taxiway and runway lighting are now more relevant as the detail we are used to seeing becomes lost to the darkness. With shorter days and more changeable weather during our UK winters, flying at night also means there will be more opportunities to maintain existing proficiency while learning or consolidating new skills. Where possible I try to conduct pre-flight inspections in daylight prior to a night flying sortie, however there are occasions where this needs to be done in the dark. Rotating propellers are almost impossible to see, so additional care is needed when heading out to the aircraft. Relatively simple tasks, such as checking the fuel sample for water or refuelling, require a bit more thought as to how to perform them in the dark.


Many airports and airfields have poor lighting, so there’s a real risk of striking other aircraft or obstacles while taxiing out. Some older pilots will remember the 1970s public information film telling drivers ‘Don’t dazzle – dip your headlights’. Delving into my Human Performance books, I’m reminded that we have rods and cones in our eyes to provide vision and colour. Rod cells are used for night vision and require a dark adaptation period before reaching their maximum retinal sensitivity; typically, a period of 30 minutes or more. Looking at bright lights such as camera flashes can destroy night vision: the modern trend of obtaining a ‘selfie’ might require a further period of night adaptation before setting off… For those still using a paper navigation log and chart, a suitable red light will be fine in the cockpit. Electronic charting and navigation aids should be turned to night mode, with the brightness and colour adjusted to adequately display the route and airspace.


When planning, it’s worth considering airfield options in case of a diversion. Many airfields in the UK will only be open and available for night flying on set days of the week and before a specified time. You might also include in route planning a path that takes advantage of the fewer available airports en-route that are open. Pilot Controlled Lighting (PCL) is now approved for use in the UK but not yet common, so you might need to check which airfields are going to have the lights turned on. As well as a less direct routing, with the recent introduction of Part-NCO you might need extra fuel to satisfy the minimum fuel requirements for EASA


30 CLUED UP SUMMER 2019


Just how bright should cockpit lighting be?


Ground obstacles can be harder to see


aeroplanes conducting VFR flights at night. Whereas the day requirement is for a minimum of 30 minutes, at night NCO. OP.125 mandates planning more generous fuel reserves requiring a minimum of 45 minutes of fuel on landing.


ILLUSION Without clear visual reference, our vestibular system (the sensory system that plays a major part in controlling a sense of balance and spatial orientation) can produce a somatogravic illusion under high acceleration or deceleration. This can be described as feeling a strong pitching sensation which might be experienced during a take-off or go-around at night or in IMC. Training and recent experience in night flying helps overcome this sensation that tells us, incorrectly, to pitch the nose down.


In the absence of a bright moon and clear skies, it can often be difficult to see unlit terrain. This can lead to the ‘black hole’ phenomenon which is evident at my local airfield where, from one of the runways,


Gyro pilots can now get a night rating


the departure path is towards rising ground making it difficult to determine pitch attitude after take-off due to an absence of a visual horizon. Where a well-lit area, such as a town, appears to blink or suddenly disappear, there may be something between you and those lights that you can’t see such as cloud, an obstacle, or rising terrain. A significant issue at night is that you often can’t see clouds until it’s too late and you’ve already flown into them, so additional care should be taken when planning, and while gaining experience, to allow greater margins for VFR flight at night than for daylight flying to avoid inadvertent flight into IMC. For anyone who has flown, or intends


to fly, single-engine piston at night, I’m sure you’ll have considered the possibility of engine failure and the subsequent actions. Inevitably, it will also be a topic of discussion with fellow flyers. Statistically, it’s no more likely to occur than during the day, with ground and flight training including risk management and appropriate in-flight actions.


Airfield and runway lighting can be


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