Boeing 767 lights...

[Guest Chris K]

Hi to all. This is my first message on this forum and I'd like to ask something that has bothered me for a long long time...In 767 PIC there are land, taxi, strobe, beacon, wing and position lights. Now, from what I've seen position and wing lights are sometimes used when inflight and sometimes not. Is there any rule for that? And what's the exact function of those runway turnoff switches (I know they don't work in FS) and what are emergency lights (to be found somewhere behind on the overhead panel of a real 767)?Chris

[Guest Martin]

Position lights: Should always be ON, night or day. (However, this varies between airlines and aircraft types - some only have them on at night.)Beacon (Anti-collision) lights: Turn ON before push back or engine start, and turn OFF when engines shut down and parked.Strobe lights: Turn ON when entering the active runway before takeoff, and turn OFF when exiting the runway after landing. May also be turned off in clouds, as the flash reflects off the clouds and can blind pilots.Landing lights: Turn ON when entering the active runway before departure, then OFF at (usually) 10,000 ft. Turn ON again descending through 10,000 ft and OFF when leaving the runway after landing.Taxi lights: Turn ON for taxi (obviously). I think they are usually turned off along with the Landing lights during climb. During descent they are often turned ON during approach (when receiving landing clearance for example), but I'm sure that it varies - that some turn them on at 10,000 ft. Then of course on for taxi-in.Runway turn-off lights: (Located in the wing roots, illuminate the area to the left and right forward of the wings) ON when entering the active runway, then basically the same as for Taxi or Landing lights, but don't have them on for taxi.Wing lights: (Illuminate the leading edges of the wings.) Basically the same procedure as for landing lights (makes the aircraft more visible). Should also be on if you need to check the wings for ice and during the walkaround, when it's dark outside.Emergency lights: These are the lights you read about on the safety card. Illuminate paths to the exits in the passenger cabin. Should be ARMED for normal operations. (If armed the lights come on when DC power is lost.) There are also external emergency lights at the doors and in each emergency slide.Martin767 fetishistIt's a lot like life and that's what's appealing

[Guest Chris K]

Wow, I didn't expect such a thorough response. Thanks very much Martin!Chris

[Guest Martin]

It just amounted to more than I expected! :-)Martin767 fetishistIt's a lot like life and that's what's appealing

[Guest Lenny Zaman]

one addition:BEACON: turn off when engine fans have stopped rotating or when they're only windmilling(i turn off when N1 value<2)

[Guest Ian_Riddell]

"Emergency lights: These are the lights you read about on the safety card. Illuminate paths to the exits in the passenger cabin. Should be ARMED for normal operations. (If armed the lights come on when DC power is lost.) There are also external emergency lights at the doors and in each emergency slide."Further info:The cockpit Emergency Light switch activates lights in the ceiling and "strip lighting" on the floor in the aisles. However, if the cabin is on fire, you may have to use the floor lights only.... Smoke has a tendency to rise and may obscure the ceiling lights, forcing you to crawl on your hands and knees to the nearest door/emergency exit. Normally the floor lighting is white. On some (not all) aircraft, some of the floor lights may be red, indicating that you have arrived at a door or emergency exit. A certain number of floor, exit and ceiling lights will have their own rechargeable battery pack. When aircraft power is available, these battery packs are being recharged. When aircraft power is lost and the switch in the cockpit is in the ARMED position, the rechargeable batteries begin powering the lights. The battery packs should last a minimum of 15 minutes. This should be more than enough time for the average passenger to exit the aircraft. Unfortunately, however, the floor lighting strips are notoriously fragile....and may not survive a high g crash. I would not rely, solely, on these to get you to the exit. As an additional safety measure, I would memorize the location of the nearest exit door (e.g. I would ask myself "How many rows of seats are there between my seat and the nearest exits?").Cheers.Ian.

[Guest HPSOV]

Where I fly the position lights are used only at night.Logo light comes on/off with landing lights at 10000ft.Nose Gear landing light is switched on when takeoff clearance is recieved.Taxi lights and Nose Gear landing light are switched on at 500ft on approach.We use all 3 taxi lights as a single switch while taxiing (ie all on at night).And finally to use the correct terminology, the 'beacon' is actually the red anti-collision light, and the 'strobe' is the white anti-collision light.