FAA Aims New Civil Penalties at Laser Pointers

The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday that errant laser pointers aimed at flying aircrafts could earn new civil fines.

By early May, six laser pointer incidents by helicopters in the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

At that time, the maximum state penalty for pointing a laser at the cockpit of a flying aircraft was three years in state prison and a $2,000 fine. The new civil penalties from the FAA add up to a maximum of $11,000 in civil fines from the federal government.

“This is another great tool for law enforcement to help protect flight crews and the public from the hazard of lasers pointed at aircraft,” Sergeant Morrie Zager, a helicopter pilot assigned to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Aero Bureau, said.

Zagler said people have also been arrested and convicted of a federal crime for interfering with a flight crew for aiming a laser pointer at the cockpit of a flying aircraft, which could result in up to 20 years in federal prison, according to a sheriff's press release.

FAA data shows that Los Angeles International Airport logged the most reported laser pointer incidents in the country with 102 reports in 2010. Throughout the greater Los Angeles region, a total 201 reports were filed.

"This is extremely serious and lives could be lost in the air and on the ground as a result," Zager said.

Another law currently pending in Congress could make aiming a laser pointer at a flying aircraft a criminal offense.

In 2005, the FAA created a formal reporting system for logging laser pointer incidents and incident reports have steadily increased since then. In 2005, 300 reports were filed; in 2009, 1,527 reports were filed; and in 2010, 2,836 reports were filed.