Aircraft navigation light and aircraft comprising the same

1 . An aircraft navigation light, comprising:

a support portion;

a light source comprising at least one green LED and at least one red LED, the light source being arranged on the support portion;

an optical element arranged over the light source for shaping an aircraft navigation light output;

a switching circuit configured to either supply the at least one green LED or the at least one red LED with electricity;

an orientation sensor configured to detect an orientation of the aircraft navigation light and provide an orientation indication to the switching circuit; and

a red light filter.

2 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the red light filter is integrated in or identical to the optical element.

3 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the red light filter is arranged such that light emitted from the light source passes through the red light filter either before or after the light passes through the optical element.

4 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 3 , wherein the red light filter is immediately adjacent to the optical element.

5 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 3 , wherein a gap or an intermediate element is positioned between the red light filter and the optical element.

6 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 ,

wherein the red light filter contains silicone or consists of silicone, in particular enhanced with red pigments,

and/or

wherein the optical element contains silicone or consists of silicone.

7 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the aircraft navigation light output satisfies a set of Federal Aviation Regulation requirements for forward navigation lights.

8 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the aircraft navigation light is configured to be usable as left forward navigation light, which emits red light, and as a right forward navigation light, which emits green light.

9 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 8 , wherein the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a left forward navigation light and when the red LED is supplied with a predefined electrical current, is between 80% and 120% of the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a right forward navigation light and when the green LED is supplied with the said predefined electrical current.

10 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 8 , wherein the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a left forward navigation light and when the red LED is supplied with a predefined electrical current, is between 90% and 110%, of the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a right forward navigation light and when the green LED is supplied with the said predefined electrical current.

11 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , comprising a joint power supply for the at least one green LED and the at least one red LED.

12 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the light source comprises the same number of green LEDs as of red LEDs.

13 . The aircraft, such as an airplane, comprising at least one aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the aircraft navigation light is mounted to the exterior of the aircraft.

14 . A method of producing the aircraft navigation light of claim 1 , comprising the steps of:

arranging the light source on the support portion;

molding the optical element over the light source; and

molding the red light filter over the optical element.

15 . The aircraft, such as an airplane, comprising at least one aircraft navigation light according to claim 1 , wherein the aircraft navigation light is mounted to a wing tip region of the aircraft.

16 . An aircraft navigation light, comprising:

a support portion;

a light source comprising at least one green LED and at least one red LED, the light source being arranged on the support portion;

an optical element arranged over the light source for shaping an aircraft navigation light output;

a switching circuit configured to either supply the at least one green LED or the at least one red LED with electricity on the basis of a color selection signal; and

a red light filter;

wherein the aircraft navigation light is configured to be usable as left forward navigation light, which emits red light, and as a right forward navigation light, which emits green light,

wherein the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a left forward navigation light and when the at least one red LED is supplied with a predefined electrical current, is between 80% and 120% of the luminous flux of the aircraft navigation light, when employed as a right forward navigation light and when the at least one green LED is supplied with the said predefined electrical current.

17 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 16 , wherein the red light filter is integrated in or identical to the optical element.

18 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 16 , wherein the red light filter is arranged such that light emitted from the light source passes through the red light filter either before or after the light passes through the optical element.

19 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 18 , wherein the red light filter is immediately adjacent to the optical element.

20 . The aircraft navigation light according to claim 18 , wherein a gap or an intermediate element is positioned between the red light filter and the optical element.