gmbfly98

It’s not just in NJ where these laser strikes are happening. I just had this happen to myself a week ago in CT while out flying at night.

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mambopooch

Without strict Enforcement somebody’s gonna get hurt!

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bagofsuds

War of the Worlds syndrome. The media strikes again.

Chuck-the-Wise

The need is for widespread media-based education based on some facts. Not that it will do any good.

1. You see lights in the sky. You can’t judge its distance nor if it is an aircraft or a drone.
2. If it IS an aircraft you’ll likely hear it, even at a distance.
3. If it is a drone, why do you think it is a threat?
4. There is nothing stealthy about a drone with lights.
5. Shining a lazer on a drone does nothing to the drone. (and emphatically state the hazard mentioned here).
   6). Drones used for (legitimate) surveilance are routinely used in law enforcement and for other legit reasons, and those agencies don’t need to explain it to you.
6. Likewise, the FAA has to weigh in on drone flights near airports. Apparently there are enough idiots who fly theirs close to air traffic. Unless there is drone tracking systems in place, enforcement will be tough.
7. “Shooting down” a drone is sooooooo stupid, even if the pilot has less than legal intentions. Besides destroying someone’s personal property, where it crashes can cause significant harm on the ground…
   9)…but then again, if someone shot down your $4,000 drone, maybe you’d think twice.
8. Lots of talk about drones flying over “sensitive” areas, like military facilities. Three factors here: nobody is going to leave classified assets out in the open to be seen by anybody; the military will handle it, security is their job, so it isn’t up to Jethro and his 12 gauge; a foreign adversary with high def images shot from space doesn’t have to send a ship with short-range drones to shoot at night.
9. Space aliens wouldn’t travel 12 billion miles at light speed to photograph the Walmart parking lot.
   …but in any case, there still will be people panicked even if they know and understand all of what I put out here. The trend in recent years is to not believe anything logical and authoritative.

gmbfly98

The problem is locating the actual source. In my case I immediately reported it to ATC, but the idiot on the ground wasn’t so much of an idiot to keep pointing it at me long enough for me to get an exact position on it.

The few who do actually get caught have probably been doing it multiple times long enough for their position to be identified.

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T.V

While this is true, harsher penalties for those who do get caught and publicizing how severe they are may help. Throw the book at these people, a bad laser strike with the right laser can end a pilot’s career in fractions of a second, not to mention the obvious risk to safety of the pilot, passengers, and people on the ground. It’s easily justifiable to make shining a laser at an aircraft as severe a charge as trying to force your way into a cockpit midflight. Easily available high powered lasers pointers are terrifying, they are so powerful that they can cause damage from shocking distances with an unlucky hit.