Strut10 Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 Me and Bro' were up on the Strut10 Ranch this evening shearing Christmas trees when we hear a jet aircraft that's obviously louder than normal air traffic. We keep looking all around and can't see anything. It gets louder then quieter. But all the while it's clearly something out of the ordinary. Then my brother spots it coming over the western horizon at about 3000 feet and instantly it's past overhead in level flight and headed away to the east........at a heck of a rate. Just as we're "ooh-ing" an "aw-ing" the black smoke starts to stream out the back (afterburner?? Don't know) and it pulls into a completely vertical climb (where the exhaust turned to white) for what appeared to be about 10,000 feet where the plane's nose came over, inverting it into a loop and it shot straight back down 10,000 feet, leveled off and left to the east. About 20 minutes later it came straight back through again. Going so fast it took me 3 tries to find it in 8X binoculars. I'm not a military aircraft identification whiz. But it was very similar to the F-105 Thunderchief. But the 105's haven't been in service since some time in the mid 1980's. So I'm not really sure what it was. To top it off..........within the last 15 minutes we've had a pair of Apache gunships fooling around in the dark here at the house. Almost makes a guy paranoid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethan Givan Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 That is kinda odd. I live really close to Ft. Knox so military aircraft around here is pretty common but if you dont live close to anything like that, then I would be wondering myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckslayer Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 What do you have growing on that Strut10 ranch? Sounds kind of odd for your neck of the woods to me too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted August 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 What do you have growing on that Strut10 ranch? Just Christmas trees and foodplots. :shifty: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Andrus Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 and deer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 That is pretty cool Don, but does seem odd. Don't see too many jets, but the small airport next to us gets military choppers in all the time. Occasionally they do maneuvers out here. We do see/hear choppers at night flying low over the bottom back behind us on occasion too. Have always thought it would be really cool to go up in one and see deer with their thermal imaging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jm23494 Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 One of the spots I hunt in the PA is in the flight path for Ft. Indian Town Gap. The last few years during deer season I have had A-10 Warthogs flying over a few hundred feet above the treetops. It is quite the sight to see those things fly over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted August 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 Used to be really common to see jets here. There was a combat fighter wing at the Allegheny County (that's the one Pittsburgh's in) airport. It was nothing to see between 2 and a dozen fighters go zinging over your head...........usually A-4's. Did have about a dozen F-16's come over twice one day when either Reagan or Bush #1 was in Pittsburgh. They did a fly-by. Then they swung about 70 miles out of Pittsburgh to make the swing for their return fly-by. Very cool to see them do the fly-by on TV then, a couple minutes later, "make the turn" over the house........... then to re appear on TV a couple minutes later on the return fly-by. Still can't figure out what plane we saw yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 Dont see too much jet traffic around me, although the NAS training facility is only about 30 miles from here. What I have seen is the nat'l gaurd here that has the KC135 refueling wing and also has a few chinooks they like to aggravate us hunters with. They love to fly low and slow following the river and seem to take a liking to food plots. NOTHING strikes fear into a deer like a chopper. I've seen them so low I swear you could hit one with a shotgun. As a matter of fact, they have returned to base with bullet holes in them in the past so I've been told by a friend in the guard. Just goes to show the level of stupidity some hunters are equipped with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWSmith Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 You will find it on this chart: http://imgur.com/wUmCy.jpg ...Or as one of these on the official military listing(w/photos): http://www.af.mil/photos/mediagallery.asp?galleryID=2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted August 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 Good links, GW. I've narrowed it down to either a T-38 or a weather balloon. Actually............the fuselage and tail were very similar to the T-38 Talon. But the plane yesterday (from what I saw briefly) had more of a delta wing configuration. Still somewhat of a mystery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heavy Metal Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 I'm gonna have to go with "swamp gas".:oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickel Posted August 8, 2009 Report Share Posted August 8, 2009 A lot of military bases have training weekends the first weekend of every month. It could have had something to do with that. It sounds to me like it was some kind of training how they did the same manuever over and over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted August 8, 2009 Report Share Posted August 8, 2009 take 2 shots of jack and call me in the morning. lol . lots of planes, including some 105's and even migs, are in private hands. they are a ton of fun to fly. a t-38 cannot do a 10 thousand foot climb. it's a gutless trainer. i suspect you saw a retired aricraft in private hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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