It were me in the vid which was taken by the third pilot with a hand held pocket digital camera in the video mode hence the relatively poor quality. The actual video file is around 30 megs and I believe when you upload a file to any of the hosting sites they are compressed and so lose some quality.
This is what our low vis ops manual has to say about what you need to be able to see at DH
"CAT I Minima (and above)
At DH the pilot is required to see an adequate portion of the threshold or approach lighting system to identify and assess the aircraft position and approach path, it is not a requirement to see the threshold or TDZ at DH.
Note: It is assumed that below DH the visual segment will continue to expand,
providing adequate visual reference to manually flare and rollout."
There is no counting of anything that close to the ground in poor vis, you either see what you expect to see and land or otherwise buggeroff!
Thanks Bullethead for your reply. Good to hear it from the person in a supplied example, thanks for the input.
However, some questions for you.
With regards to "At DH the pilot is required to see an adequate portion of the threshold or approach lighting system...." WHAT is deemed
adequate? HOW do you deem it
adequate?
I did post earlier that the word "count" has probably brought in a lot of confusion. I accept that. But is it not fair to say that if you only saw bugger all of the approach lights, for example only the 1st or maybe the 2nd bar if you are lucky, that that would be deemed inadequate?
I know it is more recognition of what you expect to see at the DA, and it appears to me at least (and I wont flog a dead horse much longer) that people seem to think that you actually need to physically count bars one by one. Thats not the case. You'll recognise pretty much instantly on a glance if you've got most or next to nothing....
I should have re-phrased my initial response to "well, if you see bugger all of the approach lighting you probably wont have the required vis. but if you see most of it, then you probably do".
However I think some people out there (whether they actively contribute here or not) may have learnt from this post, even though some contributers may not want to admit it, that
the approach lights can be used to help one identify distance. It is just another tool. Other than a bit of assistance with lateral adjustment etc when breaking vis, why the hell else would the lights be spaced evenly apart to a standard for? They ain't christmas lights!
I also find it interesting that your ops manual states that you do not require the chart-stipulated (adjusted for other things HIAL U/S etc) visibility, just what you deem "adequate" ! No need to discuss that though.
"Count" - probably the wrong word. Shame so many people thought it was so literal.