Suppressing laser beam attacks on aircraft

Sarajevo International Airport, in cooperation with BHDCA, plans to implement appropriate activities in the coming period to suppress threats to flight safety in Bosnia and Herzegovina through lasers, it was announced, reports the BiH news agency Patria.

A growing trend of intentionally or unintentionally directing laser beams towards aircraft is present in a large number of countries. Such actions objectively pose a serious threat to the safety of aircraft flights, and therefore, in some countries, in addition to preventive measures, rigorous repressive measures are being taken, such as prison sentences or heavy fines. According to existing international experience and collected data, threats to air traffic occur and are most pronounced during critical flight phases, i.e., during takeoff and landing, with the source of laser beams, according to pilots, being in the immediate vicinity of the airport.

Directing a beam towards an aircraft or cockpit can result in distracting the pilot, strong flashes on the windshield, and the possibility of blinding the pilot, leading to uncontrolled reactions. Therefore, the mere act of directing a laser beam towards an aircraft, intentionally or unintentionally, constitutes a serious threat to flight safety.

In the period from 2011 to 2014, according to data from the Directorate of Civil Aviation of BiH, seven cases of traffic endangerment using laser beams were recorded in BiH, while according to data from the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency, 118 cases were recorded in the period from 2011 to 2013.

World practice has shown that perpetrators are mostly young people between 15 and 25 years old, for whom this illegal activity is a form of entertainment. In the USA, a laser attack is characterized as an act of terrorism, while in Russia, this form of vandalism has become extremely common. So-called 'laser hooligans' 'attack' airports with lasers as many as 56 times annually.

- Sarajevo International Airport, in cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Sarajevo Canton, the Border Police Unit AS, and BH ANSA, plans to implement appropriate activities in the coming period to suppress such threats to flight safety in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Among other things, informative and propaganda material will be distributed to raise public awareness of this problem, and lectures are planned in primary schools. Changes or amendments to the Law by BHDCA are also expected, which would regulate this area in more detail, as well as the development of the most effective procedures for action in cases of crew interference with laser beams - stated Nermin Zijadić, Director of the Systems Management Sector at Sarajevo International Airport.