Trial resumes of Anglesey man accused of endangering aircraft

The trial of Anglesey man accused of endangering aircraft from RAF Valley has resumed at Mold Crown Court.

John Arthur Jones of Bodffordd, Anglesey is charged with 13 counts of endangering aircraft by shining bright lights at them, usually during night landings at RAF Mona, a reserve landing strip for RAF Valley.

John Philpots prosecuting told the court that Jones claimed the pilots were “deliberately harassing him” by flying over his property. He also claimed he only went outside to with a torch to inspect his property and may have, on one occasion, instinctively shone it upwards as a jet passed by, but it was not deliberate.

The court was told that an under-cover police officer had watched a man shine a torch at an aircraft on one occasion, and that man was John Arthur Jones.

Prosecutors have put the case that Jones was obsessed with the aircraft carrying out training in North Wales and “he became displeased by the aviation activity in the skies near his land”

On at least one occasion, RAF aircraft had to abandon landings due to lights being shone at them.

The trial was originally halted in November 2015. The case continues.