Apache over London?

[chimpteaser]

The QRA Sonic Boom thread made me aware of adsbexchange which seems like a great flight-tracker:


Looking at it just now I noticed an Apache (callsign VIPER2) over my neighbourhood in West London and then circling in the Heathrow area. I'm curious about what it was doing,
It was behaving just like the Metropolitan Police helicopter was last night!

[chevvron]

Apaches carry a gun; does that give you a clue?
Now having told you I'll have to kll you.

[GeeRam]

Originally Posted by chimpteaser

The QRA Sonic Boom thread made me aware of adsbexchange which seems like a great flight-tracker:


Looking at it just now I noticed an Apache (callsign VIPER2) over my neighbourhood in West London and then circling in the Heathrow area. I'm curious about what it was doing,
It was behaving just like the Metropolitan Police helicopter was last night!

Will be just transiting across HATC, and will be circling on hold while waiting for the go-ahead from HATC to cross.
Pre-Covid when I worked at LHR, AH-64's doing just this as a single or sometimes in pairs was not an uncommon sight.

[pasta]

Saw one passing on H3 as we were having lunch today. Not quite as regular as Chinooks, but we do see them reasonably often.

[chimpteaser]

Originally Posted by GeeRam

Will be just transiting across HATC, and will be circling on hold while waiting for the go-ahead from HATC to cross.
Pre-Covid when I worked at LHR, AH-64's doing just this as a single or sometimes in pairs was not an uncommon sight.

Thank you, that explains the pattern.
I will try looking up more often, there's a lot of interesting stuff up there!

[Davef68]

When I used to work regularly in East London, we saw them quite often transiting East-West or North-South

[Asturias56]

Its practising for the evacuation of 10 Downing Street.............

[pasta]

Originally Posted by Asturias56

Its practising for the evacuation of 10 Downing Street.............

Is the idea that Boris sits in the front and plays with the gun? I suppose it makes a change from throwing his advisers under a bus...

[mmitch]

We get an Apache over over our area of North Kent regularly. A police helicopter pilot told me once that was because they had 'given up on us!'
mmitch.

[dctyke]

Originally Posted by chevvron

Apaches carry a gun; does that give you a clue?
Now having told you I'll have to kll you.

however no ammunition unless on a range slot…….. (so if you really need to do some killing it will have to be a good ol RAF standby, the pick axe handle :-)

[sycamore]

Actually ,they are out looking for Senior Military Orficers dancing around naked ,on top of Whitehall,possibly.....

[Sloppy Link]

Originally Posted by dctyke

however no ammunition unless on a range slot…….. (so if you really need to do some killing it will have to be a good ol RAF standby, the pick axe handle :-)

OK, what has the RAF armed with a pick axe handle got to with this? Armed with LED rifles for that matter or even doing some naked gardening, Apache is an Army asset operated and flown by the Army. The tail boom has Army on it and their call sign is either their Op (Viper) callsign or Army followed by three digits. They operate out of an Army Barracks (yes, I know the Wildcats are out of Yeovilton) and are serviced by Army Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. The RAF input is the SES who ensure the helmets and associated AEA are all serviceable. Don’t fall into the journos trap who assume all that flies is RAF, all ground troops are Army and all at sea are RN.