B757 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Total 8339; Flight Crew Type 5555
Confusion
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Other / Unknown
General None Reported / Taken
Environment - Non Weather Related
The Port Authority of NY and NJ has just opened the new Goethals Bridge connecting Staten Island and New Jersey approximately three miles south of Newark Airport. The new bridge has four main towers; each with strobing white lights. The other night flying into Newark; the lights on top of the towers were sequenced together. Add a small east wind (right crab); and these could easily be mistaken for REILs. Reference the incident on the LOC 31 at LGA where [a] crew mistook the red Marriott Hotel sign for the VASI. The danger is that a crew could pick up the bridge lights coming out of an overcast and head for the bridge (mistaking the lights for REILs). The fix appears to be simple: Change the lights to random flashers instead of sequenced flashers; and post a warning in the 10-7 page.
B757 Captain reported that a new bridge near EWR has sequencing white strobe lights that could be mistaken for Runway End Identifier Lights.