There's a big difference in a laser being shone at an aircraft by someone in a survival situation and those being shone by some good-for-nothing plonker with nothing better on his mind.
I'd suggest the survivor wants to be found as soon as possible; the searching aircraft generally wants to do the same and may well be
expecting a pointer to be shone. It's unlikely that, once the survivor has alerted the aircraft, and received acknowledgement by landing light, circling overhead etc., that he's going to continue to annoy the aircraft by persistent illumination - he is likely, one hopes, to have had some form of instruction in survival and/or the use of such an aid when pointing it at an aircraft.
Considering how difficult it is to see a lifejacket light in a dark sea, or bobbing orange jacket by day, if I'm trying to save a life before running out of fuel, I'd much rather be searching for someone with a laser device (and who knows how to use it) for the benefit of all concerned.
It sounds like the US Government has got it right . . . for once!
