As police in Calgary hunt for the person or people who pointed a high-powered laser at aircraft in the sky, an Ottawa pilot says the incidents reflect a spike in dangerous laser attacks in Canadian airspace.
Air ambulance pilot Kerrin Mobbs became a victim when someone on the ground pointed a laser into the cockpit of his plane in September 2009.
The green laser beam hit Mobbs directly in the eye, damaging his retina and keeping him off work and out of the sky for about six months.
With Calgary police reporting at least three incidents that occurred Wednesday to pilots aboard two passenger jets and a media helicopter, Mobbs said the situation is getting so bad it warrants government intervention.
"This is actually an incident that's actually occurred quite a few times in the past year-and-a-half," Mobbs told CTV's Canada AM on Friday. "It really isn't funny because as you can see it does have some dire consequences."
In the Calgary incidents, someone aimed a green laser at the planes and helicopter as they flew over the Alberta city. A camera aboard the media helicopter recorded video of the person armed with the laser. Police are investigating, but no one has been arrested.
"This is a very serious incident and we view it that way," Calgary Police Staff Sgt. Neil Murray told CTV. "Anyone that could have been hit with this laser could have impaired vision even for a short period of time, and could have created an aircraft accident."
Police don't know what the motive could have been. But they say if it's a prank, it's a dangerous one.
What really frustrates Mobbs is the perpetrators' apparent lack of concern for the safety of the people aboard the planes and helicopters they're targeting, and people on the ground.
"These people are doing it and they don't realize that it can actually hurt somebody," Mobbs said by telephone from Ottawa.
Aviation expert Vernon Grose said the flash of a laser could blind pilots and severely disrupt a flight, or the pilots could mistakenly believe they are being targeted by terrorists when a laser is beamed into the cockpit.
Speaking from Washington, D.C., Grose told Canada AM a laser is an energy beam and could also be strong enough to disrupt an aircraft's electronic control equipment, particularly at low altitude.
Figures provided by Transport Canada reveal the increase in reported incidents. Three cases were reported in 2006, compared with 129 between January and August of 2010.
Mobbs said he would welcome restrictions on the sale or imports of high-intensity laser pointers in Canada to prevent further risk to flight crews and passengers.
"There's actually no reason to have high-powered lasers out there. There's no actual job for them," Mobbs said.
Some people, however, do claim a use for these types of laser pointers. Astronomers use them to point out constellations in the night sky, for example.
Mobbs suggested an exception could be made for red laser pens, which aren't as intense and are used for activities such as boardroom presentations.
In response to a rash of high-profile incidents that temporarily blinded or distracted pilots, governments of some Australian states have classified high-powered laser pointers as controlled or prohibited weapons. Australia's federal government has banned the import of lasers that have powerful beams.
Mobbs said he would like to see similar action taken by Canadian governments. Others have called for stricter enforcement and penalties.
Meanwhile, a person accused of pointing a laser pointer at a plane or helicopter could face a criminal charge of mischief or imperiling the safety of an aircraft, which, under the federal aeronautics act, carries a maximum fine of $100,000 with a prison term of up to five years.
