How Many Flashlights Do You Carry in Your Flight Bag?

Historically, pilots carry two flashlights – a D-cell battery-operated flashlight with a white lens for preflight inspections, and a flashlight with a red lens for cockpit illumination at night.

Meg Godlewski

Monday, October 17, 2022 at 04:28 PM ET

Verified

For pilots, losing night vision during a flight could be dangerous—so keep the white lights out of the cockpit. Instead, use a flashlight with a colored lens such as red, green, yellow, or blue to protect your night vision. [Courtesy: Meg Godlewski]

Key Takeaways:

Pilots require flashlights with colored light options (e.g., red, green) for night flights to preserve crucial night vision, as white light significantly impairs the eyes' dark adaptation.
Understanding the physiology of the human eye, particularly the function of rods and cones, is essential for pilots to effectively use colored light and maintain visual acuity in low-light conditions.
The article details various flashlight considerations for pilots, including angled designs for hands-free use, the importance of reliable batteries (rechargeable, hand-crank, shake), and selecting the optimal colored lens for cockpit illumination.

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Recently, I thought I lost my favorite flashlight. It is a Smith & Wesson with the ability to project a white, red, and green light. It is my favorite to bring along in the airplane because it provides illumination for the preflight as well as illumination in the cockpit in the event the panel post lights fail.

Also, it was the last Christmas present my father gave me before he flew West—and flashlights were very, very important to my father.