Radio towers that flash Red or White

[SidS1045]

I would like to know about buildings that get abandoned like Pabst Beer did in Newark, NJ though.  The water tower for the brewery's sprinkler system, had a beacon that was on steady up until Pabst shut down its operation there.  For years the tower did not have its beacon lit, for obvious reasons, but why did not the FAA then require the City of Newark to provide power to the beacon at least or require the owner of the land post brewery to keep it flashing if it thought enough to have it installed in the first place.

The legal way to do it is to petition the FAA to allow it to be turned off.  If it's far enough away from an airport and either well out of normal air traffic lanes or shielded by a taller obstruction in its immediate area, the FAA will usually allow it to be turned off.  If it's all alone and the tallest obstruction for miles around, probably not.

Not to say, of course, that the current owner of the tower did it the legal way.  Enforcement being what it is at the moment, either a pilot would have to complain about an unlit obstruction (or worse, crash into it, in which case the current owner is in a heap of trouble, liability-wise) or someone at the FAA would have to notice that it's not lit and then consult FAA records to determine whether it's supposed to be.

[hm insulators]

South Mountain in Phoenix has more than a dozen radio towers with the flashing red lights.

[J Route Z]

Growing up in NJ I used to see many of them at night long before the strobes came into play.  I always found them fascinating especially when two or more were together.

NJ 10 in East Hanover used to have them that could be seen for miles.

West Orange had plenty of them, but not together.  I do remember them scattered and one in particular on Mt. Pleasant Avenue east of NJ 10's ending was for a specific FM station, I remember seeing when eating at a restaurant that was on the corner there.

Secaucus, NJ has three of them seen at night perfectly from both spurs of the NJ Turnpike across the Hackensack Meadowlands.


Orlando has plenty of them, but not a sight like NJ has had.  Though one tower near DeLand can be seen at night along I-4 through the 11 mile exit less stretch as you head west from Daytona Beach.  The tower appears to be along I-4, but at Exit 118 for SR 44 the road curves to the left slightly so it veers off the straight line.  However, it can be seen during the 11 miles of travel ahead in a distance with a night time strobe flashing.  It is a shame though you do not pass by it directly later on being it was like you were homing in on that particular tower for almost ten minuets of driving.

What is more cool is seeing the strobes flash at any tower from 30, 000 feet in the air on a night flight of any commercial airline.

Agreed. You can see these from miles away: http://goo.gl/maps/rmXrN

[SteveG1988]

Roller coaster that has the red lights