What are location signs?
Black background, yellow inscription, a yellow border when it stands alone, and never an arrow — the sign that answers exactly one question: which taxiway or runway is this?
A location sign is black background, yellow inscription, with a yellow border when it stands alone — the exact colour inversion of the direction sign covered in Entry 3. That inversion is deliberate: a pilot glancing at a black panel with yellow text knows instantly it is confirming a position, not instructing a turn, and it carries no arrow under any circumstance. Where a direction sign is placed before an intersection to guide a decision, a location sign is placed at or just beyond it, simply stating which taxiway or runway the aircraft is now on.
The same black/yellow format is used where the position to be confirmed is a runway. A location sign is also installed beside a runway designation sign (white on red) at a taxiway/runway intersection, and beside a runway vacated sign, to name the taxiway the aircraft is on. These signs give orientation, never instruction: at a runway holding position the instruction comes from the red mandatory sign, not from the location sign.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1What is a location sign?
A black-background, yellow-inscription sign, with a yellow border when it stands alone, that never carries an arrow, answering exactly one question: which taxiway or runway is this?
Q2How is a location sign different from a direction sign?
It's the exact colour inversion — black/yellow instead of yellow/black — so a pilot instantly knows it's confirming a position, not instructing a turn. It also never carries an arrow, unlike a direction sign.
Q3Where is a location sign placed relative to an intersection?
At or just beyond it, simply stating which taxiway or runway the aircraft is now on, whereas a direction sign is placed before the intersection to guide a decision.
Q4Are there other types of location sign besides the taxiway version?
Yes. The same black/yellow format can name a runway, and a location sign is installed beside a runway designation sign at a taxiway/runway intersection and beside a runway vacated sign. The red mandatory sign, not the location sign, carries the instruction at a holding position.
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