WHILST on route to attend an incident in Holsworthy, involving an elderly lady who had fallen, the Devon Air Ambulance was targeted by a laser.

Devon’s air ambulance was targeted by a green laser pen on Friday, January 20, whilst the crew were flying over Tedburn St Mary at around 9.50pm to help an elderly lady who had fallen and was in need of essential medical treatment at the major trauma centre in Plymouth.

This incident comes only weeks after the air ambulance began implementing night-time flying operations.

Industry bodies are now joining forces to see high-powered lasers classified as ‘offensive weapons’ to try and prevent incidents like this happening in the future.

Rob Mackie, Devon Air Ambulance’s safety manager, is a helicopter pilot with 34 years experience. Explaining the dangers of lasers and speaking about the recent incident involving the Devon air ambulance, he said: “Thankfully on this occasion, due to the quick thinking crew member, the team were able to continue to Holsworthy to help the patient.

“However, we recognise that should this have not been the case, and had a crew member received injuries to their eyes or if the crew had been temporarily blinded, it might have meant aborting the mission and us not being able to get to a patient in need.”

The hand held laser did not only endanger the lives and health of the crew on board the air ambulance but could have possibly endangers the casualty they were traveling to assist, as without the help of the crew their situation could have been a lot worse.

The increase in sales of powerful hand held laser pens have always been considered as a viable threat to all aircraft — and are not illegal to own. This is the first significant incident to have occurred involving the Devon Air Ambulance.

Mr Mackie said: “Hand held lasers are not illegal in this country and they are usually quite low powered and suitable as presentation pointers. However, it is very easy to acquire military strength lasers on the internet at very low price and it is the misuse of their higher powered lasers that has caused the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) and other industry bodies to call for them to be classed as offensive weapons.”

The Devon Air Ambulance charity group is fully supporting the move to get high-powered lasers classified as offensive weapons.

The damage a laser can cause can be catastrophic and can impede the air ambulance pilot and crew in their duty, Mr Mackie added: “I am sure that most laser attacks are caused by thoughtlessness rather than malicious intent so we would call on anyone with a laser to think of the consequences before they shine them towards an aircraft. Lasers can cause catastrophic blinding light and can quite easily damage a pilot or crewmembers eyes or distract the pilot enough to cause an accident.

“It would be better all-round if they were regulated but in the meantime we would certainly also ask any parent who knows their child owns one of these devices to explain the consequences of misuse to them.

“This includes the damage they can inflict on themselves or others by shining he laser beam in their eyes.”

In 2010 a law was passed in the UK which allows offenders to be charged with ‘shining a light at an aircraft in flight so as to dazzle or distract the pilot’.

If the distraction or dazzle is serious, a person may be found guilty of ‘reckless endangerment’ and sent to prison.

The service recently submitted a ‘mandatory safety report’ to the Civil Aviation Authority regarding the incident that occurred over Tedburn St Mary whilst the air ambulance was en route to Holsworthy.