Australian State Bans Laser Pointers After "Attacks" on Airliners
The Australian state of New South Wales has banned laser pointers after a rash of "attacks" on airliners in which several pilots have been temporarily blinded. The new law requires jail terms of up to 14 years for anyone carrying them without a permit.
While some are making fun of this - and somewhat justifiably so - it's certainly true that aiming one of these laser pointers at a plane can temporarily blind the pilot and cause what could be a serious accident that could injure or kill hundreds. Why anyone would want to do something that heinous is beyond me.
Of course, banning laser pointers for everyone is quite probably overkill.
State Premier Morris Iemma said, "It is a gutless and cowardly act that could result in an horrific outcome. It only takes a fraction of a second for a pilot to become temporarily blinded and that could have catastrophic consequences."
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1 comments:
It seems to me a typical laser pointer, like you can buy at any convenience store or gas station, is way too low-powered to 'temporarily blind' a pilot, especially considering the distance from the prankster to the pilot. After all, it's not like the kid is right on the other side of the cockpit window. (If he is, that's a WHOLE 'nother problem altogether... lol). At the very least, the prankster is several hundred yards away from the pilot. The shakiness inherent with a laser dot at that range (try keeping a handheld laser dot focused on one tiny spot from several hundred yards), combined with the fact the pilot and plane are in motion, indicate the laser would never be in the pilot's eyes for more than a split second, if at all.
This is ridiculous, and does not add up logically.
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