New York – The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IES) is pleased to announce the publication of Outdoor Lighting for Airport Environments (RP-37-15), a publication in the IES Recommended Practice series that provides in-depth treatment about specific lighting applications.

RP-37-15 is a guide for the application of fixed outdoor lighting in and around the airport environment with respect to the airport’s special requirements. These requirements include (but are not limited to) height restrictions (such as obstructions affecting navigable airspace) as defined by the governing civil aviation authorities, the ability to distinguish color of light for visual cues, and light trespass that may interfere with visibility of Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) controllers or pilots.

The purpose of RP-37-15 is to provide:

• adequately lighted airside areas where parked aircraft are safely serviced; aircraft crew and passengers safely board and deplane, and where cargo operations are conducted
   
• adequately lighted landside areas such as access roads and parking areas for safety and security of pedestrians and vehicles;
   
• guidance for lighting in the adjacent development vicinities of the airport (including areas outside the airport property line), while also taking into account the special needs of the airport environment, such as height restrictions and potential light interference with air traffic controller and/or pilot vision
   

“Safety is of utmost importance in aviation travel, which is why anyone involved in outdoor lighting of an airport should be knowledgeable about the recommendations in RP-37-15. It is vital that they fully understand the impact of airside and land side lighting to eliminate or minimize the production of glare that would affect control tower operators or pilots,” said Richard Larivée, ing. P.Eng, Sub-Chair of the Aviation Recommended Practices Subcommittee of the IES Aviation Lighting Committee.

“Outdoor Lighting for Airport Environments (RP-37-15) has been needed for a long time. For years, we have had to glean through a myriad of various resources to apply sound lighting principles in the airport environment. Now we have one-stop shopping!” said Carl Johnson, Senior Aviation Lighting Specialist, AVCON, INC.

ABOUT THE ILLUMINATING ENGINEERING SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA

IES is the oldest and largest educational and scientific society in North America devoted to lighting. Since 1906, the IES has sought to improve the lighted environment by bringing together those with lighting knowledge and by translating that knowledge into actions that benefit the public. A broad variety of programs, including publications, conferences and seminars, have been established to accomplish this mission. IES publishes and distributes the finest lighting literature authored by committees with the most experienced minds in industry and academia today. For more information about IES, go to http://www.ies.org/.

ABOUT THE IES AVIATION LIGHTING COMMITTEE

The IES Aviation Lighting Committee was formed on October 21, 1929. Its mission is to study the application of light and lighting to spaces and functions involved in the operation of aircraft and spacecraft.

The Committee is comprised of members from all sources of general aviation lighting specialists, including engineers, manufacturers, designers, contractors, airport authorities, federal authorities (FAA & Transport Canada), US & Canadian military, and general aviation from North America and around the world. It is a non-commercial technical committee. For more information about ALC, go to http://www.iesalc.org