Night VFR Soaring (USA)

Following the various discussions on this group, I am
finding it personally helpful to couch the (at least)
three FAR references to night in terms of relating
flight safety to operational pilot behavior, in order
to get safety-conscious answers to some questions
of this kind:

When do I need to apply nav lights and anti-collision light?
- As early as possible, for safety's sake: sunset to sunup.

What time of night do I need to fly, land to full stop etc.,
so as to provide a minimally safe level of night pilotage for passengers?
- for safety's sake: in the darkness of night, an hour after
sunset, an hour before sunup.

What times can I legally enter in a log for night flight?
- some variable delay after sunset and before sunup to be
obtained from a Naval Observatory source or an Air Almanac;
which delay differs from latitude to latitude and month to month:
a definition only a lawyer could love, but which is at least
based on the facts of nightfall, however impractical...

Brian W

BT wrote:
61.57 does not define "night"
1.1 defines "night"
61.57 says your in the dark "night" landings have to be 1hr after
sunset, to 1hr before sunrise.
Definitions are not in the 61 or 91 series of the regs
Definitions are in Part 1.1

"brian whatcott" wrote in message
...
BT wrote:


"brian whatcott" wrote in message
...
BT wrote:


It's helpful to remember that the official definition of night is
one hour after civil twilight to one hour before civil dawn (by
which time it is often black as ..well..night.)

Brian W

Brian, Wrong answer. FAR 1.1 defines "night" as the end of evening
civil twilight to the beginning of morning civil twilight as
published in the American Air Almanac, converted to local time. The
American Air Almanac is now maintained by the US Naval Observatory.

For my location today, Morning Civil Twilight started at 5:42am and
Sunrise at 6:09am, 27 minutes later.
Sunset is 7:14pm and End of Civil Twilight is 7:40pm, 26 minutes
later.

Not the "hour" that you suggest.

The "aircraft lighting" requirement is from Sunset to Sunrise
(excluding Alaska). 91.209, Not twilight to twilight.

BT


BT - wrong answer: right back at ya! :-)

If you need to get night current to carry passengers, follow the
definition of night as described in FAR 61.57(b), which is the
"period beginning one hour after sunset and ending one hour before
sunrise."

Yes, there really are several different definitions in the FARs...

Brian W

Brian... but that is not the definition of "night"....
BT

Duh!
'follow the definition of night as described in FAR 61.57(b), which is
the "period beginning one hour after sunset and ending one hour before
sunrise."'

' Yes, there really are several different definitions in the FARs...'

What don't you understand about FAR 61.57(b) Definition of night?

Brian W