COMMUTER ACFT ENCOUNTERS LNDG SIT WITH INOP RWY LIGHTS.

Narrative

I DEPARTED DFW ENRTE TO KILLEEN (ILE) TEXAS. THERE WERE TSTMS TO THE S AND W OF ILE BUT NONE ENCOUNTERED ON THE TRIP THERE. REACHING LITTLE INTXN 36 NM S OF WACO (ALT) KILLEEN WAS SEEN WITH CLR SKIES WITHIN 5 NM; HOWEVER; TSTMS WERE PAINTING ON THE RADAR TO THE S; W AND N. WE WERE APCHING FROM THE E. THE ROTATING BEACON WAS OBSERVED; GRAY APCH WAS ADVISED AND WE WERE GIVEN A VECTOR TO THE FIELD AND CLRNC FOR A VISUAL APCH. AT THIS TIME I ASKED MY FO TO MAKE SURE THE PLT CTL LIGHTING WAS UP ON ITS HIGHEST INTENSITY. NOTE: ILE WAS STILL IN THE CLR BUT TSTMS WERE MOVING IN. IF THE LIGHTS WOULD HAVE ILLUMINATED THE APCH AND LNDG WOULD HAVE BEEN UNEVENTFUL. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE; ONLY THE APCH LIGHTS ILLUMINATED NO RWY LIGHTS. THERE WERE NO NOTAMS LISTED FOR ILE. WE CIRCLED S OF THE FIELD TO DETERMINE A PLAN OF ACTION WHERE WE CONCLUDED THAT THE WX THAT WAS N OF THE FIELD WAS MOVING SE RESTRICTING A RETREAT TO THE E. THE WX S WAS MOVING N AND WAS NOW BECOMING A FACTOR FOR US CIRCLING TO THE S. IN OUR OPINION THE ONLY OPTION WAS A LNDG AT ILE. LOC AND GS WERE TUNED FOR GUIDANCE AND THE LNDG WAS UNEVENTFUL. NOTE: PRIOR TO OUR ARR ANOTHER REGIONAL CARRIER LANDED WITHOUT ANY PROBS AND 1 HR AFTER A COMPANY ACFT LANDED. THE CORRECT PCL FREQ WAS USED BECAUSE THE APCH LIGHTS CHANGED INTENSITY.