TC AIM RAC 4.2.11 and 4.4.7
Light Gun Signals in Canada
Tower light signals instruct an aircraft without radio contact, and most mean one thing in flight and another on the ground (TC AIM RAC 4.4.7 and 4.2.11). Steady green: cleared to land, or for takeoff. Green flashes: return for landing, or cleared to taxi. Steady red: give way and keep circling, or stop. Red flashes: do not land, or taxi clear of the runway.
Light Gun Signal ChallengeHow many signals can you read in 60 seconds? Free, no account.One light, three meanings
The tower aims its signal lamp at one aircraft, vehicle or person, and the same light means something different to each. That is why the exam asks for signals in pairs.
Steady green · in flight
“Cleared to land.”
TC AIM RAC 4.4.7, Table 4.3, item 1
Acknowledge by distinct rocking of the aircraft; at night, by a single flash of a landing light (RAC 4.4.7).
The two TC AIM tables, side by side
TC AIM RAC 4.4.7 (Table 4.3) gives the meanings for an aircraft in flight. RAC 4.2.11 (Table 4.2) gives them for an aircraft on the ground and for vehicles and people. Here they are in one table, in the AIM's own words.
| Signal | Aircraft in flight (Table 4.3) | Aircraft on the ground (Table 4.2) | Vehicle or person (Table 4.2) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steady green | Cleared to land. | Cleared for takeoff | Not used to communicate with vehicles or personnel |
| Series of green flashes | Return for landing. (This shall be followed at the proper time by a steady green light.) | Cleared to taxi | Cleared to cross; proceed; go |
| Steady red | Give way to other aircraft and continue circling. | Stop | Stop; hold your position |
| Series of red flashes | Aerodrome unsafe; do not land. | Taxi clear of landing area or runway in use | Vacate the runway immediately |
| Flashing white | — | Return to starting point on the aerodrome | Return to starting point on the aerodrome |
| Blinking runway lights | — | Not used to communicate with aircraft | Vacate the active runway |
| Red pyrotechnical light, military control towers only | Whether by day or by night and notwithstanding previous instructions, means do not land for the time being. | — | — |
A dash means the table gives that signal no meaning for that recipient.
How to remember them
- Green: steady is final, flashing is a step. A steady green is the last word: land, or take off. Green flashes come first: in the air, come back to land and wait for the steady green that must follow; on the ground, taxi.
- Steady red holds you where you are. In the air you give way and keep circling. On the ground you stop, and RAC 4.2.10 adds: "When stopped by a red light, a pilot must wait for a further clearance before proceeding."
- Red flashes keep you off the runway. In the air, do not land: the aerodrome is unsafe. On the ground, taxi clear of the landing area.
- White sends you back. A flashing white light returns an aircraft on the ground, or a vehicle, to its starting point. It has no meaning in flight.
- Blinking runway lights are for vehicles and people, telling them to get off the active runway. They are not used to communicate with aircraft.
- Do not land for the time being is the red pyrotechnic, fired only by military control towers. Do not confuse it with red flashes.
Acknowledging a signal
The AIM gives one method in the air and another on the ground.
“A pilot shall, where practicable, acknowledge all clearances and instructions received. Signals may be acknowledged as follows: (a) distinct rocking of aircraft in flight; (b) at night, by a single flash of a landing light.”
“pilot shall, where practical, acknowledge all clearances and instructions received by visual signals by day, by full movement of rudder or ailerons, whichever can be seen most easily (such movement should be repeated at least three times in succession), or by taxiing the aircraft to the authorized position.”
When you will see one
Light signals are for an aircraft that has no radio or cannot make or keep radio contact with the tower. If you plan to operate without a radio, RAC 4.2.10 makes it your responsibility "to inform the control tower of his/her intentions and make appropriate arrangements for visual signals" before you move onto the manoeuvring area of a controlled airport. The CARs make watching for the light part of every pilot's duty at an aerodrome:
“The pilot-in-command of an aircraft operating at or in the vicinity of an aerodrome shall … (f) maintain a continuous listening watch on the appropriate frequency for aerodrome control communications or, if this is not possible and an air traffic control unit is in operation at the aerodrome, keep a watch for such instructions as may be issued by visual means by the air traffic control unit; and (g) where the aerodrome is a controlled aerodrome, obtain from the appropriate air traffic control unit, either by radio communication or by visual signal, clearance to taxi, take off from or land at the aerodrome.”
How the exam asks it
Transport Canada's PSTAR questions give a signal's two meanings in a fixed order, in flight first and then on the ground, as in "return for landing; cleared to taxi". Both halves must come from the same row of the table. The wrong answers pair one correct half with a meaning borrowed from another signal, so check each half separately. Some questions say airport where the AIM says aerodrome; the meaning is the same.
Practice
These are Transport Canada's own PSTAR questions, reproduced word for word from TP 11919E, Study and Reference Guide: Student Pilot Permit or Private Pilot Licence for Foreign and Military Applicants, Aviation Regulations (7th ed., December 2022), Department of Transport, Canada, with the Department's permission. The keys agree with Transport Canada's published answer key; the explanations are TC Exam Prep's.
Question 1 of 4
A steady green light directed at an aircraft means respectively
Each answer gives two meanings, in the order Transport Canada prints them: in flight; on the ground.
Tap an answer to check it.
Question 2 of 4
A series of green flashes directed at an aircraft means respectively
Each answer gives two meanings, in the order Transport Canada prints them: in flight; on the ground.
Tap an answer to check it.
Question 3 of 4
A series of red flashes directed at an aircraft means respectively
Each answer gives two meanings, in the order Transport Canada prints them: in flight; on the ground.
Tap an answer to check it.
Question 4 of 4
A flashing white light directed at an aircraft on the manoeuvring area of an airport means
Tap an answer to check it.
Taught in
The chapter goes further than this page, and ends with a quiz.
Other topics
Checked 4 October 2026. TC AIM RAC 4.2.10, RAC 4.2.11 (Table 4.2) and RAC 4.4.7 (Table 4.3) checked against TC AIM, October 1, 2026. CARs 602.96 quoted from SOR/96-433 as consolidated to 17 June 2026 (Justice Laws Website). TC Exam Prep is independent and not affiliated with Transport Canada.