Quick answer: If a top steady-burning light or any flashing obstruction light on your tower goes out and isn’t restored within 30 minutes, federal rules (47 CFR §17.48) require you to notify the FAA by filing a NOTAM. The fastest way is to call the FAA’s nationwide Flight Service line at 877-487-6867 and give your tower’s ASR (Antenna Structure Registration) number. The NOTAM stays active for up to 15 days, and you must cancel it once the light is repaired. Here’s the full process — and how to make sure you never miss an outage in the first place.
What to do the moment you discover a tower light outage
- Confirm the failure and note the time. Identify which light is out (top beacon, side marker, or flashing head) and record when you discovered it. Under §17.48, the mandatory-report clock applies to a top steady-burning light or any flashing obstruction light, “regardless of its position on the antenna structure.”
- Try to restore it within 30 minutes. If the light comes back on inside that window, no NOTAM is required — but still log the event.
- If it’s not corrected in 30 minutes, file a NOTAM (see the next section, and our step-by-step guide to filing and clearing a NOTAM).
- Dispatch a repair crew to restore the light as quickly as possible.
- Log everything. Discovery time, actions taken, the NOTAM file number, and the restoration time — FCC rules (47 CFR §17.49) require these records.
Who do you call to report a tower light outage?
Call the FAA’s nationwide Flight Service NOTAM line: 877-487-6867. When the menu answers, say “NOTAM,” then say the state where the outage is; you’ll be connected to a briefer (the line is staffed 24/7). Have this ready — it mirrors the information §17.48 requires in the report:
- Your tower’s ASR number (the FCC Antenna Structure Registration number).
- The height of the structure (AGL and AMSL, if known).
- Which light(s) are out and the circumstances that caused the failure.
- The probable restoration date, the tower’s location and nearest airport, and your name and callback number.
The briefer will give you a NOTAM file number — keep it in your tower log. (New to NOTAMs? Start with what a NOTAM is.)
How long do you have to report a tower light outage?
30 minutes. Under §17.48, if a top steady-burning light or any flashing obstruction light is extinguished or malfunctioning and is “not corrected within 30 minutes,” the owner must report it to the FAA — regardless of the cause. That’s why 24/7 monitoring matters: the clock starts when the light fails, not when someone happens to notice.
How to clear (cancel) a NOTAM after the light is fixed
A NOTAM does not close itself when you fix the light — you have to cancel it.
- Restore and verify the light is working, and log the restoration time.
- Call the NOTAM line (877-487-6867) to cancel the NOTAM, referencing your file number.
- Record the closure in your tower log.
A tower-light NOTAM is valid for 15 days and then auto-expires, at which point the FAA notifies the FCC that the outage is resolved. If your repair runs longer than the NOTAM period, §17.48 requires you to notify the FAA to extend the outage and report a new return-to-service date, repeating until the light is fixed. A common, costly mistake is assuming “light restored” automatically means “NOTAM cleared.” It doesn’t.
What happens if you don’t report a tower light outage?
Unreported outages are an FAA/FCC compliance violation and can lead to significant fines and enforcement action. The liability sits with the tower owner — not the climber or contractor. Beyond the fine, an unlit tower is a real aviation-safety hazard.
Keep the records the FCC requires
47 CFR §17.49 requires owners to keep a record of every known extinguishment or improper functioning of a structure light, retained for two years and provided to the FCC on request. Each entry must capture the nature of the problem, the date and time it was observed, the date and time of FAA notification, and the date, time, and nature of the repair.
The easier way: never miss an outage in the first place
The 30-minute clock is unforgiving, and manually watching every tower around the clock isn’t realistic. That’s the problem Tower Lighting as a Service (TLaaS®) solves.
With LumenServe’s TLaaS®, we monitor your towers 24/7/365, detect an outage the moment it happens, file the NOTAM for you on time, dispatch repair, and cancel the NOTAM when the light is restored — while keeping the compliance records the FCC requires. Lights, monitoring, NOTAM handling, and inspections come as one predictable service, so a 2 a.m. outage never becomes a compliance problem. LumenServe monitors and supports 1,000+ towers nationwide.
Talk to LumenServe about 24/7 tower-light monitoring →
Frequently asked questions
What number do I call to report a tower light outage?
Call the FAA’s nationwide Flight Service NOTAM line at 877-487-6867. Say “NOTAM,” then the state, and have your tower’s ASR number, height, and nearest airport ready.
How quickly must a tower light outage be reported?
Within 30 minutes. Under 47 CFR §17.48, if a top or flashing obstruction light fails and isn’t corrected within 30 minutes, you must notify the FAA by filing a NOTAM.
What is an ASR number?
The Antenna Structure Registration number — the ID the FCC assigns to a registered tower (commonly seven digits). You need it to file or cancel a NOTAM.
How long is a tower-light NOTAM valid?
15 days. It expires automatically, and the FAA then notifies the FCC. If the light isn’t repaired by then, you must notify the FAA to extend the outage before it lapses.
Do I have to notify the FCC separately?
No. When the NOTAM is canceled or expires, the FAA notifies the FCC that the outage is resolved. Your obligation is to file, maintain, and cancel the NOTAM and to keep the tower-log records required by §17.49.
Who is responsible if a tower light is out — the owner or the contractor?
The tower owner is legally responsible for compliance, monitoring, and reporting.
