At least six flights over New York and New Jersey reported being struck by lasers during a three-hour span beginning Tuesday night.
In the earliest incident, American flight 1976 from Charlotte, North Carolina, reported being targeted with a green laser at 9:25 p.m.
The aircraft was at 3,000 feet near Old Bridge, N.J., when it happened, approaching Newark International Airport, Federal Aviation Administration officials said.
Fifteen minutes later, ExpressJet flight 5887 from Burlington, Vermont, was struck with a laser at 7,000 feet.
It was roughly five miles west of Warwick, N.Y., approaching Newark, the FAA said.
Five minutes later, Shuttle America flight 3482 from Montreal reported a strike at 7,000 feet, seven miles west of Warwick and also en route to Newark.
Later in the night, the pilot of United Flight 1933 from Houston said a laser shone for about three seconds at 3,000 feet. The strike occured 12 miles southwest of Newark at 11:28 p.m.
Less than an hour later, Spirit Airlines flight 710 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida reported a laser strike at 7,500 feet. It was about 20 miles southwest from its destination, LaGuardia Airport, when it was lit up at 12:10 a.m. Wednesday.
The FAA is investigating all five incidents but the culprits have not been found.
The Port Authority had reports of one additional flight zapped with lasers Tuesday night, a spokesman for the agency said.
United Express flight 5898 from Toronto reported a green laser strike to the left side of the aircraft as it approached Newark about 11:35 p.m.
It is a federal crime to aim lasers at an aircraft, which can distract pilots or even injure their eyes, but such incidents have been increasing.
Tuesday’s strikes came less than a week after an even larger rash of laser sabotage.
On July 16, 11 commercial pilots and a Coast Guard pilot all confirmed laser strikes over New Jersey during a 90-minute span beginning at 9 p.m.
The next night four commercial pilots reported strikes over New Jersey and Pennsylvania during the same 90-minute span.
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