FAA Stepping Up Campaign against Laser Strikes against Aircraft

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is stepping up its campaign against people shining lasers at aircraft. The number of incidents is on the rise, despite the FAA’s decision to impose civil penalties against people who point a laser at an aircraft cockpit.

In October, the FAA unveiled a website recounting the dangers the lasers pose and encouraging people to report laser incidents online.

The FAA said pilots reported 2,795 laser incidents through October 20, 2011, which means the number of incidents this year is liked to surpass the 2,836 incidents in 2010. The number of reported incidents has increased steadily since 2005.

The FAA says that lasers can temporarily blind a pilot, threatening the lives of the airplane crew, passengers, and people on the ground.

In June, the FAA declared that pointing a laser at an aircraft from the ground, as well as from inside a plane, violates FAA regulations prohibiting interference with a flight crew. Violators face a maximum civil penalty of $11,000.