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P-40B wing landing light colors


Mark Aldrich

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Was about to drill the wing tip landing lights to use as antenna mounts until I realized that these nubs were on the underside as well! I have to assume these are wing landing lights. The Hobbycraft kit does not call out any colors. I have looked at as many "googled" pictures as I can stand. Can't see what colors these are. Can anyone help? I assume red and green but which is which?

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OK...left side is red and right side is green....top and bottom or did they switch it?

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Wikiipedia: "Navigation lighting systems include:

  • Right-of-way lights - A red light will be mounted on the left or port side of the craft and a green on the right or starboard side. These help two craft in a situation in which their paths cross determine who has right-of-way. When two vessels have crossing paths, each will see a red or green running light. The one on the port side of the other, which must yield right of way, will see red, while the one on the starboard side of the other, which has right of way, will see green."

Landing lights are not navigation lights. They face forward and may be extended as part of the a/c landing gear or wing mounted or nose mounting.

 

There is also a small tail light mounted on the back of the a/c and typically on the rudder or vertical stabilizer tip. If you seet an equal distance between the tail and the port/starboard lights you are directly behind the a/c. If the distances are unequal it gives you an idea of the direction and angle as opposed to your line of flight.

 

During the Big One it was not unusual to see a/c recognition lights mounted on the underside of the a/c. usually a wing. These were used when flying close to the ground, such as landing and take off and were lit in a (code of the day) coded sequence. It's not cool to get shot down by your own defenses when returning from a mission blasting enemy armour and wheelies to smithereens.

 

BTW there are no top and bottom navigation lights per se. There may be two lamps in some configurations but they would maintain the same colours port and starboard. Armoured vehicle crews found this particularly vexing because they understood that the lights would be different colours to help them hide. This was not the case, as they found out when being blasted to smithereens.

Edited by TheWalrus
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See...This is why I love this forum!!!!! As a TreadHead, I have no earthly idea about such things! Thanks!!

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