High-powered laser pointers can incapacitate pilots flying\nairplanes with hundreds of passengers. To combat the threat, Acting FAA\nAdministrator Billy Nolen requested laser manufacturers add a warning label to\ntheir packaging to make consumers aware of the safety risks and federal laws\nwhen using lasers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLasers may seem like just a toy, office tool, or game for\nmost, but they can incapacitate pilots putting thousands of passengers at risk\nevery year. People need to be aware pointing a laser at an airplane is a\nfederal crime,\u201d said Acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pilots reported 9,500 laser strikes to the FAA in 2022. Two\nhundred and seventy-eight pilots have reported an injury from a laser strike to\nthe FAA since 2010. People who shine lasers at aircraft face FAA fines of up to\n$11,000 per violation and up to $30,800 for multiple laser incidents. The FAA\nissued $120,000 in fines for laser strikes in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can help reduce laser strikes on airplanes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read Acting Administrator Nolen\u2019s letter:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Dear Laser Manufacturers and Distributors: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Many technologies and scientific advances are a net-good.\nWhile capturing their capability to improve the world, we are required to\nmitigate any risks they pose. Lasers are no different. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Lasers may seem like just a toy, office tool, or game for\nmost, but they can incapacitate pilots putting thousands of passengers at risk\nevery year. We need your help to combat this serious issue. The FAA requests\nthat you add a warning label to your packaging to make consumers aware of the\nsafety risks and federal laws when using lasers. The message below would\nachieve this: <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPointing a laser at an aircraft threatens pilots, and it is\na federal crime. U.S. law enforcement agencies and the Federal Aviation\nAdministration may seek criminal and civil prosecution against violators. Don\u2019t\nshine this laser at aircraft.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Placing information directly in the hands of individuals\nensures everyone knows the risk \u2013 and the penalties \u2013 of pointing lasers at\naircraft. If you already have a warning on your packaging, the FAA asks that\nyour company increase the warning\u2019s prominence. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pilots reported around 9,500 laser strikes to the FAA in\n2022, and 278 pilots have reported an injury from a laser strike to the FAA\nsince 2010. To learn more about the dangers of laser strikes, you can view the\nFAA\u2019s visualization tool, which shows laser-strike data from 2010 to 2022. You\ncan also watch a video about the dangers of lasers or visit\nFAA\u2019s website and fact sheet for more information. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Together, we can decrease this risk to aviation that remains\ntoo high. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sincerely, Billy Nolen Acting FAA Administrator <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" High-powered laser pointers can incapacitate pilots flying airplanes with hundreds of passengers. To combat the threat, Acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen requested laser manufacturers add a warning label to their packaging to make consumers aware of the safety risks and federal laws when using lasers. \u201cLasers may seem like just a toy, office tool, or […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":24811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Laser-Strike-3.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24810"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24810\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24814,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24810\/revisions\/24814"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}