The Best Sunglasses for Pilots

The very nature of aviation means that pilots are flying their aircraft in many different conditions, sometimes changing within the time frame of a single flight. Modern aircraft operate high in the atmosphere where the sun's ultra violet light is strong because the atmosphere is thinner posing a greater threat to pilot's eyes.

During a typical flight a pilot might depart an airport covered in fog, climb his aircraft up between layers of clouds until finally breaking out on top of all of the clouds in bright sunlight. As the flight progresses the pilot can find himself descending through haze to a night landing at the destination airport. Or, having departed at night the pilot could find himself watching the sun rise over the horizon just before landing early in the morning in rain and drizzle.

The truth is that a single pair of sunglasses is not the solution for pilots. The reason for this is that the tint of the lenses has a significant effect upon how well the pilot can see in different conditions. For example, amber, brown or yellow lenses work very well to increase contrast in hazy or low light conditions, while grey or green lenses provide the best visibility in high light conditions.

But more important than the tint of the lenses is whether or not the sunglass lenses are polarized or not. Today most people believe that polarized lenses are the best way to go, and if you are an ordinary non-pilot citizen who needs sunglasses for driving, you would be correct.

Not true for pilots.

You can easily see the difference between non-polarized and polarized lenses by comparing one against the other. Simply find a sunny road and look through each of them and you will quickly notice the difference between them. Polarized lenses will reduce or eliminate the glare while the non-polarized lens will not.

Pilots are always responsible for the safe operation of their aircraft, and this includes a rule which is known as "see and be seen." What this means is that pilots are ultimately responsible for making sure their aircraft does not collide with another aircraft.

Polarized lenses, by their very nature, reduce or eliminate glare from metallic surfaces. Aircraft are made of metal, so it is important for pilots to be able to spot aircraft that may be on an intersecting or collision course with their own aircraft. Therefore non-polarized lenses are ESSENTIAL for pilots.

Today's modern aircraft not only operate in varying conditions and situations during each and every flight, but are also equipped with what we pilots call "glass cockpits". Essentially we are referring to the fact that today s cockpit instruments are displayed on LCD (Liquid Crystal Displays) displays.

Here again polarized lenses present a problem. Because pilots need to look outside the cockpit and then down at the instrument panel, polarized lenses will distort the pilot s view of the instrumentation presented on these LCD panels.

Lastly, it is important that original aviator sunglasses provide the proper protection for a pilot's eyes from both ultra violet and blue light. In addition, they should also reduce stress and eye strain for pilots as they conduct their flights.

For many years both military and civilian pilots have preferred Randolph Aviator sunglasses to provide the protection they need and want. Built to last, comfortable and available with different lens tints, these sunglasses are the ideal solution for pilots today

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