Emergency Floor Lighting

[Jet_A_Knight]

Does the Emergency Floor Lighting guide passengers to an exit - or does it just mark the corridor/aisle??

[EasyBaby]

It should guide you to an Exit, although the type of lights used and colours change from aircraft to aircraft, its why we point them out in the saftey demo so you can see which lights are indicating the exit and familarise your self with them. Some companies swtich them on so you can see them in their full glory which i personally think should be an SOP for all airlines.

Hope that helps
EB;)

[jettesen]

By switching them on in the safety demo, you are draining the battery which the lights operate from. In a case like low cost carriers which would be doing between 10 and 12 demos a day, this would be a serious drain of vital power source. No need to switch them on for people to see. They are white and change to red at an exit.

[karaoke]

Owmigawd.....................

u got me wurried now...........

ours are green & yellow at exits :{

not only that, but the batts are constantly charged with AC :ok:


singasong.

[TR4A]

At my airline we are installing glow-in-the-dark strips instead of the lights. The other system has problems with lenses and or bulbs being knock out and wires breaking. The glow strips would also save weight with no batteries. You have to have the cabin lights on full bright for 30 minutes prior to the first flight. At every stop the lights on full at the gate.

[jettesen]

what happens when it's not dark???

[EasyBaby]

Erm you would see the exit? The signs on the overwings and exit doors are illuminated anyway when the emergency lighting comes on (switched on either by cabin crew or flight deck).

What i wondered is why are the exits marked with red lights and the aisle marked with white, when most people assume red means danger. Would it not make more sense to have the aisle in red and the exits in white (which normally asumes saftey and light?)

But then the colours do change a/c to a/c!

Everything all clear as mud now?

EB;)

[WHBM]

I remember that after the BMA Kegworth 737 accident (late 1980s), when the low level lighting became an issue, the BMA pax briefing always used to specially emphasise this ("the lighting will guide you to an exit, Look ...", and the lighting was turned on and off to show). More than 10 years later this disappeared from the BMA briefing. Presumably there's no one left in their management chain who remembers the accident ?

I have never heard a pax briefing refer to the lights changing colour from white to red at an exit, although I believe it is covered in the full briefing given prior to an emergency landing. Nevertheless if it was covered each and every time, and when passengers are calm, they would be more likely to retain the information.

I am surprised to hear there are aircraft fitted with differently coloured lights as it is an obvious point for CAA/FAA standardisation. And yes, why not green lights at the exits, rather than red ?

The glow-in-the-dark strips sound not quite up to the job. If the cabin fills with white smoke in daylight do they function ?

[Pegasus77]

Actually...

My company invented the glowstrips... (or so they claim)...

They are very bright, very well visible, no need to charge them, they stay lit for about 12 hrs after charging them only 30 mins; they require no maintenance, they don"t break down... It is a real innovation if you ask me.

Every time I board an aircraft where all power has been switched off, I'm greeted by these bright lighted stripes, and every time I think of how simple a good solution can be.

P77

P.S. Pub User (see his msg below): I stand corrected... I meant: no need to charge batteries; they only need to be exposed to light for 30 mins.

(edited for the PS)

[Pub User]

Now I'm confused:

Pegasusno need to charge them, they stay lit for about 12 hrs after charging them only 30 mins???

BTW

I thought it was the Manchester 737 incident in 1985 that brought about the requirement for low-level lighting.

It makes little difference whether it's dark or not, the lighting is there so that someone crawling along the floor in thick smoke can find the exit. It is, therefore, vital that they know what to expect in terms of colour-change, and an actual demonstration is a big help, although only those people seated in the aisle can actually see it.

Yes, the batteries are drained (for a few seconds) during the demo, but they're charged again during the subsequent flight, so it makes no difference.

[crazypilot]

The Kegworth crash helped to sort out emergency floor lighting, seat pitch next to overwing exits, materials used in cabin (majority of the pax on-board became incapacitated because of the toxic smoke), plus the requirement of the persons sitting next to the emergency exits to be able-bodied enough to open the exit in an emergency --- during the Kegworth accident, the exit fell in and onto the girl who was trying to open it (as they are quite heavy -- like 25kg or so).

Also launched redesign of overwing exits - bigger nowadays and the newest designs as seen on the B738s is pretty good....doesn't fall inwards but pivots upwards and out of the cabin.

I think it's good how some airlines make the lights above the exits flash during safety demonstration.

The glow-in-the-dark strips are a great idea me thinks, but don't know how effective these would be in a smokey environment...anyone know?

CP

[Jet_A_Knight]

So, the lights don't actually GUIDE to the exit, they just mark the aisle.

In all the confusion/smoke etc, you would imagine an ARROW or something in the lighting/cover actually GUIDING to the NEAREST exit would be prudent to stop people from crawling/running to an exit further away than the nearest by just FOLLOWING the aisle.

A bit like watering a dead flower, I suppose.

[smile]

you would imagine an ARROW or something in the lighting/cover actually GUIDING to the NEAREST exit

Not such a great idea... what if the arrow is pointing to an exit that had fire or another hazard outside. The exit is blocked however the arrows are still directing pax to use them.

[sammyhostie3]

Hi Guys,

As Cabin Crew we point out the strip lighting in our safety demo.

What is intersting is that during night flights on landing. when all the cabin lights are off you can see the stip lighting glow on the floor, and it is actually really clear in indicating where the exits are.


They guide you along the aisle, then the strips turn off at the point where the exit actually is.

[EasyBaby]

I think the glow in the dark strips sound a good idea. With the Electrical lights if the floor is broken then the cables to the lights might fail as they get cut off. The glow in the dark strips wont. Like the Kegworth crash the a/c was in pieces so i doubt the floor lighting worked. Having the glow strips would give the pax perhaps a little more light and direction to the safest exit, rather than fumbling on the floor, as they dont rely on an power source.

But my airline has solved all the lighting issues by giving us cabin crew day glow uniforms anyway!!!:ooh:

EB ;)

[Max Angle]

Presumably there's no one left in their management chain who remembers the accident ? You presume incorrectly.

[sinala1]

Not such a great idea... what if the arrow is pointing to an exit that had fire or another hazard outside. The exit is blocked however the arrows are still directing pax to use them.

Smile - you beat me to it, I was going to say the exact same thing!

Although I do agree with previous poster's concerns that the lights at the overwing are actually red... is this perhaps because of increased visibility? All other colours that would be visible enough in a smoky cabin emergency situation are not too dissimilar to white (IMHO). Any suggestions on a bright visible color, different to white, that could be used for the lights that indicate the overwing exits?

What is intersting is that during night flights on landing. when all the cabin lights are off you can see the stip lighting glow on the floor, and it is actually really clear in indicating where the exits are.

The a/c fleet that I fly on is a mix of different systems - some have floor lights, some have glow in the dark strips. A good thing about the a/c with the glow strips is that they still have the emergency lights fitted into the lower parts of the overhead locker units, and shining onto the aisle. If they were switched on for even only a few seconds, they are bright enough that they would charge the glow strips sufficiently to get the pax out in an emergency. But as quoted above, one of the best things about the glow strips is that they do indicate quite clearly where the overwing exit is.:ok: