LIGHT GUN SIGNALS HOW TO
LIGHT GUN SIGNALS FREE

These conditions may include obstructions, soft field, ice on the runway, etc.

Other hazardous conditions are present which call for intensified pilot or operator alertness.

Mechanical trouble exists of which the pilot might not be aware.

Aircraft are converging and a collision hazard exists.

The FAA has advised controllers that the alternating red and green signal should be used when: Alternating Red and Green FlashesĮxercise extreme caution. A flashing white light can be used when the airfield is currently too busy to support no radio (NORDO) operations, and the controller needs you to park until traffic slows down and they can fit you in.

A flashing red light is typically used to advise pilots who have just landed to take the nearest possible taxiway and clear the active runway for other incoming traffic. Hold your position and wait for further instructions. Remember to hold for takeoff until you receive a steady green light. Once you receive a flashing green light, you are cleared to taxi.

LIGHT GUN SIGNALS FREE

A steady green light means that the runway in front of you is free of traffic and you may take off. The signals and their corresponding meanings are: Steady GreenĪircraft is cleared for takeoff. Planes on the ground can receive any one of six different light gun signals. Light Gun Signals for Aircraft on the Ground Keep reading for a quick refresher on the meaning of light signals for both ground-based and airborne planes. All light gun signs tell a pilot to either take or not take each type of action. The signals from a light gun mean different things depending on the color, whether the light is solid or flashing, and whether the plane receiving the signal is in the air or on the ground. The signals produced by the light gun are used “for controlling traffic operating in the vicinity of the airport and on the airport movement area.” What Do Light Gun Signals Mean?

The glossary goes on to explain that “the color and type of light transmitted can be used to approve or disapprove anticipated pilot actions where radio communication is not available.” The FAA Pilot/Controller Glossary describes light guns as “A handheld directional light signaling device which emits a brilliant narrow beam of white, green, or red light as selected by the tower controller.”

LIGHT GUN SIGNALS HOW TO

Step 2 is a quick refresher on what light gun signals are, what they mean, and how to respond. Step 1 is to set ourselves up for no radio (NORDO) success by flying with an easily accessible light gun signal cheat sheet like the one printed on this deluxe VFR pilot kneeboard. If not, the good news is, you aren’t alone, and it’s easy to fix the problem. Let’s face it, if you had a real-world radio failure tomorrow and the tower was trying to communicate with you by flashing a light gun your way, would you know what they were trying to say or how to respond? What do you remember about how to communicate with ATC if you lose radio comms or need to fly an aircraft without a radio? We all learned about light gun signals as student pilots, but we seldom quiz ourselves to check our retention.

Light gun signals