There are some things that look harmless from the ground but can become extremely dangerous when viewed from the cockpit of an aircraft. A laser pointer is one of them. For someone standing on the ground, pointing a laser at an aircraft flying overhead may appear to be a harmless prank, an experiment, a way of attracting attention or simply an act of curiosity. But inside the cockpit, particularly during takeoff, approach or landing, that apparently tiny beam can suddenly become a serious aviation-safety threat. The latest figures released by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) show that the problem is declining, but it remains far too common. On September 17, 2026, the FAA reported that pilots had reported 4,470 laser strikes in the United States during 2026, representing a 24 percent decrease from the same period the previous year. This is the third consecutive year in which reported laser strikes have declined. However, the FAA says the numbers remain too high...
Just now I saw a video that was uploaded by Air Safety Institute. I feel sorry for the three people who died in that tragedy, particularly feeling sorry for the female pilot who was at complete peace and calm till the last moments even though she was burdened by air traffic controllers with frequent instructions throwing her all around at the airport. The elaboration detailed by the Air Safety Institute mostly blaming the pilot for the tragedy forced me to write this article. We may agree that in most cases we blame the pilot for any incident or accident. The elaboration given by ASI is quite sorted, but the thing I didn’t like in here is that the first culprit here is found to be the private pilot who had minimal amount of flying experience. It is easy to blame the pilot for not being alive to fight for her case and everyone else involved in the tragedy, particularly the ATC who want to save their jobs and reputation. What I didn’t like was the cirrus private pilot was as...