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| Nechells man held for shining laser at police helicopter in Birmingham | Nechells man held for shining laser at police helicopter in Birmingham |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A man has been arrested after a laser was shone at a police helicopter which was responding to a call in Birmingham. | A man has been arrested after a laser was shone at a police helicopter which was responding to a call in Birmingham. |
| West Midlands Police said the helicopter was flying over Benmore Avenue in Edgbaston at about 22:30 BST on Tuesday when a laser torch was shone at it from a parked vehicle. | West Midlands Police said the helicopter was flying over Benmore Avenue in Edgbaston at about 22:30 BST on Tuesday when a laser torch was shone at it from a parked vehicle. |
| A 25-year-old from Nechells was arrested on suspicion of endangering an aircraft after officers on the ground traced him. | A 25-year-old from Nechells was arrested on suspicion of endangering an aircraft after officers on the ground traced him. |
| He remains in police custody. | He remains in police custody. |
| Police said laser attacks on any aircraft were extremely irresponsible and dangerous. | Police said laser attacks on any aircraft were extremely irresponsible and dangerous. |
| Air Operations Supervisor Martin Knowles, said: "In extreme cases pilots can be temporarily blinded if they're hit in the eye by a laser, even one shone from long range. | |
| "Sometimes pilots are required to hover close to overhead wiring or tower blocks, moves which require extreme skill and precision, so even being distracted by a split second can have terrible consequences. | |
| "Such acts defy belief. Presumably the offenders view it as some kind of game to try and hit a moving object in the sky, but without considering the potential consequences." |