Unknown source fires laser at US fighter jets landing at NATO ally base

 Authorities in Germany have launched a criminal probe into apparent laser attacks on U.S. Air Force (USAF) F-16 pilots approaching a NATO base in the west of the country earlier this month.

On three occasions, fighter jet pilots were approaching Spangdahlem Air Base “when unknown persons targeted the aircraft with a blue laser beam,” German police said in a statement

Two of the incidents happened on December 2, followed by a third a week later, on December 9. All pilots landed safely, police said.

Why It Matters

Pointing lasers at aircraft is illegal in many countries, including the United States. Fines issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. government’s civil aviation agency, for misusing lasers can run over $30,000.

Authorities in western Germany said these types of “laser attacks” could cause “severe impairment, temporary visual disturbances or eye injuries to pilots.” U.S. aircrew are issued with eye protection against lasers and the USAF has upgraded the eyewear in recent years.

What To Know

All the incidents happened between 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. while the pilots were several kilometers away from the air base, police said.

A spokesperson for the police in Trier, the German city south of the air base, told Newsweek on Monday they had no additional information to add on the case. Investigators have appealed for witnesses who can shed any light on the incidents.

Roughly 5,000 people are stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base, including the USAF’s 52nd Fighter Wing. The wing has been based at the site since the early 1970s.

The USAF has reported a “surge” in incidents involving lasers in recent years and the FAA said pilots had reported 12,840 laser strikes to the agency in 2024.

China in July rejected a German claim that one of Beijing’s warships had pointed a laser at a German reconnaissance aircraft flying over the Red Sea. In an unrelated incident in November, the U.K. said a ship believed to be a Russian intelligence vessel had pointed lasers at British pilots monitoring its presence close to U.K. waters.

What People Are Saying

“Such laser attacks can cause severe impairment, temporary visual disturbances or eye injuries to pilots and therefore pose a high risk,” Trier police said in a statement released on Friday.

“Our pilots are well-trained for these scenarios and report the laser source’s location to the U.S. law enforcement and German police, with whom we are fully cooperating,” Master Sgt. Alex Riedel, a spokesperson for the 52nd Wing, said in comments reported by Stars and Stripes on Friday. “Further details are pending investigation.”

“Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft in flight could be catastrophic for an affected aircrew and possibly for people on the ground,” the U.S. Air Force said in a report on its website.