Airport beacon lights

[Tom-D]

What are the rules? if the beacon is inop, is the airport open at night?

If the light is on during the day, is it IFR

is the beacon a required light for any approach?

references please.

 

[Greg Bockelman]

What are the rules? if the beacon is inop, is the airport open at night?

Lots of airports that have lights don't have beacons. As long as the runway lights work...

If the light is on during the day, is it IFR

This is supposedly true at airports with operating control towers. Kind of depends on if the controllers remembered to throw the switch. At uncontrolled fields, it doesn't mean much, if anything.

is the beacon a required light for any approach?

No. If you think about it, if it is low IFR, you won't even see the beacon. Maybe in the last few seconds when you break out.

references please.

References? Kind of hard to prove a negative, most of the time.

 

[AWACSEng]

A reference for the approach question would be the approach plate itself. The minimums for the approach are listed and any changes to those minimums in the event a portion of the approach lighting is inop. I've never heard of an airport beacon being required for anything. I've alwas just considered it a nice to have, but I have no reference to that.