Officials with the FBI have a warning.
Pointing a laser light at an airplane could land you in prison.
According to FBI agents, laser strikes are becoming a serious problem. Threatening the safety of pilots and the public.
FBI special agent Jeremy Baker said laser lights have no place near an airport. Who is pointing them and why is anybody’s guess. But the problem is bigger than you might think.
“Whether it’s an adolescent just trying to have fun or an adult who gets a bad idea. It really is a bad idea. It’s a terrible idea,” Baker said.
It is called “lasing” and it continues to gain ground.
In Memphis, officials said reports are called in weekly. Sometimes more than one a night.
“These are a lot of times hand held devices. These are things that are not much different than the laser pointer that’s used in a classroom or in a lecture hall but there are certain colors and frequencies that can actually travel pretty far,” Baker said.
In a recording of MPD scanner traffic taken Thursday night, you can clearly hear the pilot call in a laser strike as he is trying to land.
Baker said pointing laser lights at airplanes is dangerous and can be deadly.
“Lasers can illuminate the cockpit. They can blind temporarily. Maybe even permanently the pilots,” Baker said. “The perpetrators themselves could face up to five years in federal prison or up to a $250,000 fine.”
