Airport Lighting

Runway Lighting
Taxiway Lighting
Runway Centerline Lighting
Taxiway Centerline Lighting
Elevated Guard Lights (Wigwags)
In Pavement Guard Lights
Runway End Lights

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Airport Lighting
RUNWAY EDGE LIGHTS
Single row of white lights bordering each side of runway and lights
identifying the runway threshold
Three Intensity Levels: High Intensity (HIRLs), Medium Intensity runway
lights (MIRLs), and Low intensity runway lights (LIRLs)
Some are Pilot Controlled, some ATC controlled
RUNWAY END IDENTIFIER LIGHTS (REILS)
High intensity white strobe lights placed on each side of the runway to
mark the threshold
RUNWAY LIGHTS
White
TAXIWAY LIGHTS
Blue

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Runway Edge Lighting
Designed to identify the
edge of the usable runway
surface at night and during
periods of low visibility.

Clear (or white) except the

last 2000’ of a precision or
non-precision instrument
runway, lights are amber.

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Taxiway Edge Lighting
Designed to identify
the edge of the usable
taxiway surface at night
and during periods of
low visibility.
Taxiway edge lighting is
blue.

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Runway Centerline Lighting
Runway Centerline lighting
is used to provide pilots with
alignment guidance during
takeoff and landing
operations, primarily during
low visibility conditions.
Runway centerline lights are
white (clear). Except the last
3000’ portion. 2000’ of lights
are alternating white/red and
the last 1000’ are solid red.

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Taxiway Centerline Lighting
Taxiway Centerline
lighting is designed to
facilitate ground
movement, primarily
during low visibility
conditions.
Taxiway centerline and
lead-on/off lights are
green.

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Elevated Runway Guard Lights
(Wigwags)
Elevated guard lights
are used to identify the
holding position for a
runway especially at
night and during periods
of low visibility.
Used to enhance the
hold bar and elevated
signs.

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In –Pavement Guard Lights
Supplement hold bars
and hold position
signage to alert pilots or
vehicle operators of the
holding position,
especially during poor
weather or periods of
low visibility.

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Runway End Lights
Used to depict the end
of the useable runway to
aircraft.
Arranged in two sets of
four lights.

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Runway Lighting
EDGE (WHITE/AMBER)
THRESHOLD (GREEN/RED)
IN-PAVEMENT LIGHTS (17L-
35R)
Centerline
Touchdown Zone

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Taxiway Lights
EDGE (BLUE)

TAXIWAY edges
are indicated by
Blue lights.

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Airfield Lighting

RUNWAY edges are

indicated by White
lights, followed by
Amber and then
Red as you move
closer to the end of
the runway.
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Airport Lighting
AIRPORT BEACON
Used to guide pilots to
lighted airports
Green/White: Civilian
Green/yellow: water
airport
Green/2 white: Military
Green/yellow/white:
Heliport

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Visual Glideslope Indications
Tri-color VASI

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Visual Glideslope Indicator
Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI)

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Visual Glideslope Indicators
Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI)

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Visual Glideslope Indicators
Pulsating Approach Slope Indicator

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Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI)
The VASI is a system of lights on the
side of an airport runway that
provides visual descent guidance
information during the approach to
a runway

View of VASI
from approach.

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Standard VASI
CONSIST OF TWO SETS OF LIGHTS

EACH SET DESIGNED TO APPEAR

EITHER WHITE OR RED DEPENDING
ON ANGLE VIEWED.

IF ON “GLIDE SLOPE”, FIRST SET OF

LIGHTS WILL APPEAR WHITE AND
SECOND SET RED.

IF “HIGH ON GLIDE SLOPE”, BOTH

APPEAR WHITE.

IF “LOW ON GLIDE SLOPE”, BOTH

APPEAR RED.
Standard VASI system
M O S T C O M M O N T Y P E O F VA S I viewed from approach.
SYSTEM

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 Precision Approach Path Indicator
(PAPI)
A L I G H T S Y S T E M T H AT C O N S I S T S O F  On glidepath when two white and two
TWO, THREE, OR FOUR BOXES OF
L I G H T S T H AT P R O V I D E A V I S U A L
red lights are viewed.
I N D I C AT I O N O F A N A I R C R A F T ’ S
P O S I T I O N O N T H E G L I D E PAT H .
 If high more white lights will be visible.

DEPENDING ON THE ANGLE, LIGHTS

WILL APPEAR RED OR WHITE.
 If low more red lights will be visible.

Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI)

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