Lasers target dozens of planes in one night

The Federal Aviation Administration and law enforcement agencies are investigating 34 laser incidents that pilots reported around the country in one night last week. Shining a laser into an aircraft cockpit is a federal crime punishable by fines or prison time.

Pilots of 10 commercial plans and one Coast Guard aircraft flying over New Jersey said lasers were pointed into their cockpits between 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. July 15, the FAA said.

Additionally, 23 other flights reported similar incidents over Jacksonville, Fla.; Daytona Beach, Fla.; St. Petersburg, Fla.; Pittsburgh; Bellefontaine, Ohio; Indianapolis; Denver; Salt Lake City; Albuquerque, N.M.; Phoenix; Houston; Austin Texas; San Antonio; Oakland, Calif.; Bakersfield, Calif.; and San Jose, Calif., the FAA said.

Laser light can disorient or temporarily blind a pilot. No one was hurt in these cases, the FAA said.

In 2014, airlines reported 3,894 laser incidents in the United States -- a tenfold increase from 2006, the FAA said.