Armed and dangerous?

FedEx has asked the US Federal Aviation Administration if it could install anti-missile lasers on cargo jets, according to a request filed earlier this month. The FAA request is set to be published on the public register [this] week.

Heat-seeking missiles detect and target heat from cargo jet engines, and because these planes are less maneuverable that a fighter jet, they’re hard to shake off. Gizmodo reports that anti-missile lasers act like a distraction, shining an infrared laser directly at the missile to disrupt its ability to track a heat signature…

“In recent years, in several incidents abroad, civilian aircraft were fired upon by man-portable air defense systems,” the application letter reads.

If the FAA rules OK to this request, I presume we can look forward to laser turrets being tacked onto passenger jets.