Laser designator

[1] Unless the people being targeted possess laser detection equipment or can hear aircraft overhead, it is extremely difficult for them to determine whether they are being marked.

Cloud cover, rain or smoke can make reliable designation of targets difficult or impossible unless a simulation is accessible through available ground data.

This is the case with 1064 nm laser designators used by JTACs as that wavelength of light is difficult to see under standard Gen III/III+ night vision devices.

[2] Other imaging devices with "see-spot" capabilities to "see" the laser spot are often utilized to make sure the target is being correctly designated.

These may include FLIR (forward looking infrared) thermal imagers which normally operate in the MWIR or LWIR spectrum[3] but have a 1064 nm window in which they can see-spot the laser.