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Retrofitting LED Wingtip lights

Written by Sonny Wiersema

Feb. 2005

Last year when I was having transponder trouble it donned on me that my plane was not only hard to spot on radar, but also visually from the tower and other airplanes.  This proved to be the case several times when I would get a request from the tower on my position (remember, no transponder) and also when other pilots in the pattern would repeatedly ask where their traffic was.  I figured it may be time to add some type of wingtip lighting.

Because the standard alternator on a Rotax is a bit anemic when it comes to generating power, I decided to go with some type of LED lighting.  I didn't want to build my own custom lights, so I went with GS-Airs' LED-001 wingtip lights with built in strobes.  The power supply they provide with the kit has several different strobe-flash patterns available, but I chose the FAA approved triple-flash. 

Getting started took a bit of planning since I didn't know what to expect once I cut into the wingtips.  If the vent holes in the ribs were somewhat aligned I could run the wires through them and save some time.  If not, I would have to drill new holes, being careful not to damage anything inside the wing.  Fortunately, I found that the vent holes were aligned so I used a steel-tape cable puller to push the wires to the wing-root. 

I drilled two small holes in the wing root to feed the wires inside the fuselage and routed them to the power supply which is currently mounted on the forward seat bulkhead (right under the passengers' legs).  My original plan was to mount the power supply behind the seats, but I was worried about interference with the comm or transponder.  I also wanted to keep it forward of the cg so there would be no weight & balance issues later on.

My plan for mounting the lights in the wingtips was to make a base-plate that the light fixtures could attach to.  The hole I cut in the wingtips was located so that the front and aft parts of the light were flush with the wingtip, but the center of the light was recessed just slightly.  Mounting it this way kept me from having to fill in a lot of material all the way around the base.  If this sounds confusing, look at the pictures! 

The aluminum base plate I made was to be held in place with a smaller, curved piece of aluminum that I put inside the wingtip. 

Essentially, I sandwiched the wingtip between my base-plate and the curved piece of aluminum. 

Once these were in place I applied epoxy between the base-plate and wingtip for added structural strength. 

I let it cure for a day and a half before filling it with Aeropoxy filler.  Then of course I got back in the habit of sanding.

The only difficulty with sanding this area is the complex shape of the wingtip. 

I tried to make it as symmetrical as possible, which was a chore. 

All-in-all, I think it turned out pretty even.  After priming and painting, it looks as if the wingtip was made with the light base already there!

The cost of the LED lights and the power supply was $327.  Giovanni Speziali, the owner of GS-Air, provided the cables with the kit for free and charged $5 for shipping.  He was also a pleasure to work with and made sure I understood the wiring and installation before I even ordered the kit.  I have already recommended GS-Air to two other builders at my airport. 

The total cost of hardware was about $350 with the purchase of two 20 Amp toggle switches for my panel.

If anyone has questions or comments on this article, please send an e-mail to webmaster@pulsaraviators.com.