On Jul 11, 3:48 pm, "Al G" wrote:
This is almost getting to the point where "everything" must work, (zero
tolerance). If I have two navigation lights on each wing, and one of them
burns out, can I fly at night? It sounds awfully unsafe to say I'm going to
go out and fly at night with a known inoperative nav light.

It's not so simple but it's not complicated either. The
regs detail what needs to be installed and working for any particular
sort of flight (day VFR, night VFR, and so on) and if something is
dead, something like a landing light, it must be snagged in the
logbook and then deferred if you want to keep flying. Determining who
can defer a defect becomes your job. There are things (like fuel
gauges) that have to be working all the time and can't be deferred.
See CAR 605.14 thru 605.41 to see what you need:
http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Re...605.htm#605_14

Then see CAR 605.10 to see how to deal with dead stuff:
http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Re...605.htm#605_10

That pooched landing light isn't necessary here in Canada at
night if you aren't carrying passengers, but I still wouldn't want to
fly without it. I want to see that deer on the runway so I can go
around. Nav lights ARE necessary, as is the anti-collision light. Dead
flaps would be a real debate between the mechanic and pilot, and the
mechanic is going to be conservative because it's his signature on the
line deferring them. As a mechanic, I would get a ferry permit to
avoid the risk of losing my ticket and to avoid putting passengers at
risk. If that engine quits and the pilot has to put the thing down is
an inconvenient spot, those flaps could make the difference between
landing at a survivable speed or getting smashed to bits.
The airplane doesn't have to be perfect. It needs to be
safe for the intended flight.

Dan