Aeroplane with flashing landing lights

2StepSteve · 9 Jan 2011 at 17:57

Just seen an aeroplane with its landing lights flashing, heading west over Essex at around 15,000 feet. Never seen an aircraft do this before.

I know we have some pilots and ACT workers here. Whats the reason for this?

Clum · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:00

Sometimes aircraft of the same company flash each other like truckers as they pass each other. Usually up in the cruise though so not sure if you're certain it was around FL150. It might just have been an aircraft flying below 10,000ft with it's lights on and passing through intermittent cloud, which would make it look like flashing. Could be a multitude of reasons, but nothing strange and certainly nothing to worry about.

hux · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:06

Not to intrude on the op, but the other day i was driving on a main road when a twin prop flew alongside at around 200ft for a good 10 seconds or so before pulling up.

Can't fathom why a pilot would do this unless showing off?!

Was nice to see if not a bit unsettling.

fidget · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:06

Can be for several reasons - some aircraft have Pulselite's landing light system installed for better visibility.

Sometimes the tower may ask the pilot to flash lights on approach to id them on non radar airports

It can also be used to alert the tower that the plane coming is has radio failure.

2StepSteve · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:06

15,000ft was a guess

.. I couldn't quite make out the size of the aircraft but it looked quite large.. 737 size perhaps in my binoculars.

It was definitely flashing.. pulsing around once a second.

Cosimo · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:06

I thought it was primarily to increase the visibility of the aircraft and also to scare birds.

Scuzi · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:09

You sure it wasn't the strobing anti collision lights?

There's a lot of traffic in that area so it was probably inbound to one of the London airports.

Gadge · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:11

Air police out with there speed guns? Was the pilot letting other pilots to beware?

2StepSteve · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:17

Scuzi said:
You sure it wasn't the strobing anti collision lights?

There's a lot of traffic in that area so it was probably inbound to one of the London airports.

Was definitely the landing lights strobing.. when I first saw it on the horizon I thought it was a Chinese lantern from a far but then saw the anti collision through binoculars.

JBuk · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:19

budget cuts tbh, they now use bicycle strobes

Charlie Bravo · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:29

Most biz jets have alternating landing lights. As has already been mentioned, it's for increased vis.

It's def not for scaring birds though.

greywolf · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:39

2StepSteve said:
Just seen an aeroplane with its landing lights flashing, heading west over Essex at around 15,000 feet. Never seen an aircraft do this before.

I know we have some pilots and ACT workers here. Whats the reason for this?

I also saw this. Caught my eye when I was on the PC, looked out the window and saw it, thought it was not the usual. I am in Romford.

fidget · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:48

Charlie Bravo said:
It's def not for scaring birds though.

In the early 1990’s float plane operators in the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia and Alaska began reporting that along with the improved recognition and increased lamp life, bird strikes were dramatically reduced by pulsing their landing and taxi lights.

Armed with this important information, Precise Flight approached the USDA to initiate avian testing with pulsing lights.

http://preciseflight.com/products/pulselite/birdstrike_avoidance

KatanaDV20 · 9 Jan 2011 at 18:50

It is to increase the airplanes visibility in a crowded sky - specially during the takeoff, approach & landing phases when the plane is in busy airspace. Yea they got the strobes as well but from a head-on view the flashing landing lights will be very obvious.

Charlie Bravo · 9 Jan 2011 at 19:07

fidget said:
http://preciseflight.com/products/pulselite/birdstrike_avoidance

I used to work in airfield ops with a part of the job being wildlife control. Flashing lights were never mentioned as being a deterrent either on vehicles or aircraft.

2StepSteve · 9 Jan 2011 at 19:30

greywolf said:
I also saw this. Caught my eye when I was on the PC, looked out the window and saw it, thought it was not the usual. I am in Romford.

I am just down the road to you in Chadwell Heath small world! When I first saw it my immediate thought was the aircraft was in some kind of trouble, wouldn't of thought it was for visibility.. thought ATC took care of things in this area. Must say the sky at the time was quite busy without counting heathrow circling traffic.

arknor · 9 Jan 2011 at 19:44

was it on a tilt?

Scuzi · 9 Jan 2011 at 19:45

2StepSteve said:
I am just down the road to you in Chadwell Heath small world! When I first saw it my immediate thought was the aircraft was in some kind of trouble, wouldn't of thought it was for visibility.. thought ATC took care of things in this area. Must say the sky at the time was quite busy without counting heathrow circling traffic.

Depending on what part of Essex, if was above more than a few thousand feet, it would be under the control of ATC. Westbound over Essex - probably a Stansted or Luton inbound from the east. Chances are that it was lower than FL150 though. I'm pretty sure SOP for a lot of operators is to turn the landing lights on below FL100 which is a more likely level for an aircraft to be at in that area.

Wynthorpe · 9 Jan 2011 at 20:06

You sure it just wasnt the strobes?!

neodude · 9 Jan 2011 at 21:05

Probably a sticky circuit breaker tbh.