Metalite Aviation Lighting was acquired by the Harris Watson group in 2007, and incorporated into Aeronautical & General Instruments Limited. Metalite offers a range of portable aircraft lighting solutions, to both military and civilian customers, from its site in Poole, Dorset.
Employing approximately 15 people, this profitable division of AGI has specialised in the design and manufacture of portable airfield lighting systems since the 1960s. Metalite is now able to offer a full range of equipment covering runway and taxiway edge lights, approach lights, PAPIs and obstruction lights.
Products are both battery and generator powered and can provide visual and NVG compatible light outputs suitable for civilian and military use. Lighting can be supplied as individual units supported by freestanding battery chargers or in road-going trailers with an integral charging facility. The military trailers are now seen as the international standard for portable lighting, offering rapid reaction equipment that can be towed, lifted or flown to any area of the world and be deployed in less than twenty minutes. The first civilian portable lighting trailer was delivered to Glasgow International Airport in 1992 and is still in daily use.
- CALKIT™ (Civil Airfield Lighting KIT) is a versatile, trailer mounted, battery powered, portable runway lighting system for the civilian market. It complies with International Civil Aviation Standards and can be used as a stand-alone, temporary system on remote airstrips or as emergency, supplementary or obstruction lighting at international and domestic airports. A CALKIT™ contains 66 CORELs (Combined Omni-directional Runway Edge Lights), which can be manual or remote controlled.
- CORELs (Combined Omni-directional Runway Edge Lights) are versatile battery powered portable runway lights that comply with international aviation standards and are suitable for a wide range of airport or airfield applications. Interchangeable lenses are available in the full range of aviation colours, so that a COREL can be used in any environment.
- VIS PAPI (Visual Spectrum Precision Approach Path Indicator) is a battery powered portable visual spectrum precision approach path indicator suitable for night-time use in compliance with CAA document CAP 168. VIS PAPIs are available in both manual control and radio control, where they can be operated from a distance of up to 3m.
- MOSKIT (Minimum Operating Strip lighting KIT) is a trailer mounted, portable airfield lighting system designed to meet the needs of the military market in supporting both covert and non-covert operations. MOSKIT is the only portable airfield lighting system able to fully comply with NATO STANAGs 3534 and 7025.
- SALKIT (Supplementary Airfield Lighting KIT) is used predominantly in conjunction with the MOSKIT and is a trailer mounted, portable airfield lighting system containing NVG compatible portable edge lights. In situations where the minimum runway specification provided by MOSKIT is not sufficient, SALKIT contains the additional edge lighting needed to expand MOSKIT's potential by allowing closer spacing of runway edge lights, extended runways and the marking of taxiways and parking areas.