A laser light was pointed at a trans-Tasman jet flying over Greymouth last evening.
Police were notified by air traffic control after being alerted by the pilot.
Senior sergeant Vicki Walker, of Greymouth police, said the green laser was fired from the edge of the Grey River.
It was foolish and potentially put a lot of lives at risk, Walker said.
"If we find anybody doing that, we will prosecute."
It was "very, very disappointing behaviour - it's just so risky".
Airways, which is responsible for air traffic control, said the laser was aimed at a jet aircraft at 11.50pm, travelling from Brisbane to Christchurch. It was just north of Greymouth at the time.
Police said it was an Air NZ flight, but Air NZ did not have a record of that, and Airways could not confirm the carrier.
Earlier this month, a man was sentenced in the Christchurch District Court to 10 weeks in prison after admitting two charges of causing unnecessary danger to the people on board an aircraft from pointing a laser light at a number of planes coming in to land at Christchurch Airport, in April.
A July 2014 amendment to the Summary Offences Act 1981 makes possession of a high-powered laser pointer without reasonable excuse an imprisonable offence. Offenders could be imprisoned for up to three months or receive a fine of up to $2000.
Lasers can cause pilots to suffer from "flash blindness", or temporary blindness following exposure to high-intensity light.
By late September there had been 108 reports of laser strikes nationally in the first nine months of the year.
- Greymouth Star
