Arizona, the FAA is begging you: Please stop pointing lasers at planes

Laser strikes can disorient pilots and have caused more than 300 injuries since 2010, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Eric Salard/Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0

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Let your light shine, but not like that.

On Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration warned in a press bulletin about a worsening problem when flying the friendly skies. More and more pilots, the FAA said, are being blinded by lasers pointed at them from the ground. That includes laser pointers, especially green ones that "produce a beam near the eye’s peak sensitivity," according to an FAA blog.

"Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety hazard that puts everyone on the plane and on the ground below at risk," FAA spokesperson Donnell Evans wrote. "It is also a violation of federal law."

The issue is particularly acute in Arizona, where, according to Evans, laser attacks "continue to be consistently high." FAA data shows that, through July 31, there have been 337 laser attacks on planes in Arizona this year.

That's not the most of any state in the nation, but Arizona punches above its weight class when it comes to pointing shiny things at cockpits. Arizona has averaged 4.71 laser attacks per 100,000 residents this year, which is the fourth-highest rate of any state. Only New Mexico (9.21 laser attacks per 100,000 residents), Tennessee (5.85) and Hawaii (5.7) lase airplanes at a higher rate.

Nationwide and in Arizona, laser attacks are on the rise. Last year, the FAA received a record 13,304 laser attack reports from pilots, a 41% spike from 2022. Arizona also is on track for its highest number of laser attacks since the agency began tracking them in 2010. According to FAA statistics, 99% of Arizona's laser attacks occur in the morning.

click to enlarge

What a laser strike looks like in the cockpit.

Federal Aviation Administration

Pointing a laser at a plane can disorient pilots, who the FAA said "have described losing sight of the runway, flaring too early, or executing a missed approach." There have been 322 injuries resulting from laser strikes since 2010, including nine this year. One of those was connected to a laser strike in Arizona.

According to an FAA awareness video, penalties for laser strikes can reach fines of $250,000 and up to five years in prison.

So, you know, cut it out.