We've all been told at some point in our lives that shooting a laser into a helicopter's cockpit will blind the pilot, and we've also been told that if we do so, we can be arrested and charged. Many people have definitely debated whether these statements are true, and the most common question to pop up during this argument is, "How would they be able to know where it's coming from?"
Well, for all of those who've asked this question before, you now have an answer.
Last week, a 17-year-old was caught pointing a laser into a helicopter's cockpit, which happened to be the Durham Regional Police chopper known as Air1. The incident occurred around 11 p.m. on Thursday, the chopper was flying about 450 metres over Bowmanville, and had to descend rapidly to avoid the light coming from the laser.
Police used "an onboard infrared camera to spot several people standing in the backyard of a nearby home," and later arrested one suspect that had with him a small laser pointer.
The suspect was charged with a criminal offence and is also facing charges under the Canadian Aviation Regulations and Aeronautics Act:
- Mischief endangering life (Sec. 430, Criminal Code)
- Projecting a bright light source at an aircraft (Sec. 601.20 Canadian Aviation Regulations)
- Interfering with the performance of a crew member (Sec. 705.174 Canadian Aviation Regulations)
He was released on a promise to appear.
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