Lights too bright
AB42
I personaly start with my lights up full and adjust them as my night vision gets better. Having fairly good sight and a person who must wear my sunnies during the day, find that I have fairly good sight at night and tend to adjust my side down a fair bit further than the other side of the cockpit. Most of the Capts. that I fly with have there lights up a fair bit brighter, may be thier age and/or that packet of winnie blues before work.
The reason for having the individual pots is to adjust for individual persons best viewing intensity. So how ever you want them is the best.
I am not aware of any regulatory requirments, but do know some companies have prefered setup and shutdown positions for cockpit lights. From a few years ago I had this list for instructing to NVFR and IFR students.
1. Lights bright to start, or if EOD approaching full bright.
2. Adjust as night sight becomes better (10 minutes initialy, then over an hour or two).
3. NAV and cockpit lights on 10 minutes before local (WX incl) EOD
4. You flying - you adjust lights.
not really relevant, but always remember the lights (Nav and Cockpit) also adjust the intensity of U/C & other equip with auto intensity lights, so at the end of the flight always reset all lights to full intensity.
Have you ever had trouble with the aerodrome lights on a good night. Several of the CTZs that I fly into now, seem to heve their lights set on stage 3 as a defult, which I find to bright on a good vis night. Constantly asking for them to be turned down a stage when on final, usualy followed by a hurumph from the left side about that he or she now can't see the bloody things.