Military Aircraft Overhead on Regular Basis

JSMcustoms

JSMcustoms

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Feb 2, 2012
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Where I live there is no military base in the immediate area (closest one is in Fayetteville, NC). However, I still get Blackhawk helicopters coming over very low in flights of two to four, though I've seen as many as six along with the odd Chinook and C-130. This happens at least once a month. Any thoughts as to why?

Note: This has been going like clockwork for the last year.
 
Sounds like training route. We have a farm in rural Wythe County and thee jets used to fly near treetop level. I have been on the ridge and looked straight across at the pilot. Occassionally we would see mutiple flights of different aircraft within hours. Low level jets, higher large aircaft followed by double rotor helos.

Bill
 
lmalterna said:
Sounds like training route. We have a farm in rural Wythe County and thee jets used to fly near treetop level.
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That could be it. Around tree top level is where these guys come over at. I gotta say, seeing a C-130 that low will turn some heads. And the sound. You'd think it was about to land on the house.
 
:) My Dad and I were fishing in a little Jon boat in Amelia county Virginia and kept hearing rotors but saw nothing. Suddenly a blackhawk(I think) came up the back side of the dam on the pond and blew everything under 5 lbs out of the boat!! LOL!! Scared the crap out of us but we laughed for years about it. Fort Pickett was likely the source. We could see the flashes and faintly hear rumble of artillery fire on Summer evenings.

Bill
 
I've got two to choose from as far as sources, though most likely out of Fort Bragg (200 miles). I've yet to be outside when anything major comes over and I'm not sure I want to be with the C-130. That thing comes through on the move. The Blackhawks don't hang around either. It startled me the first few times, but I've gotten used to it mostly.
 
I'd say training. We're at least 100 miles from a base and get A10s flying the Missouri River valley below tree top. Also Blackhawks chinooks etc regularly.
 
Since this has turned into a "Close Encounters with Military Aircraft" thread, we were cruising in a houseboat in the "narrows" on Lake Mead (NV & AZ) and suddenly two blackhawks came cruising through the canyon so low we could almost touch them. I had to jump in the water to wash out my shorts. :D
 
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You gotta believe those pilots get back to base and laugh about the boats they buzzed that day. Years ago in the 70's when they could sound bust overhead they would drop out of high altitudes doing bombing simulations on little towns out west of Louisville. My grandma just about swallowed her dentures a few times and they would rattles the windows hard.
 
My grandparents had a farm between Rural Retreat and Speedwell Virginia and had jets passing close overhead the farmhouse working hollows between the ridges. They and the local farmers coop sent a petition complaint about the noise and skooping cattle. A few months later a Fed. Govt Agency came through asking about putting storm windows on the house for free. Some sort of rural revitalization deal... ;)

Bill
 
My favorite was a remarkable number (6-8 ?) of F14 Tomcats out of Miramar flying low in tight formation over University Town Center shopping mall. One Tomcat is a pretty big plane, a whole bunch of them packed together was impressive.
 
If you look at the aeronautical chart of Virginia, there's a large "Military Operating Area" in the middle of the state.

Not only this, but also look at a map of the U. S. That shows military installation. Just flying to/from a training area could cover several states.

TG
 
How can you folks all be so far away from any kind of base? What would a reservist do In your state?

Nearest Air force Base to here is Keesler, Biloxi MS but there's a Naval Air Base in New Orleans with Marine Corps component attached and two more USMC stations in the this state alone.

I believe there must be More bases in your area than you suspect
 
stvpourciau said:
How can you folks all be so far away from any kind of base? What would a reservist do In your state?

Nearest Air force Base to here is Keesler, Biloxi MS but there's a Naval Air Base in New Orleans with Marine Corps component attached and two more USMC stations in the this state alone.

I believe there must be More bases in your area than you suspect
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You are correct. I see military aircraft quite frequently, but not flying low. I live in a metropolitan area and therefore they are not allowed to fly low. I think it is much more uncommon to see them doing maneuvers or flying low than it is to just see them flying from point A to B.
 
A long while back - 35 years maybe, I was driving around out in the country with some friends over by the Smokey Hill Bombing Range - it is west of Salina Kansas. You can drive right up next to the range - it was always kind of neat to see what, if anything, would show up. We did not see it until it was right on top of us - A B-52, I think out of McConnell in Wichita, doing a low level bomb run right over the car. We had the windows down as it was a late spring/early summer day. He wasn't much higher than treetop level and was going like a bat out of ... well, you know where. Scared the pants off of everybody - could not believe how loud it was. I grew up right under the main flight path going into McConnell and was used to seeing/hearing alot of military aircraft, but nothing like that. My wife and I got married and moved back to Wichita, again under the flight path. It was really interesting when the military geared up for the first war in Iraq - saw an awful lot of stuff you never see come into the base. I loved watching the A-10s come in - they would do the fly around right over the top of the house. As far as noise, though - The Air National Guard flew an f-4 Phantom wing out of the base - they were ear shattering.
 
I'm in the Norfolk/VA Beach area. It's military aircraft around here 24/7. When I was living in Germany, I was driving on a side road in Baden Wuerttemberg & a US helicopter popped out (very close) from behind a stand of trees on a nearby hill. Not what I was expecting. Very high pucker factor there.
 
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