Military heli over Tower Bridge today

[CAPP0]

Saw a rather military-looking helicopter hovering over Tower Bridge at lunchtime. Had two big side-pods. Hovered for quite a while, fairly high up (so much so that it was only a dot on the photo I tried to take), then it took a leisurely cruise around the Whitechapel area before heading back to it's previous hover.

Couldn't find it on FR but I guess that mil a/c don't broadcast their position!

Anyone know what it may have been up to? No, you wouldn't have to kill me if you told me!

[demic]

Sounds like it could have been a Chinook? Was in London at the weekend and saw one over Westminster following the river. No idea what they are doing though. Cheeky sight seeing trip?

Was also up The Shard and got buzzed by a AH64

[CAPP0]

Definitely not a Chinook, it looked much more like the one in your pic, so, given location, probably the same one or similar, there for the same reason. Wonder what they were up to.

[Clio_16REG]

Either an Apache or a UH-60, believe one from SHAPE was in the UK today.

[ecsrobin]

Clio_16REG said:

Either an Apache or a UH-60, believe one from SHAPE was in the UK today.

A bit of a track from SHAPE.

It's a very common site for military aircraft to fly through the helicopter lanes, it's the quickest route to the east coast.

If they go into the hover it's generally that they've been put in a hold for traffic.

[Clio_16REG]

Fair point, just found it on a Mil Aviation Forum that it was, as suggested an Apache.

[CAPP0]

ecsrobin said:

If they go into the hover it's generally that they've been put in a hold for traffic.

This one hovered just west of Tower Bridge, facing east, fairly central over the river, and if I had to guess (always been useless at guessing altitudes) I'd say it may have been at 1500-2000ft? It then set off along the river a short distancee and then headed NE, but about 5 mins later came back close to SKD and then back over the river. Didn't see where it went after that.

Given the pic posted above, could it have been some sort of film shoot incorporating the Shard? Or would they just do something like that all with CGI these days?

[ukaskew]

CAPP0 said:

Given the pic posted above, could it have been some sort of film shoot incorporating the Shard? Or would they just do something like that all with CGI these days?

I happened to be in central London a few years back when Tom Cruise was shooting his new film, a very much real Puma was flying around for many hours over what would normally presumably be quite sensitive areas (or at the very least, places you wouldn't expect to see allow flying helicopters).

[ecsrobin]

CAPP0 said:

ecsrobin said:

If they go into the hover it's generally that they've been put in a hold for traffic.

This one hovered just west of Tower Bridge, facing east, fairly central over the river, and if I had to guess (always been useless at guessing altitudes) I'd say it may have been at 1500-2000ft? It then set off along the river a short distancee and then headed NE, but about 5 mins later came back close to SKD and then back over the river. Didn't see where it went after that.

Given the pic posted above, could it have been some sort of film shoot incorporating the Shard? Or would they just do something like that all with CGI these days?

No that's quite normal behaviour for the heli lanes.

[Johnnybee]

I saw an Apache over central London last Thursday. I always seem to be the only person looking skywards at anything interesting

[48k]

If you work in the City or Canary Wharf they are a fairly common sight TBH. Often see them popping in and out of the barracks near Old Street.

[Dr Jekyll]

ukaskew said:

I happened to be in central London a few years back when Tom Cruise was shooting his new film, a very much real Puma was flying around for many hours over what would normally presumably be quite sensitive areas (or at the very least, places you wouldn't expect to see allow flying helicopters).

Watching the helicopters filming the Olympics video was something else again.