CRYSTAL SPRING, Minn. – Somebody aimed a potentially blinding laser beam at a passenger airplane descending to the Minneapolis airport. The Federal Aviation Administration pinpointed the site in western Winona County – in flatlands near the intersection of County Road 24 and County Road 27, between Whitewater State Park and the Crystal Spring fish hatchery. The pilots were distracted but landed safely at MSP. The FAA asked the sheriff to check out the Crystal Spring site about 3:55 a.m. By then the deputies found nothing.
Flight simulator. Pilots are trained in flight simulators on laser light explosions. Training can ease cockpit panic in a real-life incident but doesn’t mitigate the danger. The blinding effect can be a few seconds to several minutes to permanent.
The Kenyon case
A pilot was blinded last July, albeit briefly, by a laser fired from the Kenyon area 6o miles from the new Crystal Spring incident. Both sites are on glide paths into MSP. The pilot in the Kenyon case proceeded 60 miles to the airport and safely. Whoever fired the Kenyon laser was never found.
Laser danger
The government regards lasers as a major threat to aviation safety. In 2008 a California man went to prison for two years for aiming a 3-milliwatt laser pointer at an aircraft. Even a 1 milliwatt beam can go 12 miles — beyond the maximum ceiling of any commercial aircraft. A $30,000 fine can be levied. Part of the danger is that a laser beam can scatter in an aircraft windscreen and magnify instantly into blinding brilliance.