DJI Air 3 lights: auxiliary light, LEDs and anti-collision strobes

The DJI Air 3 has a bottom auxiliary light, front arm LEDs and status indicators, but no anti-collision strobe. The auxiliary light defaults to Auto: it switches on only in low light when the drone is below about 5 m, to help the downward vision sensors. If it "isn't working", it's usually just in Auto, or it was set to On and reset to Auto after a restart.

Aux light not working? — The Air 3's bottom auxiliary light helps the downward sensors land in the dark. On Auto it only switches on in low light below about 5 m.

The lights on an Air 3

Light	Where	What it does
Auxiliary light	Bottom, next to the downward sensors	Lights the ground for the downward vision system in low light
Front arm LEDs	Front arms	Show the drone's heading; can turn off while recording
Aircraft status indicators	On the arms	Show flight and system status

Auxiliary light settings

Open DJI Fly, go to Settings > Safety, and find Auxiliary LED. You can choose Auto, On or Off.

Auto (default): turns on in low light below about 5 m after takeoff, mainly for landing.
On: stays on in flight. DJI says not to switch it on before takeoff.
Off: stays off.

Every time you restart the drone, the setting goes back to Auto. In the EU it's locked to Auto.

Even with the light on, DJI warns that the vision sensors may not position the drone well in low light. Fly with care in the dark, especially if GPS is weak.

Auxiliary light not working: fixes

Check the conditions. In daylight or above 5 m, Auto keeps it off. Test at dusk while hovering low.
Set it to On in Settings > Safety > Auxiliary LED, then check again after takeoff.
Remember the reset. After a battery swap or restart it's back on Auto.
Update firmware for the aircraft, controller and app. See Air 3 firmware updates.
Check for damage. If the bottom shell took a hard landing and the light never comes on in any mode, it needs a repair. Contact DJI support or our repair team.

Front arm LEDs

Under Settings > Safety > Aircraft Front Arm LEDs choose Auto or On. In Auto, the front LEDs turn off while shooting so they don't show in your footage. Set them to On if you want them visible at all times.

Night flying and strobes

The Air 3's built-in LEDs are not anti-collision lights. US rules:

Part 107 at night: current training plus anti-collision lighting visible for 3 statute miles. You'll need an add-on strobe.
Recreational at night: lighting that lets you see the drone's location and orientation at all times.

When picking a strobe, choose a light, small unit that mounts on the top shell, away from the props and the upward sensors. Every gram costs flight time and adds load in wind. Read more in can you fly a drone at night and Air 3 night mode.

Rules current as of October 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.

Shooting at dusk a lot? The Air 3S adds forward LiDAR for obstacle sensing in very low light. Compare it in Air 3 vs Air 3S, or stay with the DJI Air 3.