Securing Aircraft Cockpits Against Lasers Act of 2010

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to thank my friend, Mr. Scott from Virginia, the chairman of the Crime Subcommittee, for working with dispatch to get this bill to the floor.

The danger of shining a laser beam into someone's eyes is not a new concept. It is reported that the power density from a 1 milliwatt laser, a power common in the laser pointers we have become familiar with, focused to a point, is brighter than the equivalent area of the sun's surface. Understandably, this can cause temporary or permanent eye damage. The danger from shining a laser at the cockpit of a commercial aircraft, especially during a takeoff or a landing, is a tragedy waiting to happen.

This bill will help prevent such a disaster from being realized. In 2005, when a similar bill was passed by this body, this emerging threat was estimated at 400 reported incidents over the previous 15 years. By contrast, in 2009 alone, there were almost 1,600 episodes reported. In 2010, there have been approximately the same number of incidents from 2009 in just the first half of the year. In my home State of California, there have been over 570 incidents so far in 2010.

Mr. Speaker, we have discovered that a number of those incidents were reported to the regional air traffic control system unit in Sacramento within my district.

Since the Judiciary Committee first began examining this issue, the effects of pilots being hit by a beam of a laser pointer have varied from causing the pilots to become distracted, to requiring emergency evasive maneuvers. Emergency maneuvers, to prevent a perceived mid-air collision, resulted from a wide variety of mistaken beliefs, including that the aircraft was about to strike the warning light on a tower or that the laser beam was actually the lights of an approaching aircraft.

Law enforcement pilots are frequently targeted and have to consider the possibility that they are being illuminated by a laser scope attached to a rifle. Law enforcement pilots have, on occasion, been required to discontinue a response to a crime, a crime in progress, due to being hit by a laser.

Some Federal prosecutors have declined to pursue cases under current law, believing that the current Destruction of Aircraft statute does not fit the facts of their particular laser case. Some States have statutes that have been successfully used to address this problem, but, unfortunately, many do not.

This bill specifically addresses the incident of shining a laser pointer into an aircraft cockpit and will make, therefore, aircraft travel safer for pilots and for the public. While a number of laser pointers being aimed at aircraft cockpits has dramatically increased during the past 5 years, the power of the current generation of laser pointer devices has also significantly increased.

The cost, on the other hand, has gone down, making them much more widely available. Additionally, there are ways to increase the power of certain lasers by replacing the diodes with those intended for other purposes.

The problem of lasers being shone into cockpits is so prevalent in the Sacramento area that the FBI, FAA, Federal Air Marshal Service, as well as State and local law enforcement, have established a Laser Strike Working Group to address the problem, with other working groups expanding to other areas. This bill provides an important tool for securing the safety of air travel and is endorsed by the Air Line Pilots Association.

I received a letter dated July 27 from the Air Line Pilots Association, International, wherein they say: ``The inappropriate use of widely available lasers against airborne flight crews is a genuine and growing safety and security concern. A laser illumination event can, at a minimum, be an unwanted flight crew distraction; and in serious cases can even lead to eye damage and temporary incapacitation.''

Going on, the Air Line Pilots Association, International states that ``your legislation is greatly needed to ensure that such reckless and malicious activity will, in fact, be classified and prosecuted as a Federal offense. We have worked with numerous Federal law enforcement organizations over the past years on this issue and there is strong agreement that such crimes should be addressed by Federal statute and not be adjudicated solely by State laws. H.R. 5810 will also help put the public on notice that shining laser lights into aircraft cockpits is a serious offense which will be met with serious consequences for those convicted of such crime.''

And in conclusion, the Airline Pilots Association, International states: ``We urge Congress to expeditiously pass this legislation and thereby enhance the safety and security of all commercial airline passengers and crew members.''

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important legislation.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5810) to amend title 18, United States Code, to provide penalties for aiming laser pointers at airplanes, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5810 establishes criminal penalties for knowingly aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft or its flight path.

Incidents involving lasers aimed at aircraft have raised concerns over the potential threat to aviation safety and national security. Some are concerned that terrorists might use high-powered lasers to, among other things, incapacitate pilots. There is also concern that laser devices can distract or temporarily incapacitate pilots during critical phases of a flight.

Lasers pose a safety hazard to flight operations. Even brief exposure to a relatively low-powered laser beam can cause discomfort and temporarily affect the pilot's vision. The visual distractions of a laser can also cause a pilot to become disoriented or lose situational awareness while flying.

High-powered laser devices can incapacitate pilots and inflict eye injuries when viewed at closer ranges. In fact, the National Transportation Safety Board documented two cases in which pilots sustained eye injuries and were incapacitated during critical phases of a flight.

In one of those cases, after a laser was pointed at a pilot's plane, he experienced a burning sensation and tearing in his eyes. A subsequent eye examination revealed multiple flash burns in the pilot's cornea. The FAA researchers have compiled a data base of more than 400 incidences between 1990 and 2005 in which pilots have been startled, distracted, temporarily blinded, or disoriented by laser exposure.

Government officials at FAA, Defense Department, and Department of Homeland Security are exempted from the prohibition of this bill, as are individuals using lasers to send an emergency distress signal.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support the bill. I thank the gentleman from California for his leadership in bringing this bill to our attention.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume just to thank the gentleman from California for his leadership. This is an extremely important piece of legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my support for H.R. 5810, which amends title 18 of the United States Code to provide penalties for aiming laser pointers at airplanes. The effect of laser pointer glare on the windows of airplane cockpits is extremely dangerous to pilots. Laser glare that incapacitates pilots can endanger all other people onboard the aircraft. In order to prevent unnecessary harm to pilots, airplane passengers, and other airline employees, deliberate aiming of laser pointers at airplanes must be regulated.

Pilots experience laser glare in cockpits at a rate that has steadily increased over the past fifteen years. In 2009 alone, 1600 individual laser-aircraft incidents occurred. The intensity with which laser light reflects off cockpit glass can result in varying degrees of danger for pilots, from simple distraction by the bright flash of laser light to temporary flash blindness that greatly reduces their ability to capably navigate the aircraft. If the laser light is aimed from a near enough distance, pilots can sustain permanent eye damage from the brightness of the laser light. In some cases, pilots have even taken evasive action, confusing the laser light for the dot-type laser reticle of a weapon.

Eleven states have already enacted laws regulating the use of laser pointers around aircraft. While the use and ownership of small laser pointers is legal, this legislation is vital to preventing laser pointer users from accidentally harming or incapacitating pilots. I support this bill, in the hope that it will help Americans to be more careful in their use of laser pointers, and realize the grave consequences their actions can have for our Nation's pilots and aircraft passengers.

I urge my colleagues to also support this important resolution.

Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 10 o'clock and 50 minutes p.m.), the House adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, July 28, 2010, at 10 a.m.