A Rochester man has received a two-year term for temporarily impairing a commercial airline pilot with a laser pointer over western Wisconsin on its way to the Twin Cities.
Nicholas J. Link, 43, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wis., after pleading guilty to aiming the laser at the Delta Airbus A319 that was flying from Raleigh-Durham, N.C., on Oct. 29, 2021.
The plane was at an altitude of 9,000 feet over River Falls when the cockpit was lit up three times by the blue laser just as air traffic control was directing the crew to change runways at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, according to prosecutors.
"The laser strikes caused a major distraction in the cockpit as they were not able to look at their iPads to brief the new approach," read a post-sentencing statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Wisconsin. "The pilots were eventually able to brief and transition to the new runway approach and safely land the aircraft."
The first officer was spared any disruption to his vision, but the captain said his right eye was affected for several hours afterward, the statement continued.
The investigation also revealed that Link tagged with his laser a Minnesota State Patrol airplane that was flying at 3,500 feet while dispatched to assist with determining the beam's origin.
Patrol personnel used its surveillance equipment and coordinated with law enforcement on the ground to locate and make contact with Link, who had the pointer on him.
He told police he believed he was shining the laser at a drone — not an airliner — because his target appeared to be still.
