Interesting aircraft - what have you seen on your computer today?
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Confirming that; my nephew sent me a murky shot of RA-76952 descending into Speke on the 27th. Planefinder shows the origin to have been Bratislava.
Gnome de PPRuNe
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Think it was last night I noted another one on Planefinder heading SE across Essex from Liverpool towards Europe...
Not the aircraft per se, but the pseudo-radar return: an aircraft near the wash with a squawk scrolling through 7002; 5765; 3201; 6101; 0462; 2722... with about 2 seconds between each change. Mode S Shows 000001 so no help for aircraft type, but performance would suggest F15 or better and trail suggests Lakenheath origin.
I get paid to look at squawks and have never previously noticed this kind of SSR behaviour.
I get paid to look at squawks and have never previously noticed this kind of SSR behaviour.
Last edited by Dan Dare; 2nd Feb 2021 at 09:03.
Gnome de PPRuNe
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Hunter PP-XHH is now showing up as XE688 which I believe is its official i/d now - been disporting itself over the West Country this morning... Formerly Embraer's chase aircraft following many years serving the Chilean AF.
A passenger 757 going by me into LHR this afternoon, A Titan example subbing for someone. Pretty rare these days, at least in Europe/UK apart from the cargo example of DHL.
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Another one of those odd USAF round-the-houses routings - C-5 85-0010 has departed Rota, headed mostly due north over the Bay of Biscay to Penzance, now cracking ENE up the West Country and currently will pass over here Heathrow in a few minutes. Presumably enroute Ramstein, unless it diverts further NE and drops into Mildenhall... Mind you, I've noticed in the past that a lot of airliners operating from/to Spain or Canaries seem to avoid France and route up to Western Approaches before taking a more easterly heading to UK or Dutch airports or wherever - or vice versa.
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USAF C-146 Wolfhound has just gone eastbound over Sarf London which might have been interesting to see... Meanwhile, even more interesting, westbound and approaching Strumble is Honduran Air Force Legacy FAH-001, been visiting Geneva it seems. In me spotting days would have been most upset to have missed that (though not as upset as I was to miss an ANG EC-121 flogging over early one morning in the mid-70s - I even heard it but was too lazy to get out of bed...).
U2 8,000ft over Cheltenham probably going into Fairford
and KC-135 QID32 which did a spell in the refuelling area North of Narfolk out from the Hall, then took a scenic jaunt down the E. Coast at about 4000 ft then descending to 850 ft just North of the Isle of Sheppey before a 180 back North again and then cutting in over Clacton, returning to the Hall to seemingly join the cct for a play there.
Now, was this a "jolly" as it was a nice arvo for a stooge around the E. Anglian coast or ....... a clandestine training sortie preparing for an incognito low-level strike on behalf of the UK Government against the Republic of the Isle of Sheppey should they ever declare UDI?
Now, was this a "jolly" as it was a nice arvo for a stooge around the E. Anglian coast or ....... a clandestine training sortie preparing for an incognito low-level strike on behalf of the UK Government against the Republic of the Isle of Sheppey should they ever declare UDI?
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Probably one of them thar Esturine sea forts doing a bit of anchor chain rattling...
Someone is having fun today....
Why do they use a private contractor for this sort of work rather than deploying a Typhoon, thereby giving an RAF pilot a bit more experience
Why do they use a private contractor for this sort of work rather than deploying a Typhoon, thereby giving an RAF pilot a bit more experience
So, apart from the potential of another off-shore insurrection needing to be put down, it looked a nice trip yesterday - most of the way down the East coast @4k (between snow showers - must have been an amazing view!), then what looked like a DME arc type track (based on Southend?) towards Sheppey while descending to 850 ft etc.
I used to take students to Sheppey for PFLs in times gone by - just wondering what a 135 could be doing on the above profile towards the place? Seems odd in one way .... but, given the Wx yesterday, a nice, scenic way to get some GH in. And one way to get round "Lockdown" rules I guess!!!!!! Lucky peeps!!!!