Anti-collision strobe lights
At 13:26 19 September 2018, Jonathan St. Cloud wrote:
On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 8:08:49 PM UTC-7,
Gerry Simpson wrote:
Does anyone have knowledge of documented studies
showing the efficacy of
=
the strobe light bars which are available to be installed in
the leading
ed=
ges of the vertical stabilizers on gliders? Is there anything
beyond
anecdo=
tal experience to support their use to improve visibility to
other
aircraft=
beyond a minuscule amount? Has anyone had experience
that they are
willing=
to share? To what extent does an installation disrupt the
laminar airflow
=
around the vertical stabilizer?
One of the gliders I fly has the strobe light in the leading
edge of fin
or=
as Schleicher called it, "flashlight in nose of fin". This
glider also
ha=
s the LXNav controller so the strobe can be set to
continuous, off, or
only=
flash when there is a Flarm alert. I think the installation
weight for
st=
robe and control was about 2 kg. I have been told the
strobe really
stands=
out under cloud streets,think Whites, Inyos, the streeting
in Nephi,
which=
is where I had several tell me the strobe really added to
visibility. On
=
the ground the light is very bright. Would I purchase one,
sure, but then
=
my parachutes are less than 20 years old. Is it a must have
safety device,
=
probably not. Safety is cumulative and an attitude. Is this
flash enough
=
to keep me from hitting another glider with closing rates
approaching 300
k=
not while running a street in the Owens Valley, the strobe
gives me added
v=
isibility.=20
Quite a few Sisteron gliders have these strobes (or ones
fitted in the nose) I would say they do work at close range,
especially in darker conditions. I wouldn't worry that they
are ineffective at a mile or so - you can't collide with a glider
a mile away. Of course Flarm is mandatory here in the Alps
but even so many newer gliders do have them; the cost is a
tiny fraction of a new ship cost. Having them retro fitted in
the tail seems prohibitively expensive; the ones that form a
ring around the nose hook/pitot are a feasible retro fit
option.
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