296 Blinded by a Laser Beam: How a Pilot Fought for Justice + GA News

Aviation News Talk – Pilot Stories, Safety Tips & General Aviation News

Glass Cockpit Publishing

News, Aviation, Leisure

4.8 • 730 Ratings

🗓️ 12 October 2023

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Join Max Trescott as he delves into an astonishing real-life story with Jonathan Fay, who was struck by a laser while flying, and against all odds, tracked down the perpetrator. The criminal used a powerful industrial laser to target his aircraft and immediately afterwards, Jonathan could not see any of his instruments. He did succeed in landing, though he had eye damage that lasted for several weeks. Tune in to discover the gripping details of how Jonathan leveraged the vast tools of the internet to unmask the identity of the laser-wielding perpetrator.

An arrest was made, and last week the man pled guilty. This is a remarkable story of resilience, investigation, and ultimately, justice served. Don't miss this riveting episode!

Support the Show by buying a Lightspeed ANR Headsets
Max has been using only Lightspeed headsets for nearly 25 years! I love their tradeup program that let's you trade in an older Lightspeed headset for a newer model. Start with one of the links below, and Lightspeed will pay a referral fee to support Aviation News Talk.
Lightspeed Delta Zulu Headset $1199
Lightspeed Zulu 3 Headset $899
Lightspeed Sierra Headset $699
My Review on the Lightspeed Delta Zulu

Send us your feedback or comments via email

If you have a question you'd like answered on the show, let listeners hear you ask the question, by recording your listener question using your phone.

News Stories

Mentioned on the Show
Report a Laser Strike
Revision Military Laser Protective Eyewear
FAA Brochure on Laser Eye Protection
Laserpointersafety.com

Max's Books – Order online or call 800-247-6553 to order.
Max Trescott's G3000 and G5000 Glass Cockpit Handbook
Max Trescott's G1000 & Perspective Glass Cockpit Handbook

If you love the show and want more, visit my Patreon page to see fun videos, breaking news, and other posts in the Posts section. And if you decide to make a small donation each month, you can get some goodies!

Free Index to the first 282 episodes of Aviation New Talk

So You Want To Learn to Fly or Buy a Cirrus seminars
Online Version of the Seminar Coming Soon – Register for Notification

Check out our recommended ADS-B receivers, and order one for yourself. Yes, we'll make a couple of dollars if you do.

Get the Free Aviation News Talk app for iOS or Android.

Check out Max's Online Courses: G1000 VFR, G1000 IFR, and Flying WAAS & GPS Approaches. Find them all at: https://www.pilotlearning.com/

Social Media
Like Aviation News Talk podcast on Facebook
Follow Max on Instagram
Follow Max on Twitter
Listen to all Aviation News Talk podcasts on YouTube or YouTube Premium

"Go Around" song used by permission of Ken Dravis; you can buy his music at kendravis.com

If you purchase a product through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	And then the next thing I know, my whole vision was filled with blue light.
0:08.0	And when the light disappeared, I looked back at my Ephus and could see nothing.
0:14.0	I looked out and there was a few bright lights that I could see in my field of view.
0:20.0	But essentially, I was practically blind
0:22.8	at that point. That's Jonathan Fay talking about his laser attack. Hello again and welcome to
0:28.3	Aviation News Talk, where we talk general aviation with relevant news and flying tips for pilots
0:32.8	and student pilots to help keep you safe. My Max Truscott. Today, Jonathan Fay shares a story that he and I have waited almost a year to tell.
0:41.3	His aircraft was struck by a powerful industrial laser, and temporarily he could not see his
0:46.6	instruments.
0:47.6	But unlike most victims of laser attacks, Jonathan fought back and brought a laser-wielding
0:52.9	criminal to justice.
0:54.1	And today he tells that riveting story for the first time. Last week in episode two, Jonathan fought back and brought a laser-wielding criminal to justice.
0:56.4	And today he tells that riveting story for the first time.
1:02.8	Last week in episode 295, we talked with Catherine Kovagnarro about a crash that occurred in Kentucky that killed a young CFI and his student and about the CFI's social media post during the flight.
1:08.5	So if you didn't hear that episode, you may want to check it out
1:11.1	at AviationNewstalk.com slash 295. And so that you don't miss next week's episode, go to whatever
1:17.1	app that you're using to listen to me and take a moment right now and touch either the subscribe
1:21.9	key or if you're using the Apple podcast app, the follow key, so that next week's episode is
1:27.4	downloaded for free.
1:28.9	And this is a listener-supported show.
1:31.1	So if you've been listening for a while and you've learned one or two things from this show
1:34.9	that will help you become a safer pilot or maybe even to pass a check ride,
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Glass Cockpit Publishing, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Glass Cockpit Publishing and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.