No entry sign

What the NO ENTRY sign is

The NO ENTRY sign is a mandatory instruction sign — so it carries a white inscription on a red background — placed where an aircraft or vehicle must not enter the taxiway or area beyond it. It is used to close off a one-way taxiway to opposing traffic, or to keep traffic out of a prohibited or non-movement area. Like every red sign on the airfield, it gives an instruction the crew or driver has no discretion to ignore: this way is not available to you.

Unlike a runway-holding position sign, which tells you to stop and wait for a clearance, the NO ENTRY sign is absolute — there is no clearance that turns this direction back on. It simply marks a route or area that is not yours to enter.

ICAO and FAA names

The sign is defined as the NO ENTRY sign in ICAO Annex 14 Volume I, and the same sign is carried through into the European rules under EASA CS-ADR-DSN. The FAA recognises the same red mandatory instruction sign in its airport sign guidance and its advisory circulars (AC 150/5340-18). Across all three systems it is spoken of plainly as the "no entry" sign; there is no separate colloquial name, because the symbol it displays is already the internationally understood no-entry device.

That symbol is what makes the sign unmistakable: it is a symbol sign, not a legend sign. Where most mandatory instruction signs spell out a runway designation or a hold instruction, the NO ENTRY sign shows only its emblem, so it reads the same to any pilot or driver regardless of the language they operate in.

What it displays

The NO ENTRY sign displays the international no-entry symbol — a white ring with a horizontal white bar across it, on a red background. There is no runway designation, no taxiway letter and no legend text; the meaning is carried entirely by the symbol, which is why it can be understood at a glance and from a distance. It is positioned so it faces the traffic that must be kept out, on the side of the taxiway or area entrance where an approaching crew or driver will see it.

Because it carries no inscription, the geometry that matters is the proportion of the red field, the white ring and the bar across it, and the placement and mounting height that keep the emblem conspicuous. ICAO Annex 14 Volume I, EASA CS-ADR-DSN and the FAA advisory circulars all set out how that symbol and its board are to be formed and positioned; the concept is identical even where the detailed figures differ between the standards.

Draw it accurately in Wingframe

The NO ENTRY sign lives or dies on its proportions — the balance of the red field, the white ring and the bar across it, and a board sized and mounted so the emblem stays conspicuous. Wingframe draws it to ICAO, EASA or FAA geometry for you, so the artwork you send to the sign manufacturer is right the first time. See what Wingframe can do.