Bakersfield Resident Admits He Did It

Brett Hair, 23 years of age, of Bakersfield, California, pleaded guilty in court to aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith.

Documents filed with the court indicate that on September 11, 2024, at a little after midnight, Air 1, a helicopter operated by Kern County Sheriff’s Office, was flying a routine patrol when the cockpit was illuminated by a bright green laser beam.

The Tactical Flight Officer quickly located and pinpointed the source of the laser as emanating from a house within the FAA Critical Flight Zone of Bakersfield’s Meadow Field Airport (KBFL). Additional laser strikes appeared intentional with at least 15 more strikes as the individual tracked and struck the helicopter with the laser.

When Air 1 arrived above the residence, Hair ran out of his garage and immediately began repeatedly striking the helo’s cockpit multiple times with the high-powered laser. The laser was so bright the pilot and Tactical Flight Officer experienced moments of highly dangerous visual interference as it repeatedly struck and illuminated the cockpit. So much so that it was difficult to see the aircraft’s instruments.

This type of laser pointing is extremely dangerous not just because the instruments become hard to see, but the pilot may also be temporarily blind and incapable of safely operating the aircraft.

Accordingly, the FAA says ailing a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety risk for that exact reason: the pilot may become unable to safely operate the aircraft, potentially endangering those in the aircraft as well as people on the ground.

The FBI and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office investigate this case, and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar.

FMI:  www.justice.gov/