AFRL and FAA Engineers Work to Keep Aircrews Safe From Lasers

  • Published
  • By Human Effectiveness Directorate
  • AFRL/HE
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  Engineers from Air Force Research Laboratory and the Federal Aviation Administration are collaborating to improve aircrew safety in situations where lasers are carelessly or maliciously pointed at aircraft. A team of optics, human factors, and computer specialists is quietly laying the groundwork for this unique research project. The fruit of their efforts is a one-of-a-kind laser positioning system integrated with a Boeing 737 flight simulator at the FAA's Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center, located in Oklahoma City.

The system realistically mimics the effects of a laser flashed at an aircraft cockpit from the ground. While such concentrated beams of low-power laser light are not physically harmful, they can distract or temporarily incapacitate aircrew. The four axes-of-motion system uses fiber-optic cables to transport a laser beam from its source to the simulator. A computer tracks the simulator's flight path and correlates it with the ground-based laser's simulated position so that from the pilot's perspective, the laser maintains a constant ground location.

A handheld laser pointer directed at an approaching aircraft from two miles away can cause windshield glare, after-images, and flash blindness (i.e., temporarily impaired vision caused by an intense flash of light)--leaving a pilot unable to see an airport's runway and surrounding landscape. The effects are similar to those caused by a camera flash or the bright headlights of an oncoming vehicle. The integration of eye-safe lasers into a flight simulator enables researchers to monitor pilot reactions and recommend appropriate countermeasures.

A congressional report issued in January 2005 cites laser-specific laws, eye protection for pilots, laser-free zones near airports, and public education as ways of reducing the laser threat to aviation safety. Thanks to the input of AFRL and FAA experts, congressional legislation has been introduced to make it a federal offense to point a laser at an aircraft. AFRL and the FAA are teamed via a $10 million memorandum of understanding that allows the organizations to share personnel, funds, and resources, including the FAA's state-of-the-art simulator.