FBI: Pilots of aircraft misidentified as drones hit by lasers

Pilots of aircraft that have been misidentified as drones — amid an uptick of mysterious sightings in recent days — have been hit in the eyes with lasers, the FBI revealed Monday.

“FBI Newark and New Jersey State Police want to warn the public about an increase in pilots of manned aircraft being hit in the eyes with lasers because people on the ground think they see an Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS),” the FBI’s field office in Newark said in a statement posted to social platform X.