L@ser attacks
As long as you have people stupid enough to throw bricks from bridges onto a highway (like in Germany), I suppose this issue won't go away without the most terrible threats from law enforcement. What a shame..
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I was at the pointy end of one of these incidents in Stockholm.
There were some clouds around so I could see a green dot racing around in the sky and I was able to follow it and see where it came from. All of a sudden I saw it on our nacelles and then inside the cockpit. I felt an ever so slight sting in my eye but not much more and it dissipadet very quickly.
After landing about 10 minutes later, I had this warm feeling above my eye on my forehead and it felt as if I had gravel or sand in my eye. Very discomforting. I mentioned it to my captain and he had similar complaints.
We pressed on for the final leg, and contacted the hospital upon landing. Basically nothing to do but to monitor the symptoms. Fortunately they wore off within 1 or 2 days and I've had my eye examined since without any remarks.
Later that week we got an email from our chief of flightoerations saying we should aid the police in trying to find the location of the laser pointer i.e. look out. I'd just like to comment on this, if you ever suspect you're being lit up by a laser, duck down below the glareshield and stay down for as long as you think you might need to (how's that for specific advice!!!
). It's a scary experience and should be avoided by any means possible. Not trying to find the source if you know you're being lit up is one good way... And having seen the laser dot on our aircraft skin, I can tell you it's not 3 meters in diameter... more likely 3 cm... Anyhow, don't let your interest get the better out of you, DUCK DOWN!
/LnS
There were some clouds around so I could see a green dot racing around in the sky and I was able to follow it and see where it came from. All of a sudden I saw it on our nacelles and then inside the cockpit. I felt an ever so slight sting in my eye but not much more and it dissipadet very quickly.
After landing about 10 minutes later, I had this warm feeling above my eye on my forehead and it felt as if I had gravel or sand in my eye. Very discomforting. I mentioned it to my captain and he had similar complaints.
We pressed on for the final leg, and contacted the hospital upon landing. Basically nothing to do but to monitor the symptoms. Fortunately they wore off within 1 or 2 days and I've had my eye examined since without any remarks.
Later that week we got an email from our chief of flightoerations saying we should aid the police in trying to find the location of the laser pointer i.e. look out. I'd just like to comment on this, if you ever suspect you're being lit up by a laser, duck down below the glareshield and stay down for as long as you think you might need to (how's that for specific advice!!!
). It's a scary experience and should be avoided by any means possible. Not trying to find the source if you know you're being lit up is one good way... And having seen the laser dot on our aircraft skin, I can tell you it's not 3 meters in diameter... more likely 3 cm... Anyhow, don't let your interest get the better out of you, DUCK DOWN!/LnS
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The point I have been trying to get across ( no doubt badly ) in my previous posts is that deliberate, military design & use of lasers specifically meant to 'dazzle' or 'blind' enemy pilots has been around a long while- apparently there are such definitions, though what difference it makes seems a tad superfluous !
So, 2 things occur to me;
1,The military well have a countermeasure of sorts, if only on high value assets; our 'good guys' have promised not to use such nasty weapons, but I'd be surprised if they haven't considering coming up against them.
2, It seems the commercially available kit, while nowhere near as bad yet, is narrowing the gap - and for those of you flying in nasty areas, I'd suppose coming up against even the military kit is a possibility...
Would some highly public hard sentences for such idiots be a counter, or trigger some perverse trendy new entertainment and just worry SLF ?!
Or, I hope some dept. somewhere is 'looking into it' - ( well, not if you'll pardon the pun ) and coming up with something.
So, 2 things occur to me;
1,The military well have a countermeasure of sorts, if only on high value assets; our 'good guys' have promised not to use such nasty weapons, but I'd be surprised if they haven't considering coming up against them.
2, It seems the commercially available kit, while nowhere near as bad yet, is narrowing the gap - and for those of you flying in nasty areas, I'd suppose coming up against even the military kit is a possibility...
Would some highly public hard sentences for such idiots be a counter, or trigger some perverse trendy new entertainment and just worry SLF ?!
Or, I hope some dept. somewhere is 'looking into it' - ( well, not if you'll pardon the pun ) and coming up with something.
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the powers that be are obviously taking an interest in this matter..............part of my forest worth of paper NOTAMS included the following;
Report to ATC any exposure to laser beam/light giving location of the source.
For uncontrolled airports inform fire rescue station on the proper freq.
Report to ATC any exposure to laser beam/light giving location of the source.
For uncontrolled airports inform fire rescue station on the proper freq.
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I'm ex-Nimrod aircrew. In the 1980's I recall rose-tinted specs being issued - don't laugh, it's true!
The idea was, whilst using the best sensor yet invented (the Mark 1 eyeball) in the vicinity of Soviet warships, you were supposed to wear these awful specs in case the vessel was using laser target designators, or incapacitation lasers as described earlier by Double Zero. Were you "hit," by laser light, the lens(es) of the spectacles flashed green and the idea was that you looked away immediately.
Whatever was on or in the lenses wouldn't protect you. But, so long as you resisted curiosity for another look, it gave you a chance.
This material has been around for some time. Manufacturers could, no doubt, retro fit screens with this or similar stuff incorporated. However, since I assume the red tint of our above-mentioned spectacles was critical to their operation, I should add, from experience that, contrary to popular belief, they were bloody awful to view the world through for any length of time! So if the Tefal-heads could design windscreens with this clever stuff, but in "normal" glass colour...
...but maybe I'm viewing the world through rose-tinted spectacles.
The idea was, whilst using the best sensor yet invented (the Mark 1 eyeball) in the vicinity of Soviet warships, you were supposed to wear these awful specs in case the vessel was using laser target designators, or incapacitation lasers as described earlier by Double Zero. Were you "hit," by laser light, the lens(es) of the spectacles flashed green and the idea was that you looked away immediately.
Whatever was on or in the lenses wouldn't protect you. But, so long as you resisted curiosity for another look, it gave you a chance.
This material has been around for some time. Manufacturers could, no doubt, retro fit screens with this or similar stuff incorporated. However, since I assume the red tint of our above-mentioned spectacles was critical to their operation, I should add, from experience that, contrary to popular belief, they were bloody awful to view the world through for any length of time! So if the Tefal-heads could design windscreens with this clever stuff, but in "normal" glass colour...
...but maybe I'm viewing the world through rose-tinted spectacles.
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There was someone on Manchester Approach frequency last night who reported being painter by a laser. Sadly, it sounds like this specific form of stupidity is getting more common. Bring back the stocks!
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Astronomy lasers
As a poster said before, laser star-finders are very useful pieces of kit especially if the object to be identified is obscured by cloud. Ive been watching Mars in the southern sky for a few weeks but it does trouble me that my line of sight is perpendicular to a flight path. I use a red laser but it is quite astonishing how far the beam remains coherent in clear air. I am sure that astronomy lasers cannot be a more than a momentary distraction for aircrew even if it illuminates directly into the cockpit. I dont know much about "green" lasers but I would imagine that the thermal energy dissipates at short distances from the exit port of the laser. Spectacle lenses could refocus the beam however.
I would be horrified if I inadvertently endangered aircrew but would be equally horrified if I had Mr Plod and his friends descend upon me whilst I was looking at a planet.
More info is needed... which lasers are safe and which ones arent? I will do a bit of searching myself but if someone knows more then i would be grateful.
I would be horrified if I inadvertently endangered aircrew but would be equally horrified if I had Mr Plod and his friends descend upon me whilst I was looking at a planet.
More info is needed... which lasers are safe and which ones arent? I will do a bit of searching myself but if someone knows more then i would be grateful.
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Military?
Bearing in mind the tensions at the moment between the UK Gov and Russia over the polonium poisoning case in London is it too much a stretch of the imagination..............?
After all 14,000 feet and then presumeably down into the cockpit does not sound like a commercially available piece of kit used from the ground to me.
After all 14,000 feet and then presumeably down into the cockpit does not sound like a commercially available piece of kit used from the ground to me.
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A matter of time.
l remember passing Manchester heading north in `93 on " guy fawkes " night and having a problem with lasers criss-crossing the sky ( l mean strong enough to light clouds which was the intention plainly). l made a report to atc from above 14,000ft, asking that the police investigate. My co-pilot, who was medicaly trained, kept his/her head down `till it stopped.
Our very own lawyer has got this right, bang `em up if caught "playing" with aircraft.
Our very own lawyer has got this right, bang `em up if caught "playing" with aircraft.
Last edited by non iron; 9th Jul 2008 at 11:15. Reason: to tone down a bit
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Can't pilots learn the old military technique?
As in when in the area of a nuclear explosion, to close one eye?
Hey, you may go blind in that eye but at least you'll land OK and more imprtantly, the SLF will be OK! [says a member of the SLF]
Hey, you may go blind in that eye but at least you'll land OK and more imprtantly, the SLF will be OK! [says a member of the SLF]
