What Flight?
Author
Discussion

Arrivalist

Original Poster:

2,697 posts

24 months

Friday 20th March
quotequote all
Just had a very high (height similar to a cruising commercial jet) level jet go over my house south of York.

It’s heading west but there’s nothing on flight radar.

Any secret military stuff?

sherman

15,018 posts

240 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
Could be anything USAF based.
Anything from B52 to a drone.

Arrivalist

Original Poster:

2,697 posts

24 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
sherman said:
Could be anything USAF based.
Anything from B52 to a drone.
Cheers. I’d been under the impression that all military flights were visible of FR but a little research tells me that’s not the case.

Whatever it was was big because the contrails were massive.

sherman

15,018 posts

240 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
Arrivalist said:
sherman said:
Could be anything USAF based.
Anything from B52 to a drone.
Cheers. I d been under the impression that all military flights were visible of FR but a little research tells me that s not the case.

Whatever it was was big because the contrails were massive.
FR barely shows any military flights.
The other night I saw 3 KC135 tankers cruising round Cornwall in a big loop. Nothing else showed close to them. They were refuling something.
You can sometines see a bit more on ADSB than FR but I would doubt it just now.

Simpo Two

91,905 posts

290 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
sherman said:
The other night I saw 3 KC135 tankers cruising round Cornwall in a big loop. Nothing else showed close to them. They were refuling something.
Why do they leave the tankers visible? It's a bit of a clue... I saw a line of them over Saudi a few days ago.


Edited by Simpo Two on Saturday 21st March 20:59

48k

16,755 posts

173 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
Arrivalist said:
sherman said:
Could be anything USAF based.
Anything from B52 to a drone.
Cheers. I d been under the impression that all military flights were visible of FR but a little research tells me that s not the case.

Whatever it was was big because the contrails were massive.
The ADSB-Unfiltered app tends to be better than FR24 for military but at the end of the day if the aircraft wants to hide itself from adsb then it will.

Landlubber

540 posts

74 months

Saturday 21st March
quotequote all
Buffs tend not to squark on missions.

aeropilot

39,980 posts

252 months

Sunday 22nd March
quotequote all
sherman said:
Arrivalist said:
sherman said:
Could be anything USAF based.
Anything from B52 to a drone.
Cheers. I d been under the impression that all military flights were visible of FR but a little research tells me that s not the case.

Whatever it was was big because the contrails were massive.
FR barely shows any military flights.
The other night I saw 3 KC135 tankers cruising round Cornwall in a big loop. Nothing else showed close to them. They were refuling something.
They are refuelling the B-1B's/B-52's departing Fairford, that are flying missions to Iran. They are heading out in that direction as it would seem France took the decision to not allow them to transit French airspace a week or so ago, and the B1's and B52's are having to fly SW over Cornwall and south around the coast of Spain and then above the straights of Gib to entrance the Med and then across the Med to get to Iran.

DJC76

13,479 posts

150 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
aeropilot said:
They are refuelling the B-1B's/B-52's departing Fairford, that are flying missions to Iran. They are heading out in that direction as it would seem France took the decision to not allow them to transit French airspace a week or so ago, and the B1's and B52's are having to fly SW over Cornwall and south around the coast of Spain and then above the straights of Gib to entrance the Med and then across the Med to get to Iran.
They have been allowing some to overfly, not sure of the conditions.

gotoPzero

20,200 posts

214 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
Anything in UK airspace will generally be broadcasting their mode c. Especially at normal flight levels and over the mainland.

FR24 then filter out the stuff that is sensitive.

However sites like ADSB Exchange will have the raw data. If you go onto ADSB Exchange and click the "U" button on the top right of the map it will only show military.

HTH

aeropilot

39,980 posts

252 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
4 x KC135's out of Mildenhall have been doing their early morning tanking B1's or B52's out of Fairford over Cornwall this morning and are now heading back to Mildenhall.


Penny Whistle

7,003 posts

195 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
aeropilot said:
4 x KC135's out of Mildenhall have been doing their early morning tanking B1's or B52's out of Fairford over Cornwall this morning and are now heading back to Mildenhall.
Are there restrictions on where they do the actual refuelling - e.g. not over land ?

eccles

14,259 posts

247 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
gotoPzero said:
Anything in UK airspace will generally be broadcasting their mode c. Especially at normal flight levels and over the mainland.

FR24 then filter out the stuff that is sensitive.

However sites like ADSB Exchange will have the raw data. If you go onto ADSB Exchange and click the "U" button on the top right of the map it will only show military.

HTH
Even ADSB doesn't show all military if the military don't want to be seen.

I've had aircraft from work fly over my house, but nothing showing on ADSB.

48k

16,755 posts

173 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
gotoPzero said:
Anything in UK airspace will generally be broadcasting their mode c. Especially at normal flight levels and over the mainland.

FR24 then filter out the stuff that is sensitive.

However sites like ADSB Exchange will have the raw data. If you go onto ADSB Exchange and click the "U" button on the top right of the map it will only show military.

HTH
If the aircraft turns its transponder off you won't see anything on ADSB Exchange.

Simpo Two

91,905 posts

290 months

Monday 23rd March
quotequote all
eccles said:
Even ADSB doesn't show all military if the military don't want to be seen.

I've had aircraft from work fly over my house, but nothing showing on ADSB.
As it should be; you can hardly run an aerial campaign with all your aeroplanes in full view of the enemy. Yes folks, even Iran has the internet.