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What navigation lights does a small boat need at night?
From sunset to sunrise, and whenever visibility is poor, a recreational boat must switch on its navigation lights. They tell other boats what kind of vessel you are, which way you are heading and whether you are at anchor. In winter on the Costa del Sol it gets dark around six in the evening, so an afternoon trip almost always ends with the lights on.
What navigation lights does a small boat need?
A power-driven recreational boat under 50 metres shows a white masthead light forward, a green sidelight to starboard, a red sidelight to port and a white sternlight. If it is under 12 metres, it may replace the masthead light and sternlight with a single all-round white light.
These rules come from the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs, known in Spain as RIPA), which apply to a small boat just as they do to a cargo ship. Each light can only be seen from a set sector:
| Light | Colour | Visible sector | Minimum range (boat under 12 m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masthead | White | 225°, from dead ahead to 22.5° abaft the beam on each side | 2 miles |
| Starboard sidelight | Green | 112.5°, from dead ahead to 22.5° abaft the beam, starboard side | 1 mile |
| Port sidelight | Red | 112.5°, from dead ahead to 22.5° abaft the beam, port side | 1 mile |
| Sternlight | White | 135° astern | 2 miles |
| All-round (anchor, small boat) | White | 360° | 2 miles |
Navigation lights by type of boat
Navigation lights change depending on whether the boat is under power or sail, its length and whether it is underway or at anchor. These are the most common cases in recreational boating:
Motorboat under 12 metres
Sidelights (green and red) plus an all-round white light, or separate masthead and stern lights. If it is under 7 metres and cannot exceed 7 knots, an all-round white light is enough, with sidelights if practicable.
Sailing boat under sail
Sidelights and sternlight, but no masthead light. If it is under 20 metres, they can be combined in a tricolour lantern at the top of the mast. A sailing boat under 7 metres may simply have a white torch ready to show in time.
Sailing boat under engine
As soon as the engine is running, even with sails up, it is a power-driven vessel and must also show the masthead light. This is a classic exam trick question.
Boat at anchor
One all-round white light in the bow, where it can best be seen. Boats under 7 metres do not need it unless they anchor in or near a channel, fairway, anchorage or where other vessels normally navigate. See our guide on how to anchor a boat correctly.
Reading another boat’s navigation lights
Another boat’s navigation lights tell you at a glance which side of it you are seeing and where it is heading. A single red light means you are looking at its port side; a single green light, its starboard side. If you see the white masthead light and both sidelights at once, it is coming straight towards you.
In that head-on situation, COLREGs Rule 14 applies: both power-driven vessels alter course to starboard and pass port to port, showing each other their red lights.
- Only a white light: you are seeing the stern of a boat moving away, a boat at anchor or a small boat with an all-round light.
- Green and white: the other boat is showing you its starboard side. If it is crossing on your port side, it must keep clear; you hold your course and speed, watching what it does.
- Red and white: it is showing you its port side. If it is crossing on your starboard side, you must give way (Rule 15).
Which licence you need to go out at night
The Spanish navigation licence (“titulín”) only allows daytime navigation, so a trip that ends after dark requires at least the PNB. With the PNB and the PER you can navigate by day and night, and navigation lights are part of the syllabus of both exams, together with buoyage and the collision regulations.
If you are thinking about getting a licence, we explain the differences in PNB or PER and the limits of the basic licence in navigation licence in Malaga. At Oceanautic we run the PNB course in Malaga and the PER course in Malaga at Benalmádena marina.
Frequently asked questions
When must navigation lights be switched on?
From sunset to sunrise and, during the day, whenever visibility is restricted (fog, haze or heavy rain). During that time no other lights that could be mistaken for them may be shown.
What colour is the starboard light?
Green. The port light is red. A classic way to remember it: “port wine is red”, and port is also the shorter word, like red.
Does a sailing boat show a masthead light?
Only when it is under engine. Under sail alone it shows sidelights and a sternlight, or a tricolour at the masthead if it is under 20 metres.
What light does a boat at anchor show?
One all-round white light in the bow. Boats under 7 metres only need it when anchored near channels, fairways, anchorages or where other boats normally pass.
