Navigation Light Question

[Steven H. McLain]

I am asking if anyone knows if the navigation light covers are always clear with red, green, and clear bulbs ? Are there any with colored covers and clear bulbs /

Thank You in advance

[falcon20driver]

Don't know which airplane specifically, but the ones I fly have colored lenses using normal, white bulbs.

[CF104]

I am asking if anyone knows if the navigation light covers are always clear with red, green, and clear bulbs ? Are there any with colored covers and clear bulbs /

Thank You in advance

Both types are used. Are you interested in a particular aircraft?

Cheers,

John

[Cubs2jets]

In my 40+ years as a pilot, I can say that the bulb itself is always clear/white (no economics for manufacturers to have to get regulatory approval for colored lights). The bulb is under a colored glass (or plastic) "lense" that is either teardrop or dome shaped. Sometimes, for aerodynamic or asthetic reasons the lights are inset into the wing tip or fin tip and covered with a clear plastic fairing. I have on occasion seen the fairings made of colored (red or green) plastic.

There are specific regulations visibility of the navigation lights.

Hope this helps...

C2j

Edited April 15, 2016 by Cubs2jets

[Barneydhc82]

Nav lights, whether military or civilian are clear bulbs with coloured lenses. I can give you the part numbers if you like!. After 65 years in aviation and flown more than 80 types as well as worked on a good many, I have never come across anything different.

Barney

[Jennings]

Nav lights, whether military or civilian are clear bulbs with coloured lenses. I can give you the part numbers if you like!. After 65 years in aviation and flown more than 80 types as well as worked on a good many, I have never come across anything different.

Patently not true. I've flown lots of kinds of airplanes, and lots of them had colored bulbs and clear lenses. I can't give you part numbers, but there are plenty of examples.

Here's a 727 for starters...

Edited April 16, 2016 by Jennings

[sanmigmike]

I'd bet under that clear plastic fairing you will find a bulb holder for a steady light covered with a red glass lens and and probably a clear strobe light (not sure when but before strobes the red rotating beacon did rotate to provide the "flash" effect and some transport aircraft had a somewhat similar device in the wingtip since a "flashing" light draws more attention). I can recall asking a mechanic about this years ago and I got the "you poor idiot look" and I was assured that all of that company's aircraft used white or clear bulbs and had the appropriate covers over the light and then depending upon the aircraft a clear plastic fairing (that could be deferred depending upon your MEL). A lot of aircraft I flew had a "Bulb Kit" of almost all the bulbs used in the aircraft and I never saw a red or green bulb for the wing nav lights. Some of the aircraft I flew had two colored lights (red or green covers over clear bulbs) at each wingtip and two bulbs in the "tail" light. The reason (so I was told) was that you could not defer the tail or wingtip light at night (grounding the aircraft for night flight) but you could defer with no problem one of two bulbs being out.

Also I did a quick search and I was unable to find a "real" bulb colored red or green for aviation nav light use for sale except one possible "paddle" light that looked nothing like the usual bulb found in years past...found other paddle lights that made no mention of red or green but just "white" for all positions. I don't recall flying anything from Stearmans, Supercubs, Aeroncas to DC-10s that had the actual nav light bulb exposed to the elements, always at least one cover and on most later wing installations two layers of glass and or plastic separating the actual bulb from the elements.

[Barneydhc82]

The bulbs were Grimes P/N A1512-12. The -12 referring.to the voltage application I've changed many over the past 65 years in this business and have run a few commercial operation and NEVER stocked coloured nav lights. They were all CLEAR.

And those Red and Green lens covers were very expensive..

Barney with 89 different a/c in the old logbook