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Anti-Collision Strobe

K

KRAUSEGB

Well Known Member
DOES ANYONE HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ON ANTI COLLISION STROBE ON THE VERTICAL STAB??
I KNOW IT'S NOT IN THE DRAWINGS, BUT THEY DID HAVE US PULL CORD FOR FUTURE NAV LIGHTS IN THE WINGS.
SO HOW ABOUT ONE FOR A BEACON?

GARY
 
Could work

Aside form the E-LSA thing it could work. I left my "wing tips" unriveted to make installing lights easier. Who wants to bet the a Vans nav light kit comes with a hole saw :D
 
Important safety enhancement

I too, am wondering about the anti-collision strobes. If I understand E-LSA, the lights will have to be on the "approved" factory prototype, or maybe after your own E-LSA is completed and licensed without them, you can add them if Van's make them available as an option. But, once the vertical stab is closed up, I guess you could hole saw and snake in a wire but is it ok to have a loose wire flopping around in there? Same issue for the wings. The pull cord does not account for some means of securing a wire along the structure. I am new to this so please bear with me if I don't understand how the option could be properly run in thru the structure. But, I guess I am willing to trust to Van's engineering.
The nav lights don't seem as important to me for an LSA, but the strobes are important to safety.
I just picked up my tail kit at Van's last Friday and have started construction, and am looking forward to many happy hours working on this project.

Tony
 
Hey Tony,
I picked my tail kit up last Thursday. Did they have the 12 out for you to see when you were there. They had it hid away somewhere when I picked my kit up. Said they were doing something to it and we could not go into the area where it was located. Wonder if they were installing the lights or auto pilot on it.:)
 
OK, now you guys have peaked my interest.....Sounds like the mother ship is turning into the "skunk works". Info?
 
Anti-collision Light

I would have to check, but as I recall some sort of anti-collision light is an FAA requirement, it it not?
 
JohnF said:
I would have to check, but as I recall some sort of anti-collision light is an FAA requirement, it it not?
Click to expand...

The prototypes have airworthy certs, so I would say the anti-collision lights are not a requirement.

I have anti-collision lights on my E-LSA right now, and I would like to have them on the 12.
 
JohnF said:
I would have to check, but as I recall some sort of anti-collision light is an FAA requirement, it it not?
Click to expand...

Per FAR 91, you need the following for day VFR:
  • Airspeed Indicator
  • Altimeter
  • Compass
  • Tachometer
  • Fuel Gauge
  • Oil Temperature Gauge
  • Oil Pressure Gauge
  • Gear Indicator (if retractable)
  • Manifold Pressure Gauge (if constant speed prop)

Night VFR adds the light requirements. Sport pilots cannot fly at night. Private pilots can fly LSAs at night if the plane is properly equipped.

--Bill
 
bigbill25 said:
Per FAR 91, you need the following for day VFR:
  • Airspeed Indicator
  • Altimeter
  • Compass
  • Tachometer
  • Fuel Gauge
  • Oil Temperature Gauge
  • Oil Pressure Gauge
  • Gear Indicator (if retractable)
  • Manifold Pressure Gauge (if constant speed prop)

Night VFR adds the light requirements. Sport pilots cannot fly at night. Private pilots can fly LSAs at night if the plane is properly equipped.

--Bill
Click to expand...

It's true that a sport pilot can't fly at night but night begins one hour after sunset and goes until one hour before sunrise.
An anti collision light is required between sunset and sunrise (if I remember correctly), so if a sport pilot wants two extra hours per day he needs an anti collision light.
 
Fom the horses mouth

I sent an email to Ken as follows.
Hi Ken,
I am building an RV-12 in Australia and as we are not bound by the same LSA regulations I would like to include a strobe while I am building my aircraft.
You must have had some thoughts on where you would fit one and the type of unit you would use when you offer an add-on to the existing kits.
I would be very thankful for any information on this subject.
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Tony Earle

His reply was

We are developing a strobe/nav/landing light kit for RV-12. This kit will be
fully integrated into the RV-12 systems and you, assuming that you have
followed the assembly instructions, will have already made provisions for
future installation.
Ken Krueger, Chief Engineer
Van's Aircraft

This was not very helpfull

They don't give much away, I keep telling myself I must have faith in Van's

Tony
 
You're quoting part 91.205

91.205 applies to "Standard" certificated aircraft!
By order of experimental and light-sport operating limitations, it also applies to these aircraft for night and/or IFR operations.
i.e. 91.205 does not apply for daytime VFR on experimental or light-sport aircraft unless other specified.
 
The reply from Van's sounds good enough for me. I like the fact that the lighting kit will be all inclusive. As far as having faith in Van's - we already have enough faith to be building a half an airplane, so what's the problem?:)
 
BigJohn said:
The reply from Van's sounds good enough for me. I like the fact that the lighting kit will be all inclusive. As far as having faith in Van's - we already have enough faith to be building a half an airplane, so what's the problem?:)
Click to expand...


I am drinking that koolaid.

Looking at the forethought that has already gone into this plane, you have to have faith.

Lighting kits can be expensive. I like the fact that we are making provisions for it now and putting it in later. On a cost standpoint, not convienence.
 
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rvbuilder2002 said:
It's true that a sport pilot can't fly at night but night begins one hour after sunset and goes until one hour before sunrise.
An anti collision light is required between sunset and sunrise (if I remember correctly), so if a sport pilot wants two extra hours per day he needs an anti collision light.
Click to expand...
Well, sort of.

Sport pilots cannot after or before civil twilight (i.e., the dark part of the day). Civil twilight is (IIRC) the time when the sun is six degrees below the horizon. Typically, twilight occurs 25 minutes before or after the sun rises / sets. The USNO has a nice online tool that will calculate civil twilight for the entire year. NB: The entire flight, including taxi, must be concluded by the end of civil twilight in the evening. Don't land right at civil twilight if you want to be in compliance with the FARs. I plan to be on the ground no more than 10 minutes after sunset and use the extra 15 minutes as a safety margin.

Now, on to "night". For the purpose of of logging landings for currency, "night" means one hour after until one hour before sunset/sunrise. However, tiome can be logged as "night" after sunset and before sunrise.

In order to log "night" time, this is the period between civil twilight in the evening and morning.

In terms of requiring anti-collision lights at "night", that's sunset to sunrise.

TODR
 
the_other_dougreeves said:
Well, sort of.

Sport pilots cannot after or before civil twilight (i.e., the dark part of the day). Civil twilight is (IIRC) the time when the sun is six degrees below the horizon. Typically, twilight occurs 25 minutes before or after the sun rises / sets. The USNO has a nice online tool that will calculate civil twilight for the entire year. NB: The entire flight, including taxi, must be concluded by the end of civil twilight in the evening. Don't land right at civil twilight if you want to be in compliance with the FARs. I plan to be on the ground no more than 10 minutes after sunset and use the extra 15 minutes as a safety margin.

Now, on to "night". For the purpose of of logging landings for currency, "night" means one hour after until one hour before sunset/sunrise. However, tiome can be logged as "night" after sunset and before sunrise.
It seems as though lights would still provide a sport pilot with some additional flight time since I believe lights are required from sunset to sunrise.

But it sounds like a sport pilot still gains some legal flight time (technically) since I believe lights are required at sunset until sunrise.

In order to log "night" time, this is the period between civil twilight in the evening and morning.

In terms of requiring anti-collision lights at "night", that's sunset to sunrise.

TODR
Click to expand...

I stand corrected.
I had never looked in any level of detail at the sport pilot rules regarding night flight so I shouldn't have assumed it meant the period of time considered actual night flight.
So it sounds like lights still provide an additional 35 minutes after sunset and before sunrise.
 
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rvbuilder2002 said:
I stand corrected.
I had never looked in any level of detail at the sport pilot rules regarding night flight so I shouldn't have assumed it meant the period of time considered actual night flight.
So it sounds like lights still provide an additional 35 minutes after sunset and before sunrise.
Click to expand...
Yes, I'd agree. From what I can tell, the strobes don't have to be certified, just approved by the LSA builder (for S-LSA or E-LSA).

That time between sunset and twilight is a great time to be flying. The sun is down, air is getting calm, lights of the city are starting to stand out .... just teriffic.

TODR
 
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