200 and 1/2

[CloudyIFR]

When flying a 200 and 1/2 ILS at night is it recommended to leave the landing lights on or off?

In other words does the landing light, that's in the nose of the plane, conflict with being able to see the approach lights?

Thanks

 

[Pantherjon]

Try driving in dense fog with your high beams on and see how much you see..A lot of white..Yes I think it would hinder your ability to see the lights

 

[CloudyIFR]

If leaving them off do you then try and turn them on at 100' or just land with them off. They are required to be operational during Part 135 Ops or any Commercial Ops for that matter.

Seems like I have better things to do than reach up and turn the lights on, but I do agree it's best to leave them off during the approach.

Thanks
Curtis

 

[Workin'Stiff]

We leave ours on for the approach... Last thing I want to be doing is trying to find the landing lights when we're only a 100' off the ground and at night, yada yada yada...

 

[DrewBlows]

Approach lights are pretty bright, I doubt that having landing lights on could impair your ability to see them. The landing lights will shine a few hundred feet in front of the aircraft, which you'll be able to see in the clouds, but your visibility requirement for an ILS is significantly greater than the affected area of the landing lights. It could be slightly annoying to have the landing lights on, but I don't think it would affect your ability to fly the approach. Personally I leave them on, if they annoy you too much turn them off. I don't think they serve much purpose anyway (collision avoidance shouldn't be an issue and you can turn them on before exiting the runway to see taxiing), except maybe seeing a deer on the runway a second or so before you hit it. Maybe you would rather not see the deer before hitting it.

 

[sharpeye]

Please don't tell me that you land at an airport and especially a major airport without landing lights if your lights are fully functional. Single pilot aircraft are capable to go down to 200' on a precision approach, so if you do not have another pilot in the right seat it is best to keep them on. At 200' you will easily be able to see an ALS. You are required to have operational landing lights at night and they are required for a purpose. So you can see, yes, but also so other aircraft can see you, aircraft in the air (in this case they probably won't be able to see you) but also aircraft on the ground (oops, a crew made an error and did't hear the hold short instructions or heard it and started taxiing across a runway anyway (yes they are wrong) but by you having the landing lights on popping out at 200' you and they both have time to get the hell out of each others way, (you may be under the base of the weather at 200' but they will be able to see your landing lights before you see the runway or ASL and break out at 200'). Yes they can be iritating to you, if you have an autopilot, use it, monitor it and before you get close to mins and before you disconnect the autopilot turn the lights on, that's my advice for a single crew aircraft. You want the aircraft fully configured and everything complete (including landing lights on) before you begin manually flying the approach and landing. You don't want any distractions. Do not continue and land without the lights on, lights are required by FARs and international flight rules as well for the reasons previously mentioned. If you have a two crew aircraft, now that is different. The PM (Pilot Monitoring or Non Flying Pilot) can turn the lights on the PF calls for it. The PF does not have to take his eyes off the intruments or runway or be distracted by trying to turn them on himself. So a 2 crew aircraft can wait a little longer before they turn them on, but they are still required to be turned on before landing.

 

[minitour]

Landing lights I'll turn on...strobes maybe not.

-mini

 

[regionalcap]

When we do CAT II approaches, our landing lights are off per the POH.

 

[sharpeye]

I would agree when low vis ops are in effect, landing without the lights is better for vis purposes. Our FOM allows during low vis to not use landing lights (this also being approved by the countries aviation laws which we fly into (each specific airport has it's own rules decided by that country and stated in such in our Suplimentary Procedures Manual). During low vis ops, aircraft movement control is strictly monitored at the airport, much more so then a regular night, and even a night that has a half and 200'. Also, when we do a low vis landing (Cat II or Cat III) an autoland is required, no manual landings.

 

[Bandit60]

Just because they are required to be operational does that mean you have to use them?

 

[SSDD]

When it is so tight that some people are making it and others are missing, I will leave the landing lights off until I see the runway. When the vis is that low, see and avoid is not a problem.

 

[SBD]

It all depends on what your ops manual/checklist requires. On some checklists I've seen, when it comes to landing light(s) it says "AS REQUIRED". Others say "ON". I would rather have them on and not to worry about them when I'm a short final.

 

[phishn@daves]

Well what about snow at night? I keep them off till we see the runway. As much as I like "light-speed", I'll keep them off until I can see where I am landing.

 

[cezzna]

I can't stand having the landing lights on at night during an approach. The recogniton lights work just fine for collision avoindance. The strobes drive me nuts too. If you can't land without the lights on you have no business in the left seat. They really aren't much help when rounding out and flaring. Isn't this private pilot 101? I let my students have a landing light about 50% of the time. They are notorious for burning out. Trying to change anything in the last 200 ft. is more risky than leaving it alone in my opinion.

 

[UndauntedFlyer]

I would want to land on a clear night without the landing lights. So in poor visibility it's light on for sure.

In my airline work, never has it been a procedure to turn the lights off for any king of safety reason.

 

[Say Again Over]

Obviously a pilot preference issue, prefer them off in heavy snow, remember my first night flight, my CFI tuned off the landing light on downwind to simulate electrical failure, good training, also worked in the USN, fighters tend to not use landing lights.

 

[UndauntedFlyer]

I would want to land on a clear night without the landing lights. So in poor visibility it's light on for sure.

In my airline work, never has it been a procedure to turn the lights off for any king of safety reason.

Noticed this post of mine when it was too late to edit. What I meant to say was:

I would NOT want to land on a clear night without the landing lights ON. So in poor visibility it's lights on for sure.

In my airline work never has it been a procedure to turn the landing lights off for any kind of safety reason.

 

[j41driver]

In other words does the landing light, that's in the nose of the plane, conflict with being able to see the approach lights?

In "4200+" hours you haven't figured this out for yourself?

 

[UGAflyer]

i leave them off for low vis...the car headlights in fog is the best example

 

[instructordude]

Leave them off if you have centerline runway lighting. Otherwise I'd turn them on. If you are really going down to 1800/1600 RVR it shouldn't be a player unless it is snowing. Then turn them off. Good topic for recurent or maybe with someone who is seasoned.