Reports of potentially catastrophic laser strikes aimed at aircraft flying in Minnesota have increased more than 180% since 2015, and are on track this year to reach their highest level yet.
Pilots often describe laser strikes — when someone trains a laser toward the cockpit of an airplane or helicopter, intentionally or not — as a flash, like the sudden pop of a camera’s flashbulb. These attacks may temporarily blind or at the very least distract a pilot usually during takeoffs and landings, considered critical phases of flight for planes that may be carrying a hundred passengers or more.
“Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety hazard that puts everyone on the plane and on the ground at risk,” Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Michael Whitaker said in a video safety message earlier this year.
There have been no known aircraft accidents related to laser strikes, according to a 2022 watchdog report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). But, given the rising number of laser incidents “the potential for an accident exists,” according to the investigation.
It’s unclear why laser reports are surging in Minnesota and nationwide, where pilots reported some 13,304 strikes last year, a 41% increase over 2022.
The lasers are widely available to buy online, and at big box and sporting goods retailers for less than $20. They’re often used during slideshow presentations, or for sighting handguns and rifles. Sometimes they’re deployed during laser shows or for dramatic effect at theme parks and casinos.
The most-common color of lasers trained on aircraft is green — which human vision is especially sensitive to — but some are red, blue and purple. Laser strikes almost always occur at night.
“It’s particularly challenging during takeoffs and landings for night operations when your eyes are adjusted to the darkness and the instrument [lights] are turned down to lower levels,” said Nick Wilson, an associate professor of aviation at the University of North Dakota (UND).