[finnman69]

http://www.fas.org/nuke/control/ccw/info.htm

Anti-personnel Laser Weapons
Anti-personnel laser weapons are inexpensive, sold openly by the Third World, have line-of-sight aiming, and are capable of producing catastrophic results if used against aircrews and sensors in flight (especially during takeoffs and landings). Commercially available laser weapons include the ZM-87, developed by the Chinese and first displayed at the International Defense Exhibition in 1995. In addition, the Russians sell a truck-mounted high-energy laser. And the University of Tasmania in Hobart sells a CO2 laser system for controlling forest undergrowth. The system is used to ignite logging debris from distances of 100 to 1,500 meters. The laser, costing $86,500, is mounted on a gun turret carried in a 2-ton truck and is simple to operate. Similar systems are available commercially throughout the world.

Data from the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System database for the last two years provide examples of commercial flights in which the pilots suffered eye damage from lasers. These include aircraft landings at Honolulu, Las Vegas, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and Phoenix. In Phoenix, one crew member was flashblinded, with resulting after-images and loss of night vision for about 1½ hours. Takeoffs have also been affected: in a 737 outbound from Los Angeles, two pilots were struck by a blinding flash that lasted 5 to 10 seconds. The first officer had burns on the outer eye and broken blood vessels. In a flight from Cleveland, one crew member received a bright blue light in his right eye and experienced vision impairment for the next 1½ hours. Data from the National Air Intelligence Center indicate that, in the U.S. alone, commercial lasers have caused over 50 blinding incidents. Lasers have also injured a number of Air Force personnel. For example, the Palace Casino’s laser show laser-illuminated a C-130 landing at Keesler AFB. The flight engineer, who was looking straight ahead, was blinded for 3 to 5 seconds and then experienced blurred vision. The next day, he experienced eye pain requiring eye drops. In April of this year, two Royal Canadian Air Force helicopter pilots were laser-illuminated from a Russian trawler during a routine mission.

[hispanarepublicana]

So would you have to be IN the cockpit to do this, or would this be done from a distance? Say, a satellite or another aircraft?

[Titan Magroyne]

"The system is used to ignite logging debris from distances of 100 to 1,500 meters. The laser, costing $86,500, is mounted on a gun turret carried in a 2-ton truck and is simple to operate. Similar systems are available commercially throughout the world."

Aw dude, imagine the fun it would be playing - er - working with that! :-p Bushhogging the hill in back would become obsolete. (Nevermind it cost more than the entire property, it makes FIRE!) Um, sorry, got a tad carried away there.

[Kirkwood]

Virtually all lasers that will cause anything remotely like blinding are invisible to the human eye.

[brazzaville]

Good evening.

I don't know why I remembered this but, didn't a witness see a blue flash in his mirror after passing Dodi Fayed's limo, right before it crashed?

21st century weapons are nasty.

Michael Frazier

[church16]

Shite! Lighting brush on fire from 1000 meters with an uber-laser for under 100k? I think the Mk1 Mod0 eyeball will be sunnyside up with one of those suckers blazin in your general direction. The day will come when pilots will wear eye protection for takeoff and landing for this reason, and that day will be very soon. Another sad day in the march of technology, but all you can do is fight the good fight and adapt to the threat. I hope the airlines get on with the protection ASAP before we crash a plane due to this.

[AmericanVictory]

Seems like a dream weapon for the Terror enemy. Maybe this was a test if it indeed happened. Certainly isn't what we have been looking for.

[Don W]

Just FYI, it hasn't been the RCAF for over 3 decades. Thanks to Trudeau and the rest of the pathetic morons who've run my nation for the ensuing 36 years (yes, I include JokeLark and Lyin'Brian) the Canadian Armed Forces (currently 14,000+ members below the nation's ARMY ALONE level in 1938) Air Arm is simply referred to as the "air force". No capitalization, and no funding.

Incidentally, it was ONE CAF pilot and ONE US serviceman who were "lazed" by a Russian FREIGHTER.

I was working in the Cdn naval base in Victoria when this happened.

[Cboldt]

Data from the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System database for the last two years provide examples of commercial flights in which the pilots suffered eye damage from lasers. These include aircraft landings at Honolulu, Las Vegas, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and Phoenix.

BUMP

Very informative post. As usual, the media is a few years behind the curve.

Whoever noted that laser-protective eyewear would become SOP for take-off and landing is precient.

[Elsie]

 Revelaion 13

 

 11.  Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon.
 12.  He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.
 13.  And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men.
 14.  Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.
 15.  He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
 16.  He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,
 17.  so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.
 18.  This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.

[OXENinFLA]

http://michellemalkin.com/archives/000595.htm

(hat tip: FReeper finnman69, post #22 on this thread):

[Bald Eagle777]

GOOD POST !!! I was going to post some info on it, but you beat me to it.

FAS is reputable. Jane's is good. Periscope is another, good 'un.

Laser and other directed energy weapons are here to stay. Does anyone remember that little test where we knocked an artillery shell out of the sky?? heheheh Looks like some FREEpers are about 20-30 years behind on their military technology studies. PAC3 may have to step aside for some new goodies....

I bet in 10 or 20 years, someone will discover the "breaking news" of the anti-sniper (detection) equipment already being made (and deployed overseas) by a company in Cambridge, MASS (BBN)...... I hear there will be all types of UAVs soon (yawn)... hehehehe

We can knock artillery shells out of the sky, piece of cake, BUT.. "It's all fun and games 'til someone loses an eye!!"

Once again, good post.

[Indie]

wtf!!! glad i have a motorcycle.