Lasers pointed at two planes in the Teterboro, New Jersey, area

Lasers were pointed Thursday night at three aircraft, two of which were on their approach to Newark Liberty International Airport, authorities said.

At about 9:20 p.m., a green-and-white beam originating about 10 miles southwest of Newark airport hit a Eurocopter, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement Friday.

Then green lasers near Teterboro were pointed at about 9:55 p.m. and 10 p.m. at the two planes bound for Newark. Both landed safely and no one was injured, said Joe Pentangelo, a Port Authority of New York and New Jersey spokesman.

Pointing a laser at an airplane is a federal crime and can be punished with up to five years in prison. Despite that, people continue to point lasers at aircraft, said Jim Peters, an FAA spokesman.

In 2012, there were 3,482 events reported nationally, 66 in New Jersey and 18 in Newark, according to the FAA. Through Aug. 2, there have been 2,292 events reported nationally, 27 in New Jersey and 8 in Newark.

In 2004, David Banach, of Parsippany, pointed a green laser at a Cessna carrying six people. He temporarily blinded the two aviators as they approached Teterboro airport.

Banach and his 7-year-old daughter were playing with a Jasper Class 3a laser in their back yard when he pointed it into the cockpit of the Cessna, which was traveling at about 3,000 feet. The green beam blazed through the windshield three times, the federal indictment said.

Banach, who was charged under the federal Patriot Act and faced 20 years in prison, was sentenced to two years of probation because a judge said he was reckless but did not have any terroristic intent.

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