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"Systems developed in Czechoslovakia sometime in the early 1960s are still used at small airports. At that time, they were created primarily for the military use, but later began to be used at small aeroclub airports, where they are trying to survive to this day. However, their technical condition is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain, spare parts are no longer produced for the original systems, and many small airports therefore had to terminate night flights. This led us to the idea of ​​trying to develop a completely new system," Jiří Chlebek from the Aviation at FME describes.

The researchers joined forces with the renowned manufacturer of airport lights, the Czech company Transcon Electronic Systems. The development of the system was technically on its shoulders, the Aviation Institute worked mainly on testing the system. "The MoLiS system has been tested at a number of airports throughout the country. These were both airports that have the old system, or no longer have it in operation, and airports that have not yet had experience with night operations. Already during the testing, a number of small airports showed interest in the new system,” Chlebek adds.

The result of the cooperation is a prototype system designed for tracks up to 1200 meters, where the maximum length of the track depends on its width. The entire lighting system fits in the truck behind the car, which is a big difference from the old system, which in the original military version needed several trucks to transport. The MoLiS system also includes a second trolley with a windsock and lighting, which is a mandatory obligation for night operations at the airport.

Unlike foreign lighting systems for small airports, the Czech system is not powered by batteries or solar panels, but through cable distribution. "We wanted system maintenance to be as easy as possible for small airports, and battery maintenance seemed too demanding. Due to the lowest possible demands on the electric generator used to power the system, the system uses LED technology as widely as possible,” Chlebek explains. After "unpacking" and installing the lighting system, the airport has complete lighting for the night operation of aircraft.

The part of the three-year MoLiS project was the preparation of a certified methodology. It is intended to help define the requirements for lighting systems for small airports, and is now approved by the Ministry of Transport. The new regulations should make up for the current situation where the use of fixed lighting systems for airports with permanent night traffic is being counted with, but in practice, small airports operate night flights only a few months a year. This is also supported by MoLiS, which is mobile and is expected to be used for a limited time.

"At small airports, night traffic is mostly seasonal. In summer the night is short and there is a lot of traffic at airports during the day, so this period is not ideal for night flights. On the contrary, spring or autumn are much better for operation in VFR NIGHT mode, i.e. night flights under conditions of visual contact with the ground. Small airports usually need night operations to train pilots for one to two months in the spring as well as in the autumn. It is therefore desirable to create a regulation for this use of lighting systems," Chlebek concludes.

The development was supported by the TA CR Epsilon project.