Lasers are bright.

juxtapilot

Snowflake
I didn't realize how bright these things are until earlier tonight. A friend and I were flying around the Portland area, and while on approach to Hillsboro (the smaller airport west of PDX) our cockpit lit up bright greenish white. Reported it to approach and they gave me the FBI's number to call. I just found it so interesting how bright that light was. It wasn't bright enough to hurt my eyes, but I lost my night vision for awhile. These laser people are jackasses.
 
I wouldnt call the ones that make a professional living at laser entertainment jackasses. Their variance requires them to have airplane spotters and stop laser displays during a time that an aircraft is flying through the area. Also professional laser companies will take the time to call the FAA and get a NOTAM issued. Its the ones that dont have airplane spotters and are operating without a variance that you have to watch out for.

Was someone shining a laser directly at your airplane or were you flying through a laser show display? Scanned laser images during a laser show are really no brighter than a mag light flashlight with fresh batteries. Its the static beam thats the problem. If someone is shining a static beam at the airplane you should report it.
 
I wouldnt call the ones that make a professional living at laser entertainment jackasses. Their variance requires them to have airplane spotters and stop laser displays during a time that an aircraft is flying through the area. Also professional laser companies will take the time to call the FAA and get a NOTAM issued. Its the ones that dont have airplane spotters and are operating without a variance that you have to watch out for.

Was someone shining a laser directly at your airplane or were you flying through a laser show display? Scanned laser images during a laser show are really no brighter than a mag light flashlight with fresh batteries. Its the static beam thats the problem. If someone is shining a static beam at the airplane you should report it.

I don't have any issues with laser shows or anything, lasers are cool. But tonight there wasn't a show or anything going on. It just lit up our cockpit. I wasn't really mad, but it was just distracting for a few seconds.
 
That happens WAY more often than it should. I've been hit twice in the jet and I know we file about one report a month just from this company.
 
I didn't realize how bright these things are until earlier tonight. A friend and I were flying around the Portland area, and while on approach to Hillsboro (the smaller airport west of PDX) our cockpit lit up bright greenish white. Reported it to approach and they gave me the FBI's number to call. I just found it so interesting how bright that light was. It wasn't bright enough to hurt my eyes, but I lost my night vision for awhile. These laser people are jackasses.

The green ones are the most dangerous and in a study a few years ago, many of the green pointer lasers coming out of China were WAY above what was supposed to be the max limit. Still, the ruby lasers are dangerous.

The green ones are a bit more expensive, use more power but have a longer range if I remember my notes correctly.
 
I've been hit a couple times, all mine were down low, but I've read people have gotten hit in the Flight Levels, too. Reports and a trip to the doctor was involved with mine for frequent headaches and sore eyes. Even though they gave you the number for the FBI, they may be calling you. They called me for a week or so after mine trying to get all the details and nail down the location of the people that did it.
 
Last night in the notam portion of the IAH ATIS there was a note of a green laser reported 7 miles ne of the Hobby vor. Right where we were headed on departure so we would be relatively low altitude. Its the second time Ive seen a first hand report of one. Both times down in that vicinity. Not sure whos down there raising h#ll but it aint cool.
 
I wouldnt call the ones that make a professional living at laser entertainment jackasses. Their variance requires them to have airplane spotters and stop laser displays during a time that an aircraft is flying through the area. Also professional laser companies will take the time to call the FAA and get a NOTAM issued. Its the ones that dont have airplane spotters and are operating without a variance that you have to watch out for.

You mean like the one he was describing? ;)
 
I've been hit with a green laser also. When it happened to me there was a lot of incidents going on in the Hartford, CT area and a few agencies were investigating. There was a state police officer who came to the airport in the middle of the night to take our reports. What the people who do this don't realize is their laser isn't just a little spec of light against my airplane like it is against their wall. Plus, I'm sure the plexiglass windows probably help scatter the light and blind the pilots more.
 
Are these laser pointers we're talking about? The little 200mw toys you can buy at the mall? People can hold these things on a cockpit window of a moving jet?
 
The green lasers are about 50 times more powerful than your average red laser pointer. So yeah, it can hit a cockpit. As far as holding it on there I imagine it takes some skill? I don't really know I just want to strangle the people who do this despite any lasing skill they might have.
 
I've been hit with a green laser also. When it happened to me there was a lot of incidents going on in the Hartford, CT area and a few agencies were investigating. There was a state police officer who came to the airport in the middle of the night to take our reports. What the people who do this don't realize is their laser isn't just a little spec of light against my airplane like it is against their wall. Plus, I'm sure the plexiglass windows probably help scatter the light and blind the pilots more.

Yes, lasers diffuse (grow) as they get farther away from the source so after a thousand feet or so a small laser pointer is actually a very large circle. I got hit once when I was CFIing but I havent got hit in the airlines yet.
 
The green lasers are about 50 times more powerful than your average red laser pointer. So yeah, it can hit a cockpit. As far as holding it on there I imagine it takes some skill? I don't really know I just want to strangle the people who do this despite any lasing skill they might have.

When I got hit it looked like a bunch of green flashes on the bottom of my cowling. You could tell it was someone holding it in their hand and aiming it at me. Luckily it was dark and overcast and turning off my lights for a bit while I climbed into the clouds put a stop to it.
 
The green ones are the most dangerous and in a study a few years ago, many of the green pointer lasers coming out of China were WAY above what was supposed to be the max limit. Still, the ruby lasers are dangerous.

The green ones are a bit more expensive, use more power but have a longer range if I remember my notes correctly.


Just today my company banned the use of laser pointers in the simulator due to possible eye injury to students.


Typhoonpilot
 
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