OT: F-15s dropping flares over Bridgewater
- Thread starter Joey Bags
- Start date
No sighting, but have heard the jet engines all morning over East Brunswick. WIDE75 (a kc-135 with the AZANG but flying out of Maine) has been flying the aerial refueling track over NJ and Long Island all day. Believe the F-15s flying the CAP are with the 104FW of the MAANG out of Barnes AFB.
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Was at my mom’s yesterday there in BBurg and it was cool to see some of the Ospreys taking off beyond RVCC. There were a bunch of helicopters flying in a line as well, but couldn’t make out what they were.
Today in Montgomery there’s been a lot of noise, but couldn’t see anything.
Thursday afternoon I was driving through Woodbridge and I saw a plane that just didn't look like a passenger jetliner, it was as big as one (might have been bigger), it looked like a jetliner on steroids is the best way to put it. It was HUGE.
Yes, out working in the yard and heard the jet circling. Saw it loop around a helicopter and then drop three flares. Pretty amazing sight.
One of the wilder things I’ve seen unfold.
Was on my deck having lunch, have a full open view to the North. Saw a helicopter fly over low and thought that was a bit odd. Then literally a minute later you could hear the roar of the fighter. Flew right out in front of the helo then pitched it into a full 90 degree bank while dropping heat flares. Looped back around and did another pass dropping flares a second time. On the third time it dropped to around 1000 feet and lined up behind the helo (who had not changed course even after the two rounds of flares) and followed it out of the airspace.
Can’t imagine that helo pilot is in for a fun afternoon.
Was on my deck having lunch, have a full open view to the North. Saw a helicopter fly over low and thought that was a bit odd. Then literally a minute later you could hear the roar of the fighter. Flew right out in front of the helo then pitched it into a full 90 degree bank while dropping heat flares. Looped back around and did another pass dropping flares a second time. On the third time it dropped to around 1000 feet and lined up behind the helo (who had not changed course even after the two rounds of flares) and followed it out of the airspace.
Can’t imagine that helo pilot is in for a fun afternoon.
From a radio forum I follow:
"Intercept underway near New Brunswick."
"Gonna have another one in a minute over Bedminster if that RV7 VFR at 4300' doesn't make a hard left.
Update: Pilot "politely" directed to turn left to 270 immediately. Pilot complied. lol."
"N197RV just had a bad day. An FAA check ride and Fed interview for sure. 330 heading from Wall to Blairstown at 4500 feet did not work well for him. Rule number one plan and plan well. Check Notams too."
"Intercept underway near New Brunswick."
"Gonna have another one in a minute over Bedminster if that RV7 VFR at 4300' doesn't make a hard left.
Update: Pilot "politely" directed to turn left to 270 immediately. Pilot complied. lol."
"N197RV just had a bad day. An FAA check ride and Fed interview for sure. 330 heading from Wall to Blairstown at 4500 feet did not work well for him. Rule number one plan and plan well. Check Notams too."
Looks like WIDE76 (another KC-135, this time with the TNANG) is inbound to takeover for WIDE75. Currently passing each other over Staten Island.
I heard them while walking my dog as well (In Hillsborough). I figured it was due to the President. People are crazy.......It takes 3 sets of flares to make you turn around? Military does not fool around when it comes to protecting President. ..
I saw it too, and could not figure out what it was or where it came from. It was ascending from a relatively low altitude but was too big to be flying out of Morristown, which was the direction it seemed to be coming from. Wasn't AF-1 because the underside was dark (top was light) and there were no other aircraft accompanying it, but it was HUGE.
The "Air Force One" plane that Trump takes into Morristown is usually a C-32, not the larger 747 version we all think of.
Without a better description of the plane, it sounds like you may have seen any number of cargo flights into and out of the area. In addition to the likes of UPS, FedEx, etc, there are companies such as "Kalitta Air" and "Atlas Air" which fly charter cargo operations as well as contract flights for the DoD (and both roster 747s). Lastly, I don't completely remember, but IIRC there was a C-17 or something of the sort that did fly into EWR the other day - Woodbridge being right under one of the landing flight paths.
Was at the farmers market in Bedminster about 12:30. Heard the jet(s) overhead at one point. Jokingly said to another customer . . . "guess someone is on the golf course that isn't supposed to be." He responded something like, "yeah, you don't get off, we'll get out there and meet you with a couple rounds from our shotgun."
I quickly paid for my horseradish pickles, and moved on . . .
I quickly paid for my horseradish pickles, and moved on . . .
He was suppose to be throwing out the first pitch tonight at Yankee Stadium, but later said he was too busy fighting covid to do that. Of course, it turned out he was simply lying about being asked in the first place and he has nothing on his publicly released schedule today ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The flight of that “ oversized “ jet yesterday flew directly overhead as we sat on the back patio. My wife checked her flight tracker which is great. It said from Dublin Ireland. She thought it was a Fed Ex at first by the loud sound and power but the flight patterns have again been altered and possibly because Trump is in Bedminster NJ.
Live in Bridgewater off Foothill .....heard and saw fighter drop flares ...very cool.
This is not a CE board type thread., unless you’re very triggered.
They found the air space violating plane:
He really needs to get with the times and put a block R on his helmet or the tail of the plane.
He did, but someone stole it. Isn’t that always the case?
Update
A small plane carrying a couple to a hiking destination in New Jersey was forced to land in eastern Pennsylvania after touching down for fuel within a presidential no-fly zone.
Forks Township police described the incident to lehighvalleylive.com, saying the plane was escorted by an F-16 and U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to Braden Airpark in the Northampton County community.
It unfolded shortly before 1 p.m. when the yellow aircraft, according to police, landed to fuel up within a temporary flight restriction zone. The restrictions are in place because President Donald Trump is spending the weekend at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey’s Somerset County.....
A small plane carrying a couple to a hiking destination in New Jersey was forced to land in eastern Pennsylvania after touching down for fuel within a presidential no-fly zone.
Forks Township police described the incident to lehighvalleylive.com, saying the plane was escorted by an F-16 and U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to Braden Airpark in the Northampton County community.
It unfolded shortly before 1 p.m. when the yellow aircraft, according to police, landed to fuel up within a temporary flight restriction zone. The restrictions are in place because President Donald Trump is spending the weekend at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey’s Somerset County.....
Have never used FlightTracker but I'm sure its a fine app. FlightAware is a good website, or the one that I usually use is ADS-B Exchange
Here is the flight path for N197RV, today's TFR offender:
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N197RV/history/20200815/1617Z/KBLM/N43
Some more interesting posts from that same radio forum:
"I was following that as it happened. He got within a few miles of Trump's golf course before he finally turned. Fighter head-butted him and shot flares. The outcome could have been much different."
"Lucky it did not get shot down, the flight path took it right above the golf course before he turned. People in the area report that the fighter dropped flares in front of the plane and the CG chopper was lined up right behind the aircraft..."
"I was cringing when the fighter called out to the TACP on 350.1 that he'd be deploying flares. You REALLY have to screw up to evoke that response, especially with homes in the area. I think that is the closest any idiot...er...pilot has gotten yet in the last 4 years. On ADS-B, there was an unident chopper and another fighter lined up to give him a colonoscopy, and I promise you the assigned aircraft on station were probably fully ready to achieve tone lock."
"I do not understand how much time elapsed til interception. The aircraft was on 330 heading right from BLM direct Blairstown. It spent quite a bit of time in the TFR and the track was clearly a problem early on. Odd."
"The problem is the several small airports within the TFR that they have agreed to give leeway for. Particularly Solberg and Somerset. It seemed like they were giving him a chance to line up for either one and then realized...yeah...not happening."
Here is the flight path for N197RV, today's TFR offender:
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N197RV/history/20200815/1617Z/KBLM/N43
Some more interesting posts from that same radio forum:
"I was following that as it happened. He got within a few miles of Trump's golf course before he finally turned. Fighter head-butted him and shot flares. The outcome could have been much different."
"Lucky it did not get shot down, the flight path took it right above the golf course before he turned. People in the area report that the fighter dropped flares in front of the plane and the CG chopper was lined up right behind the aircraft..."
"I was cringing when the fighter called out to the TACP on 350.1 that he'd be deploying flares. You REALLY have to screw up to evoke that response, especially with homes in the area. I think that is the closest any idiot...er...pilot has gotten yet in the last 4 years. On ADS-B, there was an unident chopper and another fighter lined up to give him a colonoscopy, and I promise you the assigned aircraft on station were probably fully ready to achieve tone lock."
"I do not understand how much time elapsed til interception. The aircraft was on 330 heading right from BLM direct Blairstown. It spent quite a bit of time in the TFR and the track was clearly a problem early on. Odd."
"The problem is the several small airports within the TFR that they have agreed to give leeway for. Particularly Solberg and Somerset. It seemed like they were giving him a chance to line up for either one and then realized...yeah...not happening."
