Suspect detained in laser attacks at Russian airport
He blinded pilots with laser beams near airport:
Russia: A suspect has been detained on suspicion of blinding
pilots of passenger airplanes with laser beams near the Rostov-on-Don
airport, police spokesman Alexei Polyansky said Monday. Polyansky did
not identify the suspect, but Interfax said he was 22 and had denied
blinding anyone. He was released shortly after his detention Sunday, and
the case remains under investigation, Interfax said.
The police received a tip from residents who saw the man shining a
laser beam toward the Rostov-on-Don airport, the report said.
Five laser attacks, one of which targeted a police helicopter, have
been registered in Rostov-on-Don this month, with the last two occurring
Thursday night, Polyansky said by telephone.
Polyansky said punishment in these types of cases depended on the
motive. He could not say exactly what kind of punishment would await
anyone who blinded pilots on purpose, adding that a court would have to
decide that.
Since January, the number of registered incidents across Russia has
reached 45, compared with the five reports in 2010, Federal Air
Transportation Agency spokesman Sergei Izvolsky said by telephone.
Most of the incidents occurred in Rostov-on-Don and Moscow’s
Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo airports. Though none of the reported incidents
ended badly, the growing trend of laser beam attacks, which are familiar
to the airports in the United States and Europe, has been a growing
concern for the Federal Air Transportation Agency.
Thursday,The Moscow Times |