2 years in prison for Rochester man who aimed laser pointer at Delta plane

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.

At sentencing, Judge William Conley said Link's reckless actions put everyone on the Delta aircraft in imminent danger.

Conley also remarked about Link's extensive criminal history, which includes convictions for domestic assault and his arrest in 2017, when he shined a flashlight into the eyes of an arresting officer.

In a written statement to the court, the captain compared the "sheer brightness" of the laser beam to "suddenly turning on all the lights in a dark room."

The captain wrote that "one minor mistake during this critical phase [ahead of landing] could have led to catastrophic results."

Link told the court in writing two days before sentencing that "I am ashamed and embarrassed [and] horrified about the danger and harm that I could have caused. … I had absolutely no maliciousness [intent] when this happened, and had I been aware of the gravity of it, I would not have even dreamed of doing this."

He wrote that he bought the laser at a Walmart and used it "to play with the local wildlife. … Squirrels would chase it."