Had a interesting thing happen

[RoadDawg]

Ok. Well first off I'm gonna say that for the 2 years I've lived here I've only seen a couple fighter jets fly over and those couple were for the Rose Bowl/Parade. Well today I was watching the Tampa Bay vs Montreal hockey game and all of a sudden I hear some loud planes fly over and at a low altitude. I run outside, mainly cause I have a facination with fighter jets, and low and behold 2 F-18's flying at a extremely low altitude, not much higher then the single engine air craft that fly from the local civilian airport. Anyways. I think WOW that was cool and go back and sit down. A few minutes later I hear them coming again. All in all they flew over 6 times at least and several more times to the north (over the mountains). My first thought was WTH. I hadn't heard of any air shows in the area so I was wondering if something "9/11ish" was going on so I switch the channel to CNN, Fox News, ABC, NBC , etc basically any news channel, nothing. So I go be a snoopy snoop and check to see if there are any air shows near by. Well there is one in Riverside (70 miles away) but I still couldn't figure out why they were flying over us. Anyhow shortly after the F-18's stopped a single engine t-6 (WWII trainer) flew over. After that I knew there had to be something going on, air show wise, as most I see close to that in my area is a WWI bi-plane. Anyways. I was so stressed out in that hour that something was going on but the news wasn't saying what (very odd I know), that I didn't fully enjoy the hockey game /Lakers game. Just thought I'd share this rather odd/disturbing/funny event.

[bleachit]

sometimes for the airshows, the airplanes disapear for a while so another plane can fly around and wow the audience... the f-18s were probably killing time. I am lucky, live right near an airbase so when airshow time comes around the skies around my house are full of sweet jets as well as a few wwII planes.

[pbzmag]

It was from an air show in March Airforce base this past weekend. I counted atleast 5 groups of 2.

[AcemanPB]

I live next to a large air force base all my life and have pretty much learned to ignore all the air planes and sonic booms. However, I do remember going out to the lake down in Flordia and seeing two F-14's fly only a couple hundred feet off the ground. These two planes were so close to the ground that I could make all the details on the plane and see the pilots very clearly. There is a test drop zone for weapons further down the river so planes flying around are pretty common, but I've never seen one that low. If it were any lower it would have hit a tree.

[Jeffy-CanCon]

I grew up next to an airbase where they trained in low-level bombing. I've seen a lot of aircraft at pretty low altitudes. The first few times they go over it's a surprise, and you look up. Eventually they just become background noise. Or you look up to see who it is this time... USAF, CAF, RAF, Germans, or Dutch. A friend had photos showing Luftwaffe Tornadoes with bits of treetops caught in the undercarriage, and of aircraft flying up a river valley, shot from a hilltop above.

Seventy miles to the airshow is only 10 minutes in an F-18 (going slow), so yeah, they were probably just killing time, or getting into the right compass heading for a dramatic approach.

[cphilip]

Every once in a while a couple will buzz my house out of no where. I am no where near a Military base up here in the foothills of the mountains. But I am near a Nuke power plant. These things come so fast and low you don't hear em till they on you and past. And then its a real roar. Seems they make practice low level bombing runs on that Nuke plant because the cooling towers are a typical trademark target look for them. Then they go on thier way around the other side. Fly right up the edge of the mountains and turn back east to Shaw or some other field where they came from.

[RoadDawg]

Pbzmag- I later found this info out. During the moment it was kinda eery. Especially since the first time I saw them it looked loaded up and ready to R'N'R. Later on though I realized they weren't.

Considering I live relatively close to Los Angeles is the reason why I was worried. Thought maybe someone was about to try something dirty on millions of people. Like I said outside of the Rose Bowl or Rose Parade fighter jets flying over is extremely rare. I have been able to see a F-22, F-117, B-2, B-17 (coolest to date IMO as it landed at a local airport), and now 2 F-18's. Previous to moving here I lived in Salt Lake City and would go see the ThunderBirds annually. Plus any other local air show I'd attend. Anyways. All is good and it's good to laugh about.

[Head knight of Ni]

All I get is the occasional black hawk 'chopper. And I've seen two (maybe the same one) B-29's fly over head extremely low.

[Halliday]

I read this thread earlier and thought "Cool."

Then I started packing my truck for a little paintball in the afternoon. I was outside and heard the roar of plane engines. We have commecial jets fly by all the time, and I could tell these were different.

I looked up and saw 4 F-16's flying in formation over Des Moines.

Then I thought, Super Cool

[Jeffy-CanCon]

Roaddawg, I hear what you say about thinking the worst. Apparently, our air force escorted a passneger jet into vancover yesterday, due to some sort of terrorist threat.

You have seen the F117 & F22? That's cool. I no longer live near an airbase, so I don't get to see the new stuff anymore. In my youth my hometown hosted F16s, CF-18s, Tornados, Alpha-Jets, F4s, C130s, C141s, C5As and sometimes F15s, A-10s, A-7s and AWACS. I did see a B2 at a local airshow a couple of years back. We had a B17 at my home town airshow back when I was a student (~1990). That's the only vintage aircraft I have ever seen flying.

[Load SM5]

I work really close to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, AL. so I get to see Apache helicoptors almost daily. I get to occasionally hear them test fire rocket boosters. That's some impressive noise.

[RoadDawg]

You have seen the F117 & F22? That's cool.

Yep. In fact they flew together at one of the Rose Bowl Parades (last year I think). The F-22 looks pretty cool compared to the f-117. Looks like a combo of the F-15 and F-18.

Load- I've got to sit in a Apache with the computer systems on. My brother, who is now in Afghanistan fighting this lovely war, worked for the Utah Air National Guard. He's a helicopter electrician but helps were needed. One day he and his friends (one is the back seat guy) opened up the pit and let me have a seat. Even turned on the infared and let me look through it to see how cool it is. It was amazing how far you can see heat in those things. Where I used to live they'd test the space shuttle boosters. It'd smoke out half of the Salt Lake valley if the wind was blowing right. It was loud too.

[Head knight of Ni]

Where I used to live they'd test the space shuttle boosters. It'd smoke out half of the Salt Lake valley if the wind was blowing right. It was loud too.

I got to watch the shuttle go up from across the lake they have near it.
You have to have special tickets and everything but it was at 6:00. It was simply amazing to see it go up from so close.

The coolest thing about the F-22 is that it is the first Stealth Fighter in the world. I gotta say the Joint Strike Fighter looked cool but I heard it was cancelled. Stealth VSTOL

[edweird]

Having worked with F-16's for about 8 years now ive grown pretty much tone deaf to the activitys of the hulks that travel above us. Its sad really, as I grew up watching the skys and leanin as much as possible about our warplanes. Anyhow since I have access to the world 3rd largest airforce all on one base I invite about everyone that comes to visit phoenix a good up close look at the noisy wife that the USAF calls the F-16.

[graycie]

i live near a reserve base that just became "active" last year, and their descent pattern happens to be over my house. that kinda freaked out my bf yesterday when he heard it, i guess its because he is from new york. so if there isn't an air show going on that weekend then you know something heavy is going to go down. you can practically predict when our military is going to make a move with how much activity is going on at the base.