per day. While landings occur during the daytime, others occur at night. And without sunlight, pilots must rely on other navigation methods when landing, such as landing lights. Landing lights will illuminate the surrounding space so that pilots can safely land.
Landing lights serve the following purposes:
- Help pilots see the runway when landing at night
- Allow other pilots to see the airplane at night
- Lower the risk of collision
- Improve the visibility of the airplane for air traffic controllers
Where Are Landing Lights Located?
You can find landing lights on different parts of an airplane. Some airplanes feature them on the wings. The leading edges of an airplane’s wings may feature a set of landing lights.
On other airplanes, landing lights may be mounted to the fuselage. The underside of the fuselage may feature a set of landing lights that project downward.
Fixed vs Retractable
Landing lights can further be categorized as fixed or retractable. Fixed landing lights are the most common. As their name suggests, they are static and fixed — just like the headlights on most cars.
Retractable landing lights, on the other hand, can be retracted. Airplanes with retractable landing lights are designed with a cavity. This cavity will house the landing lights when they aren’t in use. As the pilot prepares to land the airplane, he or she will extend the landing lights out of the cavity.
The Strength of Landing Lights
Landing lights are incredibly strong. They consist of high-intensity light bulbs that can effectively beam light over long distances. Some landing lights, in fact, can be seen from over 100 miles away.
The strength of an airplane’s landing lights is often relative to the aircraft’s size. Larger airplanes typically have stronger landing lights. Nonetheless, landing lights on large commercial airplanes can be seen from over 100 miles away due to their exceptional strength.
In Conclusion
Landing lights are an important safety feature on airplanes. They illuminate the airplane’s exterior at night so that pilots can see the runway. By providing a clear view of the runway and improving the visibility of the airplane, landing lights help to reduce the risk of accidents.
