Home / Night landings / The rules
Who has to provide what, which kinds of site can be used after dark, and what the pilot checks.
The Air Navigation Order 2016 (schedule 1) says night is the time from half an hour after sunset until half an hour before sunrise, with sunset and sunrise worked out at surface level. Read in the source
The daylight table on every site page is worked out for that exact position, so you can see when night starts there. We could not confirm the wording of any other definition of night in the UK Standardised European Rules of the Air. Verify
Public transport flights. Article 210 of the Air Navigation Order says the person in charge of an area used for helicopters at night must keep lighting available whenever a helicopter flying for public transport uses it at night, and such a helicopter must not take off or land there at night unless that lighting is working. Read in the source
Private flights. The article is not binding on them, but the CAA’s stated policy (CAP 3043, paragraph 1.7) is that all operators, whatever the type of flight, use article 210 as the minimum for off-airfield sites at night. Read in the source
CAP 3043 also says plainly that there is limited regulation for night use of off-airfield sites, and that operators and pilots own the risk of using a site with adequate lighting. Read in the source
| Site standard | What it is | Night use |
|---|---|---|
| Estimated | Rough information, non-congested areas | Day only (CAP 3043, 2.6) |
| Measured | Desktop survey with maps or satellite images | Day only (2.9) |
| Surveyed | Accurately measured; resurveyed within 12 months | Day or night if adequate lighting is provided (2.10 to 2.12) |
For some kinds of operation the CAA’s acceptable means of compliance go further: sites must be pre-surveyed for night operations (CAP 3043, paragraph 1.4, and the CAA regulatory library text for AMC1 SPO.OP.100). For non-commercial private operations that acceptable-means text does not apply in the same way; CAP 3043 (1.4 and 1.7) says CAA policy and article 210 are the guide instead. Read in the source
Landing sites in congested areas need advance permission from the CAA, and are day only at measured standard (CAP 3043, 3.12). See the landing rules.
UK law (Air Navigation Order 2016, article 210) sets the purpose: lighting must let the pilot identify the landing area from the air, work out the landing direction, make a safe approach and landing, and take off safely. It binds flights for public transport. The CAA’s policy in CAP 3043 is that all operators, private flights included, use it as the minimum.
Estimated: rough information, non-congested areas, day only. Measured: a desktop survey using maps or satellite images, day only. Surveyed: accurately measured, usable by day and night when adequate lighting is provided, and resurveyed at least every 12 months. The operator decides which standard it uses (CAP 3043, section 2).
Before a night approach and before a night take-off the pilot has to make sure the person in charge of the site has provided sufficient lighting (CAP 3043 paragraphs 3.14 and 3.16). Approaches are made into wind where possible, and a take-off with a tailwind is not allowed under the procedure.
Planning law is a separate question and varies across the UK. See the landing rules and ask the local planning authority. Night use is also something neighbours notice, so many sites decline it.
Where a line is tagged Verify we could not read the primary text, or the source does not state it. Treat it as unconfirmed until you have checked.
