Spokane Man Nabbed for Multiple Laser Strikes on Aircraft, Choppers

Laser strikes are the act of pointing very bright lasers at airplanes or any other form of flying manned vehicle, and it's highly illegal--a Federal felony. (video courtesy of the Spokane County Sheriff's Office)

Lasers can blind pilots and crew, especially when they reflect off windows and canopies in aircraft. The FAA has been tracking laser strikes since 2010, and since then 328 pilots have reported sustaining some sort of eye injury. 

The Spokane County Sheriff's Office and Spokane Tribal Police reported Wednesday a 45-year-old man is facing multiple charges for multiple laser strikes on a variety of aircraft near the Spokane International Airport.

SCSO says they've been recorded for several months, then on April 18th, a Spokane Airport Support (law enforcement) chopper went up on patrol to see if they could find the suspect.  One laser strike was recorded around 6 PM, then around 11 PM, using an infrared and highly sophisticated tracking device, the chopper crew was able to locate the man.

The bright green powerful strikes matched those previously reported by other multiple pilots.

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The infrared tracker grabs location data from the laser's point of origin without the suspect realizing it.  The man, identified as Rusty A. Flett. The tracking data also ties him to most, if not all, of the previous laser strikes.

He is now facing a slew of potential charges, according to the SCSO:

"...Unlawful Discharge of a Laser 1st Degree or similar Federal felony charges."

The video shows the crews tracking the laser strikes, locating, and pursuing the suspect.  The picture shows the suspect circled in red.