National campaign takes aim at laser pointers
More than 500 aircraft in Canada struck last year, often blinding pilots
Russ Ballman had a jet full of passengers behind him and was in his final approach to YVR when a laser pointer hit him square in the left eye on May 12, 2014.
“Immediately, I recognized that this was not just an ordinary light. This thing had some true intensity,” the Air Canada captain recalled.
Ballman warned his first officer to get his head down below the windshield, but it was too late — the next flash hit the other man in both eyes. A few seconds later, a third strike filled the cockpit with light.
“It was not a comfortable feeling” having both pilots temporarily blinded, Ballman said.
They put the plane on autopilot and circled the airport until they finally felt comfortable enough to land. The captain spoke Wednesday of his frightening experience at a Transport Canada news conference launching a national campaign against pointing lasers at aircraft. The federal government is also introducing a new website, tc.gc.ca/notabrightidea, outlining the dangers.
Across Canada last year, there were 502 incidents of aircraft being struck by lasers — a 43 per cent increase in two years. Eighty of those were in B.C., including 52 at YVR.
So far this year, there have been 282 strikes across the country, including 47 in B.C.
When a plane’s cockpit is struck by a laser, it can distract the pilots, create glare and temporarily blind them. In Ballman’s case, it also caused an intense and lasting irritation that made him worry his career could be over.
“I don’t know if you’ve ever had that feeling where you want to scratch your eye out — you just can’t get relief,” he said.
Rob Morrison, a civilian pilot for the RCMP’s Air 2 helicopter, said his aircraft has been hit dozens of times in recent years.
It happens so often that the force has issued laser shield glasses that protect against red, blue and green lasers.
Most recently, he was on patrol in the Port Moody area Saturday night when a blue laser flashed into the helicopter.
“At night, which is the biggest problem, your pupil is fully enlarged, which completely exposes the back of your eye. A powerful laser will actually burn the back of your retina, which can cause permanent damage,” Morrison said.
Luckily, the light didn’t hit him in the eye. He put on his laser shield glasses as five or six more flashes hit the cockpit and narrowed the source to three homes. Port Moody police are investigating.
Richmond RCMP Sgt. Cam Kowalski showed reporters a large black laser pointer that looked something like a flashlight. This model retails for under $300, but has a potential range of 180 kilometres.
“This is not a toy, and it should not be used as such,” he said.
He warned that anyone caught pointing a laser at a plane or helicopter faces criminal prosecution and could be subject to a fine of up to $100,000 and a prison sentence as long as five years.
However, finding those responsible can be like looking for a needle in a haystack, Kowalski added. Last year, police caught four suspected perpetrators and three were prosecuted, fined and forced to forfeit their pointers.