Big increase in military flights

Should be quite a few milling about ready for the Jubilee flyover.
Think this is one:
GHHII https://fr24.com/GHHII/2c167400

GAOZH from Chichester https://fr24.com/GAOZH/2c168750

There’s loads out there – the Lancaster is circuiting Stowmarket at the moment.
Hercules and an A400M out over the North Sea just off Norfolk.

A few years ago there was an amazing video showing the orbiting patterns of all the aircraft required to get them in exact order over the palace – wonder if I can find it now?

2 chinooks, 7 Apache’s and 4 large ‘copters which I don’t know just flew over North London in 3 x diamond formation.

Great noise.

Edit, 2 of those – a Lynx & a wildcat can be seen on FR24. Now dropped off near Stapleford Airport.

The Lancaster looks like its having a fun day out.

Linky

A few years ago there was an amazing video showing the orbiting patterns of all the aircraft required to get them in exact order over the palace – wonder if I can find it now?

If you cant find that, there’s an amazing one doing the same for the start of the first Gulf War – probably a slightly different scale though

Well, stap me! That Lanc must have flown practically over my head earlier while I was out with the dogs between Bridgnorth and Shifnal, and I never noticed it. That’s what you get for wearing headphones…

Caught the Lancaster in Stowmarket, very low doing circuits over the town, which coincided with the street carnival parade, not sure if that was intended, but bloody marvelous moment.

Watching it Bank hard so low gave me goose bumps, beautiful aircraft.

The Lancaster is out again today
Lanc 3rd June 2022

Yes it’s fairly local, think it’s something to do with Severn Valley Railway

Lancaster out with the Spitfire now (1430)

https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=43c393

You sure? Lynx is retired.

Edit, 2 of those – a Lynx & a wildcat can be seen on FR24. Now dropped off near Stapleford Airport.

Red arrows en route to Bournemouth for anyone in the area or on the route

Something fairly fast and loud flew over yesterday, but by the time I got outside to see what it was it was too far  away. Checked on ADS-B, and all it showed was it’s call-sign, NICKEL61, and nothing else. It seems to have originated somewhere in the Med, to the East of Italy.

While I’m here, it’s worth pointing out that it’s the RIAT at Fairford this weekend, so lots and lots of interesting stuff flying around, biggest crowd they’ve ever had as well, completely sold out in advance. This Spitfire was flying around a short time ago…

NICKEL61 was a USAF F16 flying out of Aviano, Italy.

Never had a YAK 52 fly over the house before today.

It’s heading back to Popham now. Last time I was at Popham was when I went to a rave in about 1990😄

I saw that Yak whist i was out Windsurfing this afternoon.
Couldn’t identify it from the profile, thought it was a Grunman Avenger with the very square wing profile

Not military but something that woke me up in the middle of the night, literally going round in circles. Tracking the registration number it is some sort of calibration flight (what ever that actually entails).

https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/g-tacn#2ceb0b69

May well be related to this kit

https://www.diamondaircraft.com/en/about-diamond/newsroom/news/article/da62-special-mission-aircraft-fleet-delivered-to-thales-uk/

Not military but something that woke me up in the middle of the night, literally going round in circles. Tracking the registration number it is some sort of calibration flight (what ever that actually entails).

https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/g-tacn#2ceb0b69

Those aircraft have a variety of services they offer, see here.

Only one UK military flight showing up at the moment – a Red Arrow. A few minutes ago, there was only PZ865.

.

BBMF Spitfire currently buzzing around Belper area in Derbyshire, I expect the rest of BBMF will be due at Blackpool Air Show.

Edit: Lancaster PA474 currently crossing Cheshire

Anyone in Liverpool looks like the Lanc is about to fly down the mersey. 5 mins or so.

Ah, maybe not. It’s doing M6 north.

There’s a couple b52s back at Fairford to keep an eye out for. I’ve not seen them on the tracker yet

Buff in France
https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=ae5870

There’s currently an Israeli C-130 Hercules crossing Southern Scotland.

https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=738a92

Two of the B52s left Fairford about 6.30 this morning – quite a sound to get woken up by. They don’t usually pop up on ADS-B

By the sounds of it, 1 or 2 more are leaving now (10ish)

The BUFF’s are doing a ‘show the colours’ flight over parts of Europe:

• Skopje, North Macedonia 2:35-2:45 p.m.
• Tirana, Albania 2:50- 3:00 p.m.
• Coast of Montenegro 3:05-3:15 p.m.
• Dubrovnik, Croatia 3:10-3:20 p.m.

Only one is showing up on ADS-B, it’s just left Bosnia-Hertzegovina’s airspace heading roughly NNW, callsign SPLTR24.

There are four at Fairford at the moment:

• 60-0023
• 60-0005
• 60-0034
• 60-0026

60-0034, ‘Wise Guy’, is one of only two that have been removed from the Boneyard and brought back into service, the other is 60-0007, ‘Ghost Rider’

Just had a C130 over Salford out of Brize.

This is the nose art for 60-0005, one of the two over Hungary at the moment…

Incidentally, does anyone know anything about an aircraft like a C-130 with *eight* engines? We were driving back from Thetford last Friday and something the size of a C-130 flew over us, pretty much silently (although we had the car windows closed), coming in to land at Mildenhall I assume.

I didn’t get a lot of chance to look at it, although was surprised I hadn’t heard it, but it had the standard two engines per wing, with what looked like an extra two slightly smaller engines per wing as well, possibly mounted above the wing.

Could have been a MC-130 Commando? USAF have a special forces air wing there.

Look like this:
Lockheed MC-130J Commando ll, 11-5731, 67th Special Operations Squadron, 352nd Special Operations Wing RAF Mildenhall, D75_6451 by George Land[/url], on Flickr

C130 with wing tanks most likely. Plenty flying around the UK from the USAF.

Incidentally, does anyone know anything about an aircraft like a C-130 with *eight* engines?

Reminded me of the story (possibly apocryphal / internet myth) that crops up sometimes with B52’s when a fighter pilot in his single-engine F16 requested a priority approach and landing due to his engine running rough.

ATC advised him that he was second in line behind a B52 approaching with one engine out to which the fighter pilot replied:
“ah, the dreaded 7-engine approach…”

Re whatever you saw, I’d guess at MC-130 as well, they do look weird:

The Donna Nook range area must be loud at the moment – this boy’s doing circuits at 300kts around 1500ft altitude
https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=43caed

B52 coming back in to land now

Thanks @relapsed_mandalorian et al, that looks like the badger. I’m impressed by how quiet it was, maybe practicing some sort of glide landing…

@thelawman G-LOC training?

Could be, I guess. But some of the loops were longish and straight and low, as if lining up on a target. Wouldn’t you do g-loc training at altitude to give you a bit of time to come round if blacked out?
(I am not a fast jet pilot, obviously)