You may or not remember my articles previously about the potential catastrophic use of laser pens that are shone into the eyes of pilots as they try to land aircraft. It would seem it is heavily on the increase. The lives of thousands of airline passengers are being put at risk as a result.

Aircraft captains have reported dozens of serious incidents as planes make their final approach to airports across the UK.

The growing problem is blamed mainly on yobs that obviously have nothing better to do with their time and use the intense light from pen-sized laser devices to target the cockpit of the planes.

The devices, which are readily available to buy in shops and on the Internet, cost as little as £8 and can easily be used by children.

Now there are fears that laser pens could be used by terrorists in an attempt to bring down a passenger plane.

Last night it emerged there have been 93 laser incidents at Liverpool John Lennon Airport in the past 12 months alone with dozens more reported at major airports across the country.

Over five weeks last summer, there were 30 laser reports made by pilots passing over built-up areas as they prepared to land at JLA.

Aviation chiefs have promised offenders endangering passengers' lives they will feel the full force of the law and there have already been dozens of successful prosecutions.

But the rise in the number of the incidents is a disturbing trend and schemes to catch 'laser louts' have been redoubled in an attempt to crack down on offenders.

A spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said: 'We are currently seeing a global surge in incidents of lasers being deliberately shone at aircraft on final approach to airports.

'The aviation industry and the police are doing everything possible to combat the problem and we strongly urge anyone who sees a laser being shone in the night sky near an airport to contact the police immediately.

'Since 2010 shining a laser or light at an aircraft in flight has been a criminal offence and we really need the public's help to stop these dangerous attacks happening.'

The maximum sentence in the UK for intentionally endangering an aircraft is five years' jail.

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