Pure white lights — or a red, blue and white combination — are the best choices for increasing the conspicuity of small drones, a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) study says.1
Flashing lights and steady lights each have advantages, depending on the circumstances, according to a report on the study, published in July. Flashing lights were more easily seen when the drone was directly approaching an observer, while steady lights were more effective in helping observers detect relative movement when the drone was not on a collision course with the observer, said the report, written by researchers from the FAA and the Cherokee Nation.
“With the proliferation of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS), there is an increased need to ensure that they are integrated into the National Airspace System safely,” the report said. “One factor in accomplishing this task is to make sUAS as visually conspicuous as possible.”
The study was a compute…
