A Virgin Atlantic flight to New York was forced to turn back to Heathrow after a laser was shone into the cockpit while it flew at 8,000ft.
The pilot declared a medical emergency about an hour into the flight when his co-pilot was taken ill. Scotland Yard was today hunting the source of the attack, which took place a few miles west of Heathrow last night.
Virgin Atlantic said the plane returned to the airport as a “precautionary measure” and the airline was helping police try to identify the suspect.
A Virgin spokeswoman said the safety of the crew and customers who had been on board Flight VS025 travelling to JFK airport had been a “top priority.”
Aviation expert Julian Bray said laser incidents were becoming more common and can threaten the safety of an aircraft. “That could have temporarily blinded [the co-pilot], could damage his retina or just give him a very nasty headache,” he added.
“So it is very, very dangerous indeed — but unfortunately there’s a game that some so-called aircraft spotters play called laser tagging, where they try and shine their beam onto the fuselage of the aircraft.”
He said the Airbus A340 was climbing after take-off and was at about 8,000ft about “six or seven miles” west of Heathrow, when the incident took place.
The flight path shows it was following the M3 corridor in Surrey and the attack may have taken place somewhere between Weybridge and Sandhurst.
The crew reported it at the time. In an audio recording the pilot declares a “Pan-Pan” emergency, saying they have a “medical issue” and are returning to Heathrow. “Pan-Pan” indicates an urgent situation in which there is no immediate threat to life — as distinct from a “Mayday” call.
It is understood that the plane had passed over the west coast of Ireland before heading back to Heathrow.
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Bethany McHutchinson, one of 252 passengers on board, told Sky News: “It was really scary. Whether by accident or on purpose, if it had been really serious it could have put everyone on the plane in danger.
“It’s just nice to know that we’re safe now and back on the ground. It’s very scary, when you’re up in the air and you hear stuff like that.”
There has been a surge in reported laser attacks on aircraft in the UK in the last few years.
The Civil Aviation Authority recorded more than 1,300 incidents in each of the four years from 2010, compared with only 20 in 2005. More were reported at Heathrow than at any other UK airport .
Last year saw one of the most serious cases, when a British Airways pilot’s eyesight was reportedly damaged when a “military-strength” laser was shone into the cockpit as he landed at Heathrow.
Pilots’ union Balpa has said “more needs to be done” to tackle the problem. The union said a laser can result in temporary vision loss associated with flash blindness — a “visual interference that persists after the source of illumination has been removed”. It can also cause an “after-image” and glare that distracts a pilot.
Balpa general secretary Jim McAuslan said: “This is not an isolated incident. Aircraft are attacked with lasers at an alarming rate, and with lasers with ever-increasing strength.
"It is an incredibly dangerous thing to do. Shining a laser at an aircraft puts that aircraft, its crew and all the passengers on board at a completely unnecessary risk.
“Modern lasers have the power to blind, and certainly to act as a huge distraction and to dazzle the pilots during critical phases of flight.”
Between 2009 and June last year more than 8,998 laser incidents across the country were reported to the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
A CAA spokesman said: “Shining a laser at an aircraft in flight could pose a serious safety risk and it is a criminal offence to do so.
“We strongly urge anyone who sees a laser being used at night in the vicinity of an airport to contact the police immediately.”
A Metropolitan police spokesman said: “Police were contacted at approximately 9.35pm last night following reports of a laser shone in the direction of a commercial flight that had taken off from Heathrow Airport.
“Inquiries continue to establish where the offence took place.”
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