Another fool pointing lasers at aircraft

Just what we need.
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&u=/ap/20041229/ap_on_re_us/laser_beam_airplane_1&printer=1

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Interfering with a commercial flight is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.

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I hope the guy is not a member here /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/banghead.gif

Something similar happened to a friend pilot I know here in town...He was flying towards town and seen a red flash that looked like a laser coming from the ground for several seconds...it was directly in front in his flight path many miles ahead then it faded away..after some investigation it was found...seems someone left a construction laser on at a jobsite and it was pointed at the horizon...hummm

They're reporting that this latest incident involved a green laser, which narrows the field considerably. I sure hope that it wasn't anybody from this forum. If it was... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif

WOw...just read that..Idiots are going to ruin our hobby !!!

another article:

http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/12/29/laser.plane/index.html

If I had a high power laser, I would be too budy burning stuff with it.

I wonder if there is some kind of tint or material that can cover the cockpit glass to protect the pilots from lasers, without obsuring their vision ??? I am pretty sure there is but it might cost $$$$.

There probably is some sort of material that could be used to trap out specific wavelengths (532nm, 635nm, 780-1000nm). Seems it would lbe more cost-effective to apply it to special safety glasses... ?

This is the reason I'm not going to be selling the PGL-III after the current buy. Scum of society who would target an aircraft with a laser. It really ticks me off.

because some people think it is an UFO and point on it.. as mentioned in other topic

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slovensko said:
because some people think it is an UFO and point on it.. as mentioned in other topic

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some People shoot laser at plane just for fun!!
dont mess this up with the "ufo topic" (Becouse there was no plane in that topic) ......

we just need to add another laser to the aircraft to shoot back /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif Perhaps air marshals should be given modded pointers to shoot back with too.

But seriously, the CNN article says there have been 9 aborted landings due to this new fad! That takes it out of the realms of just screwing around if it actually causes the planes to have to go around and try again.

I hope the laser mod guys are keeping a mailing list of all their purchasers as the FBI is going to come looking for that someday soon it sounds like.

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James S said:

But seriously, the CNN article says there have been 9 aborted landings due to this new fad!

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No. It says there have been 9 aborted landings in *simulators*. It has not so far interfered with a real flight. Not to say that doing this couldn't - just keeping facts straight.

Another Link - 6 incidents


FBI: Laser Beams Aimed into cockpits 6 times recently

And every time CNN reports on it, another yahoo is going to go out and try it, just to see what happens.

Hm, so that construction site followed the plane pretty well by just sitting there and having been left on. But if you read the genious in the first article - "Hawk said the laser had to have been fairly sophisticated to track a plane traveling at that altitude." Gee, I guess he doesn't know the beam spreads. Yes, a dot would be hard to keep on it, but not the huge spread a cheap pointer will have, expecially at that altitude.

Key points from the Cleveland incident:

1) Plane's altitude was 8500 feet
2) Laser tracked the plan for "several seconds"

That rules out just about everybody who might post here because it is going to take way more than just a steady hand to track an airplane more than 8500 feet away.

The Medford Oregon incident (may have to spoof your browser's id to googlebot to read for free) may be explained by St. Elmo's fire -- particularly since both pilots and passengers reported seeing the light.

Seriously. I've got very steady hands, and its quite difficult, if not impossible, to beam something far away by hand, and keep the dot on the same spot.

Don't forget beam spread. It would not be the size of a dot.