Strobe/flashing lights

Do all civilian air crafts have tio have a flashing light? Ive seen things outside the last two nights that didn't flash or stobe in any way.

One looked like a star moving 2 nights ago, really high up in the sky.

and last night a bright lite, seemed to move about the same speed an airplane would but no flashing strobing lites.

Is it a law/faa regulation to have these flashing strobing lites?

Im not saying I saw a ufo, just want some clairification!

Thanks in advance!!

PS it was in central minnesota

Originally posted by redseal
Do all civilian air crafts have tio have a flashing light? Ive seen things outside the last two nights that didn't flash or stobe in any way.

As far as I'm aware they do, but in some instances and from certain angles, you don't always see them, but you can see the headlight/s if they are heading directly towards you - I have seen it often as I live close to a busy airport flightpath (for over 2 decades now), where the planes "que up" before landing, and they so somewhat resemble bright stars when you see them like this.

Originally posted by redseal
One looked like a star moving 2 nights ago, really high up in the sky.

This description sounds to me more like you saw a satellite then a plane - when the angles are right, they can glint in the sunlight giving the appearance of a star that moves at similar speeds to a plane - check out the sticky at the top of this forum index page, where I recently posted some info on the subject here

From here:

Sec. 91.209 - Aircraft lights.

No person may:

(a) During the period from sunset to sunrise (or, in Alaska, during the period a prominent unlighted object cannot be seen from a distance of 3 statute miles or the sun is more than 6 degrees below the horizon) --

(1) Operate an aircraft unless it has lighted position lights;

(2) Park or move an aircraft in, or in dangerous proximity to, a night flight operations area of an airport unless the aircraft --

(i) Is clearly illuminated;

(ii) Has lighted position lights; or

(iii) is in an area that is marked by obstruction lights;

(3) Anchor an aircraft unless the aircraft --

(i) Has lighted anchor lights; or

(ii) Is in an area where anchor lights are not required on vessels; or

(b) Operate an aircraft that is equipped with an anticollision light system, unless it has lighted anticollision lights. However, the anticollision lights need not be lighted when the pilot-in-command determines that, because of operating conditions, it would be in the interest of safety to turn the lights off.

[Doc. No. 27806, 61 FR 5171, Feb. 9, 1996]





Here is another source with some info as well. Questionable link but the info seems spot on.....

[edit on 28-3-2007 by Lost_Mind]

Obstruction lights are mounted on the obstacles that comes in the pathway of flightpath and that are on ground level, so i believe these are not obstruction lights which redseal has seen, these could be reflections or lights of a satellite.