Definition
An electrical device that automatically interrupts a circuit at regular intervals, causing a connected light to switch on and off repeatedly. In aircraft, flashers are used to drive flashing position lights, anti-collision beacons, and warning indicators.
Plain English
A small switching unit that makes a light blink on and off by itself.
Context Anchor
Seen in aircraft lighting systems, especially where a light is meant to attract attention by blinking.
Derivation
From the verb 'flash,' meaning a sudden, brief burst of light. The '-er' ending names the device that causes the action. So a flasher is simply 'the thing that makes something flash.'
Why Pilots Care
Makes aircraft lights more visible to other traffic and ground observers, directly supporting collision avoidance.
Analogy
It works like the part in a car that makes the turn signal blink on and off.
Intuition Check
Do not assume the flasher is always the light itself. In this use, the flasher is the device or circuit part that makes the light blink.
Example Sentence 1
When the anti-collision light stopped blinking, the mechanic traced the fault to a failed flasher in the wing tip circuit.
Example Sentence 2
Navigation lights remained steady until the flasher was switched on for the cross-country flight.