FAA Laser Lights Warning Program Starts May 21To ALL S&R, ARES, REACT, RACES members: Source (FAA and Washington Post) - 4/18/05 Reference: New Warnings for Pilots of Planes which veer off of course headings to heed laser illumination warning or be intercepted. The FAA will implement a program on May 21st to warn all pilots of aircraft which breach the new restricted airspace around the Washington-Baltimore region, which veer off of a pre-designated course or who have no communications with the approach controller on the radio or the transponder is not functioning, to steer away from a elaborate system of laser lights flashing at them. In the new FAA directive issued today at 1630Z, the FAA instructs those pilots that a: "Red, Red, Green" series of flashing lasers aimed at the suspect plane is a signal to divert "away from the lights" immediately and establish contact on one of two VHF or UHF EAR frequencies for instructions. It also states that "failure to follow the procedures may result in interception by military aircraft" . The zone includes the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Montgomery, Prince Georges, Anne Arundal, Baltimore City, County, and part Of Loudoun County to the west(see map in Washington Post April 16 , Page A-9) The article is printed in the April 16th edition Of the Washington Post A-1 lower left and A-9 with a picture of the light at night, and graph of the zone included. Please disseminate this information to all ARES-RACES groups and EMCOMM, CAP websites if not already done so. The Regions' Airspace is being monitored by NORAD, in Colorado, with remote cameras, and signaling devices which have been placed according to the Post article, on "government buildings". According to the Post article again, these laser beams are diffuse enough to be seen by pilots in the daytime or nighttime skies, and have no effect on pilots vision.In other instruction it also instructs the pilots to "report" any other types of intense laser light aimed at their aircraft to the FAA. 73 all-
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