Real laser weapons available from eBay and other websites


Powerful CO2 lasers are also available which produce an intrared beam
(pure heat energy) that can cut and burn through wood or metal:

http://search.ebay.com/CO2-laser


Powerful laser pointers the size of a pen are easily available to
everybody in the world on the Internet, and hundreds sell on eBay at
prices as cheap as $5, which can burn through plastic and easily cause
permanent blindness:-

eBay USA/International:
http://search.ebay.com/green-laser-pointer

eBay UK:
http://search.ebay.co.uk/green-laser-pointer



If you know where to look, there are many specialist suppliers who can
ship lethal laser weapons. The Laser Ray Gun sold freely by this online
store is a powerful battery-powered rifle incorporating a 1500 Volt
capacitor that fires a 100 W (100,000 mW) beam which can cut through
metal or burn through almost any material with a lethal range of up to
several miles:

http://www.amazing1.com/laser4.htm

The advertisement describes it as: "A prelude to a weapon of the future
- the technology is here! Now Available - hand held, battery operated,
500 joules of pulse energy produce an intense burst of light capable of
burning holes in most materials."

Hand-held battery-powered laser pointers have a clearly visible green
beam delivering an awesome 160 mW of power. These are comparable to
battlefield laser weapons, capable of causing permanent blindness, they
have effective range exceeding 30 miles. They are freely available from
several vendors, such these:

http://www.laserglow.com/handheld.html

http://www.wickedlasers.com/products.php?var=ok

20 mW and 50 mW lasers are readily available from many suppliers like
this one which has depots in various countries and can often deliver in
24 hours:

http://www.megalaser.com/20.htm

These shops routinely sell and ship all over the world, and with depots
in most major countries some can even deliver within 24 hours via
normal domestic mail or courier.


A 5mW beam has a range of two miles, while a 15 mW beam will blind a
person 20 miles away, and 45 mW lasers are available on the Internet.
Much more powerful lasers are available, but these are more expensive
and larger than a pen or pointer.

If a basic 5mW green laser is pointed at an aircraft, the beam can
light-up the cockpit and blind the pilot with a dazzling flash:-

    According to federal authorities, there have been about 400
reported instances of hand-held lasers being aimed at aircraft since
the early 1990s.
    But the number of incidents is rising, partly because the
battery-powered devices can be bought for as little as $5, and also
because new green lasers have become more popular than red, as they
travel much farther -- as far as two miles.
    "You're in an airplane, you're on final approach and suddenly you
can't see," said Dan Kidder, a spokesman for the National Air
Transportation Association, a trade group. "You can't see your
instruments. You can't see your runway. There's the potential for a
major accident."
    Source: Washington Times, "Laser hits on U.S. aircraft on the
rise", 27 January 2005.
http://www.washtimes.com/upi-breaking/20050127-095624-5666r.htm


It happens to planes all the time, all over the world:-

    WASHINGTON (AP) - Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said
Wednesday there have been 400 reports of lasers being beamed at
airplanes since 1990 and the Federal Aviation Administration will now
require pilots to immediately report such incidents to air traffic
controllers, who will be required to notify law enforcement officials.
    The lasers can temporarily blind pilots. A cluster of incidents
received wide attention between Christmas and New Year's Day.
Authorities believe copycats who have heard news reports about the
lasers apparently have been involved in some of the more recent
incidents.
    Source: USA Today, "More reports of lasers being shot into airplane
cockpits", 13 January 2005.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-11-laser-aircraft_x.htm


Initially the authorities wanted to blame terrorists -- even al-Qaida:-

    The warning came as British pilots expressed concern about
increasing cases of lasers being aimed at cockpits by pranksters on
airport perimeters.
    Source: The Scotsman, "Terrorists could use laser beams to blind
pilots, US officials warn", 11 December 2005.
http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=1416162004


It sounded like a coordinated attack using advanced technology:

    "What we're talking about is a fairly powerful visible light laser
that has the ability to lock onto a fast-moving aircraft," Thompson
said. "That's not the sort of thing you pick up at a military surplus
store."
    Source: CBS News, "Feds Probe Lasers Aimed At Planes", 30 December
2004.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/01/01/terror/main664220.shtml


But the US military has now admitted shining lasers at aircraft as part
of a secret programme:

    A day after the Department of Transportation urged pilots to report
hazardous laser beams aimed at aircraft, the U.S. military said it is
testing a system to beam red and green lasers at aircraft in the
Washington area as a warning when they enter restricted airspace.
    Source: Washington Post, "Military Tests Lasers To Warn Off
Aircraft", 14 Jnauary 2005.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7708-2005Jan13.html


And anybody can buy a laser pointer:-

    A string of incidents around the country involving laser beams
aimed at aircraft aren't linked to terrorism and are more likely the
work of mischief makers, the FBI said Sunday.
    Source: USA Today, "FBI: No terror link in lasers aimed at
aircraft", 3 January 2005.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-02-lasers-fbi_x.htm


Amature and professional astronomers, even kids playing games,
regularly point lasers into the sky:-

    To astronomers, the new breed of hand-held laser pointer is a way
to write in the sky, its two-mile-long beam allowing them to trace
constellations and point out individual stars. To a lost hiker, the
laser is a lifeline to a search and rescue team overhead. To a "Star
Wars" fan, it is a prop for playing a lightsaber-wielding Jedi knight.
    But to a pilot in a darkened cockpit, the pointer's bright green
beam could be something very different -- a disorienting and even
blinding blast of color.
    Source: Washington Post, "Laser Pointer Abuse Threatens Air
Safety", 27 January 2005.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39961-2005Jan26.html



FURTHER READING

Decatur Daily, "Blinding light as a weapon", 7 January 2005.
http://www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/news/050107/lasers.shtml
    Passenger jets could be at risk if their pilots look at the beams
shot from portable, readily available lasers.
    High-power lasers capable of blinding a pilot are available on the
Internet. Weapons-grade lasers designed to blind troops were marketed
by China in the Middle East a decade ago.
    ...
    Federal regulations require permits for lasers more powerful than 5
milliwatts, but obtaining such lasers is easy.
    Internet auction site eBay lists hundreds of pen-size 5-milliwatt
lasers designed as pointers, most for under $50. An eBay ad for a
5-milliwatt laser said it can be modified to 45 milliwatts with a
claimed range of several miles.
    ...
    "If you are looking at something that can destroy eyesight, the
power level doesn't have to be that great," said Juventino. "Even a
3-milliwatt laser pointer can do that in seconds."
    Lasers sold on eBay are up to 80 times that strength.

Washington Times, "Laser injures Delta pilot's eye", 29 September 2004.
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20040928-111356-3924r.htm
  A pilot flying a Delta Air Lines jet was injured by a laser that
illuminated the cockpit of the aircraft as it approached Salt Lake City
International Airport last week, U.S. officials said.
    The plane's two pilots reported that the Boeing 737 had been five
miles from the airport when they saw a laser beam inside the cockpit,
said officials familiar with government reports of the Sept. 22
incident. The flight, which originated in Dallas, landed without
further incident at about 9:30 p.m. local time.
    A short while later, however, the first officer felt a stinging
sensation in one eye. A doctor who examined the pilot determined that
he had suffered a burned retina from exposure to a laser device, the
officials said.
    Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokeswoman Yolanda
Clark confirmed the incident, but declined to provide details.



http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=0872