Guest blogger FAA Randy Babbitt: FAA seeks your help to curb laser incidents

Keeping the flying public safe is the FAA's mission. We have thousands of employees who work to keep our air space system the safest in the world.

But there's a growing safety problem that I want to make sure everyone knows about: pointing lasers at airplanes.  It sounds silly, but this is a serious problem. Just this year alone, we have had over 2,200 reported instances of people pointing lasers into the cockpits of airplanes flying around some of our nation's busiest airports.  This is up from 283 reported events in 2005.

Why is this dangerous? Lasers can distract pilots or temporarily blind a pilot while he or she is taking off or landing an aircraft.  Some of these exposures have required pilots to have to temporarily give up control of an aircraft to their co-pilot or abort a landing.  We have also had reports of people shining lasers into air traffic control towers.

The FAA encourages pilots to immediately report any laser events to air traffic controllers so law enforcement can be notified right away. People can face stiff local, state or federal penalties if they are convicted of purposefully shining a laser into an aircraft cockpit.  In 2009, California, Texas, and Florida topped the list of states with the most reported laser events.

We know that laser pointers are an important tool for astronomers and casual stargazers.  But, we just can’t stress enough the importance of being careful when you are shining them into the night sky. 

Flight crews and air traffic controllers are dedicated to aviation safety and the FAA is committed to raising the awareness of this important safety issue so we can stop these laser events from occurring.  You can help us by alerting your local law enforcement officials if you ever see someone shining a laser at an airplane.

Thank you for your help.

Comments

[mcas]

+40,000 people a year get killed by cars - 300+ get backed over by their own friends/family - and lasers in planes is a priority for the DOT?

Even if everyone on all of those 2,200 planes died, it still wouldn't tally the number of people killed by cars and speeding in 2009. Complete streets -- bike lanes, sidewalks, and less speeding should be the focus of DOT.

[Leonidovich]

I couldn't imagine that this is such big problem!

[Emma]

An awareness should be raised at all levels by highlighting the consequences of this serious issue, and how it could jeopardize human lives and property.

[DJ Toman]

This is a tempest in a teapot.
If FAA was REALLY concerned with this as a problem, it would be simple and inexpensive for crews to acquire and don bandstop-filtering lenses during critical parts of approaches. FAA could, or course, act as the conduit for the development, if such is required. A 532 nanometer bandstop filter wouldn't produce any noticeable vision deficiency except that it wouldn't pass a green laser.
Fighter planes today have laser-resistant canopies. Not a big deal.

It looks to me as though the problem, if one exists, is being ignored intentionally or misrepresented as a problem to intimidate the public.

By the way...green lasers are used as pointers to stars and planets, often for instructional purposes, but also to help point observation devices. Have anyone ever mistaken an airplane's lights for a star or planet?

Does anyone really believe that a kid, mistakenly pointing his green laser pointer at a bright light, asking his instructor what star or planet that is, should be thrown into prison?

Get goggles mandated and forget this as a problem.

[Kelly Neubecker]

Yes, the FAA considers outdoor laser incidents of this magnitude a serious hazard to flight operations! Laser incidents are a current and emerging concern to the aviation community, and as of last count total 2,602. When directed against aircraft cockpits, lasers, under certain conditions, can distract or impair the pilot and flight crew, posing a significant hazard. Most of these incidents unfortunately, happen during critical phases of flight, not to mention potential security implications of numerous illuminations, to multiple aircraft, at one airport, within a short period of time.
While goggles or a canopy seems to be the all encompasing thought as a "quick fix", there are visual limitations with certain goggles on cockpit lighting in air carriers, and although the lasers are within the 380-780 nanometer range, not all responsible for the illuminations are green.
Contrary to popular belief, these are NOT kids looking at stars. They are intentional illuminations by adults.
Laser light shows actually require variances through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Devices and Radiological Health, and are addressed by Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations (21 CFR) section 1010.4. A variance will not even be issued unless a letter of no objection is obtained through the FAA.
Title 49 of the United States Code (49 USC) section 40103 (a)(1), governs the sovereignty and use of airspace within the United States. Section 40103 (b)(1) grants the Administrator of the FAA the authority to “develop plans and policies for the use of the navigable airspace and assign by regulation or order the use of the airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the efficient use of airspace”. Accordingly, the FAA specifically prohibits interference with crewmembers under 14 CFR section 91.11. Federal criminal law also prohibits the interference with pilots of an aircraft under 18 USC 1993. See also, 18 USC 32(a)(3), (5).
Make no mistake, this IS a problem. I work on a daily basis with legitimate laser proponents who take the necessary steps with the FAA to ensure the safety of our national airspace system. These proponents are equally frustrated with this problem, and there are multiple agencies involved with continued informational outreach, prevention, standards development, and enforcement.
Posted by: Kelly J. Neubecker

[top10]

For anybody thinking about it:

October 21, 2010
"SACRAMENTO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Samuel Gregory Liebman, 51, of Roseville, with interference with an aircraft for pointing a laser at a CHP plane."
You can read full story here - sacramento.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel10/sc102110a.htm

[Michael E. Bailey]

I agree with Randy and Kelly. Responsible scientists and students, and star watcher hobbyists are not the problem with the lasors. Its more likeljy some adults and teenagers seeing if they can do something and get away with it probably after drinking a few beers. Some of them need to be caught and prosecuted so the message gets out that the lasor is not a toy that you can do with whatever you choose. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Don]

Seems to me that physical prevention (such as filtering) is a heck of a lot safer, more efficient and less expensive than enforcement, and it's a solution to proliferation, which is inevitable.

[Plundr]

Its more likeljy some adults and teenagers seeing if they can do something and get away with it probably after drinking a few beers......

[Robert B. Shuler]

Ev3er hear of Cre2w Rest? Geez !