Pilots in Michigan Report Multiple Red Laser Pointer Sightings

[Wyatt_Junker]

Police are on alert after more than a dozen pilots reported someone shining a laser light at the plane while descending into Metro Airport.

The incident occurred in the Dearborn and Dearborn Heights areas, where 16 pilots reported seeing the laser pointer lights near the tower at Metro Airport, Local 4 reported.

Apparently the lights were being flashed at planes on their final approach into the Detroit area. The first instance reported was near the Home Depot in Dearborn Heights, then a short time after the light originated from a neighborhood near Telegraph Road and Lehigh Road, according to police.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/wdiv/20060214/lo_wdiv/3267175


And from Debbie Schlussel...


Detroit media is abuzz with reports about 16(!) pilots at Detroit Metro Airport being targeted with blinding laser pointers (http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/7046025/detail.html).

Some say (http://www.dailypundit.com/2005/12/airline_missile_story_still_ne.php) that the purpose of the lasers is not just about distracting pilots, but measuring distances from the ground to planes, in order to judge possible strike range for surface-to-air missiles.

And guess where the laser pointers' strobes are coming from?

Surprise, surprise--law enforcement investigators have pinpointed the lasers to Dearborn and Dearborn Heights, Michigan--both comprising the HEART of Islamic America. We like to call it by a more appropriate appellation: "Little Ramallah."

http://www.debbieschlussel.com/archives/2006/02/laser_pointers.html

[TechnoPrincess]

Scary! Very Scary.

But remember, the Muslims are our friends. :uhh:

[Rhino]

1. You don't need a laser to measure distance for a SAM. They take care of that themselves.

2. Laser rangefinders don't use visible laser beams.

I'm amazed they're considering somebody's personal blog as a credible reference. Whatever.

[TechnoPrincess]

1. You don't need a laser to measure distance for a SAM. They take care of that themselves.

2. Laser rangefinders don't use visible laser beams.

I'm amazed they're considering somebody's personal blog as a credible reference. Whatever.

True, but they have found that lasers can temporarily blind pilots, so they may just be trying to crash the planes that way.

Whatever the reason, it seems that there is something going on.

[DoctorDoom]

Any laser than can track a moving aircraft from thousands of feet away is NOT a handheld pointer. It's guided by an aiming device, possibly a tripod-mounted telescope for steadiness and accuracy. And the fact that the beams are "blinding" indicates that they are more powerful than the <5 milliwatt pointers used to play games with cats.

Something dangerous is going on at Metro.

[DesertFox]

Time to outlaw flashlights.

[Lazarus]

Im willing to beth they'll discover this to be a bunch of punk kids playing at terrorist...

[DoctorDoom]

If so, they'll have a lot of time to experience real terror in the federal Graybar Hotels.

[Lazarus]

I wonder what steps they can take to try to locate these punks? Maybe they could put some aircraft up just to try to draw their "attentions"...

[2nd_Amendment]

Kids goofing off. They've been lasering aircraft as long as lasers have been commonly available. Sadly the result of this hysteria will be NOT a terrorist attack, but government legislation to ban private ownership of laser devices of all types.

[Rhino]

Any laser than can track a moving aircraft from thousands of feet away is NOT a handheld pointer. It's guided by an aiming device, possibly a tripod-mounted telescope for steadiness and accuracy. And the fact that the beams are "blinding" indicates that they are more powerful than the <5 milliwatt pointers used to play games with cats.I haven't seen any report that anyone was blinded, other than supposition of the future possibility from the police chief. And I saw no evidence of "tracking" other than the mention of the lasers flashing in the cockpit, which wouldn't require a tripod. A handheld laser can indeed cause momentary blindness in a darkened cockpit, as can a simple bright beam of light. These are not the first incidents of this nature, and so far they have indeed been accomplished with handheld lasers. I see them mentioned on my aviation sites from time to time. There are some very strong handheld lasers out there that will do this.

http://bigha.com/sky/index.php

Something dangerous is going on at Metro.No argument here.

Kids goofing off. They've been lasering aircraft as long as lasers have been commonly available. Sadly the result of this hysteria will be NOT a terrorist attack, but government legislation to ban private ownership of laser devices of all types.Yep. You start with demonizing them and creating a fear, just like with guns..........

[DoctorDoom]

And I saw no evidence of "tracking" other than the mention of the lasers flashing in the cockpit, which wouldn't require a tripod.The issue is hitting a cockpit window from at least a couple of miles away (an easy assumption based on the planes being on final and the lasers firing from beyond the airport at the far end of the runway. No one can hand-hold a laser pointer that steadily, and the reflected beam (if any) certainly wouldn't be visible from that distance, thus providing no indication of contact.

It would be pure dumb luck even to come within a hundred yards of the aircraft with the beam, and in all probability it wouldn't be on target long enough for it to be noticed. Ergo, being a pessimist, I'm seeing a more sinister motive than punks playing around with pointers.

IAC, it needs to be dealt with harshly and finally, especially given the green lasers that are available in tens of milliwatts and that have a visible beam even on a clear night. Astronomy clubs use them for star pointing. Zeroing in with one of them would be vastly easier, because visual feedback would be available. Lastly, the green color is near the peak of human vision sensitivity, making then appear to be far brighter at the same power level, and truly dangerous in the high-powered versions.

Nip it in the bud or there will most likely be crashes.

[Rhino]

It sounds unlikely, I admit. But it has happened before on several occasions, and with handheld lasers. That's how I knew about the Bigha Jasper laser. One of those was used in one of the incidents, and the folks were prosecuted.

[DoctorDoom]

I won't rule idiots out, of course, but considering the neighborhood where the beams originated, I tend to look for motives beyond incredibly stupid horsing around. And it occurred to me after the post about telescopes that duct-taping a laser to binoculars would serve as a fairly precise aiming device without the unwieldiness of a scope.

It's reasonable to wait and see what the authorities discover.

[JimRaynor]

There's a site where you can buy 125mw laser pointers, no license required. Goes miles and is a visable green beam.
http://wickedlasers.com/products.php?content=extreme

Are these the green lazers you were talking about?
http://wickedlasers.com/photos/f1.jpg

[Rhino]

They aren't the ones I was referring to, but they may have been the ones Doc was. The Bigha is a green laser and is 5mw, the maximum allowed by law without a permit. The ones on wickedlasers would require a permit to be 'legal', though I have no doubt some people do get them without a permit. Their FAQ page mentions the legal requirements, though it leaves it up to the buyer to determine whether or not they are in compliance. Pretty sloppy.

[DoctorDoom]

Are these the green lazers you were talking about?Yep. And the visible beam, even in "clear" air, makes aiming them easy. The mitigating factor is that green lasers aren't cheap. Even the 5mw ones are not something a punk kid would be able to afford. The higher-powered ones are hundreds of bucks.

[Rhino]

There's a new danger lurking:

Australians Squash Airborne Tomato Threat

By Russ Niles
Newswriter, Editor
AVweb

While the U.S. is having trouble keeping people from pointing lasers at airplanes, it seems the Australians have convincingly dealt with another type of threat to aviation: flying tomatoes. Southport Magistrate Alex Chilcott put Anthony Douglas Donohue, 35, of Sorrento, in Queensland, on two years of probation after the man admitted threatening to bring down a helicopter by shooting tomatoes from a "homemade bazooka.".........http://www.avweb.com/newswire/12_08a/briefs/191610-1.html

and this link too:
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,18157037-1248,00.html

[Rhino]

Apparently the Detroit incidents involve red lasers.

Laser lights blast pilots
26 incidents are reported near Metro Airport

February 16, 2006

BY NIRAJ WARIKOO and NAOMI R. PATTON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS

More than two dozen pilots flying near Detroit Metro Airport this week say someone shined a laser into their cockpits, putting them at risk from lights that could have temporarily blinded them. Law enforcement officials say it is a growing threat to aircraft safety..............

.........FBI agents in Detroit said Wednesday that at least 26 pilots flying near Detroit Metro Airport on Monday night complained that someone had shined a red laser into their cockpits. According to Dearborn Heights police, the incidents occurred between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. and the suspects may have been near a McDonald's restaurant and Home Depot store near the corner of Michigan Avenue and Telegraph Road.......http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006602160506

[DoctorDoom]

Australians Squash Airborne Tomato Threat
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v349/DocDoom777/KillerTomato.jpg" align="left" border="1" hspace="8" />Attack of the killer tomatoes! Attack of the killer tomatoes!
They'll beat you, bash you, squish you, mash you
Chew you up for brunch and finish you off for dinner or lunch!
They're marching down the halls - They're crawling up the walls
They're gooey, gushy, squishy, mushy - Rotten to the core
They're standing outside your door!<br clear="all" />

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v349/DocDoom777/KillerTomato.jpg" align="left" border="1" hspace="8" />Remember Herman Farbage while taking out his garbage
He turned around and he did see tomatoes hiding in his tree
Now he's just a memory!
I know I'm going to miss her - a tomato ate my sister
Sacramento fell today - They're marching in San Jose
Tomatoes are on their way!