Night Defined:
- The non-aviation general definition of night is sunset to sunrise
- FAR 1.1 defines night as: the time between the end of evening civil twilight and the beginning of morning civil twilight, as published in the Air Almanac, converted to local time
- FAR 91.209, Aircraft lights, uses this defintion
- FAR 61.57, regarding recency of experience, states: no person may act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying passengers during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise, unless within the preceding 90 days that person has made at least three takeoffs and three landings to a full stop during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise
- FAR 91.157, Special VFR weather minimums, states: between sunrise and sunset (or in Alaska, when the sun is 6° or more below the horizon) unless:
- FAR 107.29, Daylight operation, states: for purposes of paragraph (b) of this section, civil twilight refers to the following:
- Except for Alaska, a period of time that begins 30 minutes before official sunrise and ends at official sunrise;
- Except for Alaska, a period of time that begins at official sunset and ends 30 minutes after official sunset; and
- In Alaska, the period of civil twilight as defined in the Air Almanac
- The FAA provides a means to check sunset/sunrise times
Disorientation:
- If you have to look around the cockpit, try to do so in non-maneuvering flight with minimal head movements
- If you become disoriented, reduce workload as much as possible and concentrate on flying the aircraft straight and level with reference to the HUD
- You may need to execute unusual attitude recoveries
- Consider engaging the autopilot
- Stick to the principles, AVIATE, NAVIGATE, COMMUNICATE
Equipment Requirements:
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Pilot Equipment:
- Consider personal equipment that should be readily available during the flight
- Flashlights should be kept handy
- Flashlights should have filters for white or red/green/blue light [Amazon]
- The white light is used while performing the preflight visual inspection of the airplane, and the red light is used when performing cockpit operations
- Carry extra batteries
- Since the red light is non-glaring, it will not impair night vision
- If a red light is used for reading an aeronautical chart/checklist, the red features will not show up very well
- Flashlights, such as the Mike Light 3 [Amazon], can be attached to your mic boom to ensure continuous accessibility
- The lights of cities and towns can be seen at surprising distances at night, and if this adjacent chart is not available to identify those landmarks, confusion could result
Aircraft Equipment Requirements:
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Visual Flight Rules:
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Day VFR (TOMATO FLAAMES):
- T - Tachometer (one for each engine)
- O - Oil Pressure Gauge (one for each liquid cooled engine)
- M - Magnetic Direction Indicator
- A - Airspeed indicator
- T - Temperature gauge (each liquid cooled engine)
- O - Oil temperature gauge (each liquid cooled engine)
- F - Fuel Gauges
- L - Landing gear position indicator lights (retractable landing gear)
- A - Altimeter
- A - Anti-Collision light system (strobes), if manufactured after 3/11/1996
- M - Manifold pressure gauge (each altitude engine)
- E - Emergency Locator Transmitter
- S - Seat belts & shoulder harness (front seats)
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Night VFR (FLAPS):
- Day VFR requirements, plus:
- F - Fuses (spares) or circuit breakers
- L - Landing lights (if for hire)
- A - Anti-collision light system (strobes), if manufactured after 8/11/1971
- P - Position Lights
- S - Source of energy (adequate to power all electrical and radio equipment)
- Day VFR requirements, plus:
-
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Instrument Flight Rules:
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Day/Night IFR (GRABCARD):
- G - Generator or alternator
- R - Rate of turn indicator (turn coordinator or turn & bank indicator)
- A - Altimeter, sensitive, adjustable for barometric pressure (Kollsman window)
- B - Ball (slip-skid indicator [inclinometer])
- C - Clock (digital or analog displaying hours, minutes, and seconds)
- A - Attitude indicator
- R - Radios (radio communication and navigation equipment suitable for the route to be flown)
- D - Direction (gyroscopic) indicator (directional gyro or heading indicator)
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Inoperative Equipment:
- If any other item is inoperative, 14 CFR section 91.405 states that it shall be placarded as required by Sec. 43.11
- Following scheduled inspections:
- Aircraft shall have discrepancies repaired unless it is permitted to be in operative by 91.213
- Maintenance personnel shall make appropriate entries in the aircraft maintenance records indicating the aircraft has been approved for return to service
- Equipment impacting safety of flight must be repaired, but items that are not required may remain inoperative indefinitely provided they are appropriately placarded
Passenger Requirements:
- Passengers may not be carried if one hour after sunset until one hour before sunrise without night currency requirements having been satisfied, per FAR 61.57
Special VFR Requirements:
- Special VFR requires certain considerations at night (fixed-wing):
- Between sunrise and sunset (or in Alaska, when the sun is 6° or more below the horizon) unless:
- Day requirements, plus:
- Rotary wing carry separate considerations
Aircraft Lighting:
- Airplane position lights are arranged similar to those of boats and ships
- A red light is positioned on the left wingtip, a green light on the right wingtip, and a white light on the tail
- This arrangement provides a means by which pilots can determine the general direction of movement of other airplanes in flight
- If both a red and green light of another aircraft were observed, the airplane would be flying toward the pilot, and could be on a collision course
- Landing lights are not only useful for taxi, takeoffs, and landings, but also provide a means by which airplanes can be seen at night by other pilots, and by birds to avoid strikes
- The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has initiated a voluntary pilot safety program called "Operation Lights ON"
- The "lights on" idea is to enhance the "see and be seen" concept of averting collisions both in the air and on the ground, and to reduce the potential for bird strikes
- Pilots are encouraged to turn on their landing lights when operating within 10 miles of an airport
- This is for both day and night, or in conditions of reduced visibility
- Although turning on aircraft lights supports the see and be seen concept, pilots should not become complacent about keeping a sharp lookout for other aircraft
- Most aircraft lights blend in with the stars or the lights of the cities at night and go unnoticed unless a conscious effort is made to distinguish them from other lights
- Aircraft lighting is covered separately
- Light arrangements help determine movement of flight of other airplanes
- Pilots are encouraged to turn on their landing lights when operating within 10 miles of an airport (day or night)
- At the conclusion of night operations, reset all the switches for day, as such, check after the aircraft has flown at night to make sure the previous pilot did not forget
Night Weather Considerations:
- At night, weather phenomena as simple as clouds can be difficult to identify, making an instrument rating a valuable safety mitigation
- To help find an airport at night, consider dialing the OBS of the HSI or other indicator to the runway heading and if possible, using the airport as a GPS point
Approaches and Landings:
- Rotating beacons help locate the airport
- The runway lights must be identified prior to an approach
- The tendency at night is to fly a wider pattern
- Setting a heading bug to the runway direction will help gain and maintain situational awareness
- Distance can be deceptive
- Consequently you must be vigilant and paying attention to your instruments
- Fly at or above a glide slope if you have one
- At night, the judgment of height, speed, and sink rate is impaired by the scarcity of observable objects in the landing area
- The inexperienced pilot may have a tendency to flare too high until attaining familiarity with the proper height for the correct round-out
- To aid in determining the proper round-out point, continue a constant approach descent until the landing lights reflect on the runway and tire marks on the runway can be seen clearly
- Blackout landings (landings without runway lights) should always be included in night pilot training as an emergency procedure
- Runway lights are not a requirement for landing at night; pilots may utilize lighted, and non-lighted runways all the same
- If there is no tower and the airport is unlit:
- 3 clicks = low intensity
- 5 clicks = medium intensity
- 7 clicks = high intensity
- If unable to located the airport, consider high intensity
Night Operation Techniques:
- Night operations take more time, from preflight, to the conduct of the flight, and post-flight requirements
- Carry extra lights and batteries just in case lighting is insufficient during flight
- Avoid the use of electronics that produce excessive flight, both from the perspective of night vision and general distraction
- Increasing altitude in the night gives additional time and safety margin for troubleshooting
- Be cognizant of aeromedical considerations like hypoxia, the higher you fly
- Increase instrument cross-reference with the view outside of the cockpit
- Stars can become street lights, slow movements can produce disorientation quickly
- Avoiding clouds at night starts with a good weather brief, but requires persistent observation
- Fading of environmental lighting or turning on a landing/taxi light to look for "bluming" may help avoid flight into clouds
Night Emergencies:
- If the engine fails at night, several important procedures and considerations to keep in mind are:
- Maintain positive control of the airplane and establish the best glide configuration and airspeed
- Turn the airplane toward an airport or away from congested areas
- Check to determine the cause of the engine malfunction, such as the position of fuel selectors, magneto switch, or primer
- If possible, the cause of the malfunction should be corrected immediately and the engine restarted
- Announce the emergency situation to Air Traffic Control (ATC) or UNICOM
- If already in radio contact with a facility; do not change frequencies, unless instructed to change
- If the condition of the nearby terrain is known, turn toward an unlighted portion of the area
- Plan an emergency approach to an unlighted portion
- Consider an emergency landing area close to public access if possible
- This may facilitate rescue or help, if needed
- Maintain orientation with the wind to avoid a downwind landing
- Complete the before landing checklist, and check the landing lights for operation at altitude and turn ON in sufficient time to illuminate the terrain or obstacles along the flight path
- The landing should be completed in the normal landing attitude at the slowest possible airspeed
- If the landing lights are unusable and outside visual references are not available, the airplane should be held in level-landing attitude until the ground is contacted
- After landing, turn off all switches and evacuate the airplane as quickly as possible
Night Hazards:
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Night Illusions:
- Pilots should already be aware that the eye can induce illusions
- On a clear night, distant stationary lights can be mistaken for stars or other aircraft
- Dark nights tend to eliminate reference to a visual horizon
- Illusion awareness coupled with a disciplined instrument scan practiced more frequent than during the day help mitigate illusions in flight
Unmanned Aircraft Systems Night Operations:
- No person may operate a small unmanned aircraft system during night
- No person may operate a small unmanned aircraft system during periods of civil twilight unless the small unmanned aircraft has lighted anti-collision lighting visible for at least 3 statute miles. The remote pilot in command may reduce the intensity of the anti-collision lighting if he or she determines that, because of operating conditions, it would be in the interest of safety to do so
- For purposes of the above, civil twilight refers to the following:
- Except for Alaska, a period of time that begins 30 minutes before official sunrise and ends at official sunrise;
- Except for Alaska, a period of time that begins at official sunset and ends 30 minutes after official sunset; and
- In Alaska, the period of civil twilight as defined in the Air Almanac
Private Pilot - Night Preparation Airman Certification Standards:
- To determine that the applicant exhibits satisfactory knowledge, risk management, and skills associated with Night Preparation
- References: FAA-H-8083-2, FAA-H-8083-3, FAA-H-8083-25; AIM; POH/AFM
Night Preparation Knowledge:
The applicant must demonstrate an understanding of:-
PA.XI.A.K2:
Lighting systems identifying airports, runways, taxiways and obstructions, as well as pilot controlled lighting -
PA.XI.A.K3:
Airplane equipment and lighting requirements for night operations -
PA.XI.A.K4:
Personal equipment essential for night flight
Night Preparation Risk Management:
The applicant demonstrates the ability to identify, assess and mitigate risks, encompassing:-
PA.XI.A.R1:
Collision hazards, to include aircraft, terrain, obstacles, and wires -
PA.XI.A.R2:
Distractions, loss of situational awareness, or improper task management -
PA.XI.A.R3:
Hazards specific to night flying
Night Preparation Skills:
The applicant demonstrates the ability to:-
NA:
Not generally evaluated in flight. If the practical test is conducted at night, all ACS Tasks are evaluated in that environment, thus there is no need for explicit Task elements to exist here
Night Operations Case Studies:
Conclusion:
- Night will mess with your visual cues, resulting in increased change for spatial disorientation and temptation to maintain eyes down, inside the cockpit
- Instructors may sign off students to fly at night if in accordance with FAR 61.87(o)
- For more information read our section on logging flight time
- Still looking for something? Continue searching:
References:
- AOPA - Everything is Different at Night"
- AOPA - Night Flying Tips for Students
- Federal Aviation Administration - Pilot/Controller Glossary
- Airplane Flying Handbook (10-3) Pilot Equipment
- Airplane Flying Handbook (10-6) Approaches and Landings
- Airspeed.Wordpress.com
- AOPA - Night flying: Sort through the different definitions of night
- Federal Aviation Regulations (1.1) Definitions and Abbreviations
- Federal Aviation Regulations (91.205) Powered civil aircraft with standard category U.S. airworthiness certificates: Instrument and equipment requirements
- Federal Aviation Regulations (91.213) Inoperative instruments and equipment
- Pilot Workshops - Can't Find The Airport?
- Pilot Workshops - Night Instrument Approaches
- U. S. Naval Observatory
- Aircraft Maintenance - Lighting Options
- AOPA - IFR Fix: Seize the Night