Definition
Airport lights that outline taxiways and guide aircraft along the surface between runways, ramps, and parking areas during night operations or low visibility. The standard system uses omnidirectional blue edge lights to mark the sides of the taxiway, and may include green centerline lights, clearance bar lights, and lighted signs at intersections and runway hold positions.
Plain English
The lights on the ground that show pilots where the taxiways are and how to follow them when it's dark or hard to see. Blue lights mark the edges; green lights, when present, mark the middle.
Context Anchor
Seen during night taxi, poor visibility, or any time airport surface lighting is used to guide ground movement.
Why Pilots Care
Prevents runway incursions and keeps the aircraft on the correct paved surface during ground movement.
Intuition Check
Do not read “taxiway lights” as any lights near a taxiway. In this FAA context, it means the blue lights that outline taxiway edges, not runway lights, airport signs, or ramp lighting.
Example Sentence 1
After landing, the pilot followed the blue taxiway lights to the parking ramp.
Example Sentence 2
At night the taxiway lights helped maintain orientation while taxiing between the ramp and the hold short line.