Installation Criteria for Taxiway Centerline Lights

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Advisory Circular (AC) 150/5340-30, “Design and Installation Details of Airport Visual Aids,” requires that properly installed taxiway centerline fixtures should, when placed on a taxiway curve with radii between 75 and 399 feet, maintain that three lights are visible from the cockpit, provide information to the pilot on how sharp the curve is, provide the pilot with an indication of how far off the taxiway centerline the aircraft might be, and visually look the same from both directions of travel.

Typically, the FAA type L-852D taxiway centerline fixture is spaced at 12.5 feet when placed on a taxiway curve with radii between 75 and 399 feet. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) version of the taxiway centerline fixture, which is designed specifically for curved applications, is spaced at 25 feet when placed on the same taxiway curve.

The objective of this research was to determine what would happen if the FAA type L-852D taxiway centerline fixture was placed at a spacing of 25 feet; the same spacing as the ICAO fixture.

DOT/FAA/AR-TN06/6
Authors: James W. Patterson