Lately, I've been hearing a lot about laser attacks on aircrafts. Apparently, bored teenagers equipped with high-powered lasers amuse themselves by pointing laser beams at passing aircrafts. These laser beams distract and blind pilots during flight (some pilots experienced career-ending retina damage). It is especially dangerous when pilots are distracted during the landing, the most challenging and dangerous procedure of flight.
Needless to say, I am quite peeved at how irresponsible bored delinquent teens can be. It makes me wish for a national policy of "ironic punishment". Kids who are caught shining lasers at aircrafts will be subject to laser-eye surgery.
I am also surprised by why aviation engineers have yet to devise a solution for this problem. Given how easy it is to obtain a high power laser, and given how easy it is for a stupid kid to shine the laser up at the sky, protecting pilots from laser attacks should be a top priority issue.
How hard is it to engineer a windshield that blocks radiation of certain wavelengths, intensitities and coherences?
This has been going on for years