Lamp types and regulations
– Red lamps that are either constantly illuminated or turn on and off slowly in a cycle of a few seconds.
– White xenon flash lamps.
– New regulations in the United Kingdom stipulate the use of red lamps at nighttime only.
– Xenon flashers are gradually being phased out in the United Kingdom.
– In the United States and Canada, there are several types of lights including obstruction lights, red beacons/red strobes, high-intensity white (strobe) lights, and medium-intensity white (strobe) lights.
Structure and location
– Lamp types are used on tall structures such as broadcast masts, towers, water tanks, electricity pylons, chimneys, tall buildings, cranes, and wind turbines.
– Shorter structures near airports may also require lighting.
– The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) sets standards for aviation warning lamps.
– Lights are usually arranged in clusters at specific heights on the structure.
– The United Kingdom’s Belmont mast has nine clusters of red lamps spaced equally along its height.
Use and positioning
– Warning lights are attached to tall structures to make them visible to aircraft.
– The positioning of lights is specified by ICAO standards.
– Lights are usually arranged in clusters at specific heights on the structure.
– The top of the structure and other equally spaced sets of lights are common arrangements.
– The south scoreboard at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin is an example of a structure requiring lighting due to its proximity to an airport.
Conductor marking lights
– Conductor marking lights are used to make overhead power lines more visible.
– Power lines present a hazard to low flying aircraft, especially when suspended between widely spaced masts.
– Marking lights can be installed directly on the wires.
– Technical difficulties arise in extracting power from the distribution system.
– Lights can be powered from the electric or magnetic field surrounding the energized wire.
Non-standard aircraft warning lights
– Some tall structures have non-standard aircraft warning lights installed.
– The mast of Deutschlandsender Herzberg/Elster is lit by skybeamers mounted on small masts near the tower.
– Stuttgart TV Tower carries a rotating light assembly mounted atop, similar to lighthouses.
– The last operational aerial lighthouse in the United Kingdom is on top of the cupola over the RAF College main hall at RAF Cranwell.
– Spain has only 12 operational rotating lights or aerial lighthouses in use, all on top of very high towers in military airbases.
– Blosenbergturm in Beromünster has an aerial lighthouse or rotating lamp above the cabin, operated at dawn.
– Aerial lighthouses are still in use on top of the mountains of Montana in the United States.
– The Eiffel Tower in Paris had an aerial lighthouse between 1947 and 1970, later replaced by standard warning lamps.
– The aerial lighthouse built in 1929 on top of the Suomenlinna Church in Finland is still in use.
– The main masts of Mühlacker radio transmitter and the former Konstantynów Radio Mast have aircraft warning lights at the outermost bases of their anchor guys.
– Conductor marking lights and Balisors are sometimes used for marking power lines.
– The Obstacle Collision Avoidance System (OCAS) allows standard lights to remain off until an aircraft is within a given radius, reducing light pollution and providing audio warnings.
Note: The content does not provide enough information for a comprehensive fifth group. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft_warning_lights
Aviation obstruction lighting is used to enhance the visibility of structures or fixed obstacles which may conflict with the safe navigation of aircraft. Obstruction lighting is commonly installed on towers, buildings, and even fences located in areas where aircraft may be operating at low altitudes. In certain areas, some aviation regulators mandate the installation, operation, color, and/or status notification of obstruction lighting. For maximum visibility and collision-avoidance, these lighting systems commonly employ one or more high-intensity strobe or LED devices which can be seen by pilots from many miles away from the obstruction.
