Do tower air traffic controllers have night vision binoculars?
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September 17, 2010
I'm researching an accident that occured in 1978. I was wondering if tower controllers used FLIR or night vision binoculars at that time, and if they could use them to verify a gear down emergency. Hoping I might even find a link to a site that explains this equipment.
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I think your gussing is right. if they use an equipment like that,they can avoid that.any way I wish you’ll get a link
I should think it unlikely. They would be of little use as aircraft (at least commercial aircraft) would all have their landing lights illuminated virtually blinding anyone using night vision binoculars.
Wheel well lighting should illuminate the gear sufficiently for both the crew as well as anyone close enough using regular binoculars to determine the general position of the gear.
Ultimately it really makes no difference. If the gear do not show down and locked from the cockpit, the crew should proceed assuming the worse case scenario even if the gear might “appear” down as verified by someone in the tower.
There is no way an external observer can confirm with assurance that the gear are indeed down and locked if the crew themselves are not sure.
No. In no tower that I have ever been in nor worked in has there been any kind of binoculars other than your standard set. That’s something I’ve never even heard of being used, ever. They really wouldn’t be of much use up there. At night, it’s simply up to the pilots to ensure their gear is down.
yeah sure, it’s a little known fact that 8-track players had a built in IR function…
Seriously, night vision barely existed in 78. The Army introduced “starlight” scopes toward the end of the Viet Nam war, but they had limited range and resolution. Few if any outside of the military could have afforded them.
Even today controllers would not have night vision equipment.
You can’t use night vision goggles around aircraft because the strobe lights blind the goggle. When we practiced using them in flight in the AirForce we could only do it in military airspace where it was legal to turn off all the external aircraft lights. Otherwise the things are uselss. However, aircraft are *very* easy to spot at night. Just look for the only thing in the sky that is flashing. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to use night vision equipment to look for something flying around with a giant strobe light on it.