John Wiley
By John Wiley
Loud jet noise just before 11am Friday got our attention here (101@154) because it’s unique. The jets to and from SBA are directed by ATC to arrive and depart offshore, though some incoming jets will descend for landing near the shoreline over the Mesa and Hope Ranch area. Any rare loud jet noise here is from those areas and related to atmospheric effects like fog making the sound carry further.
It sounded low and nearly overhead moving from ESE to WNW, with bursts of power as though climbing. My first thought was a military jet scrambled out of Mugu. Looking at an online flight tracker, it appeared to be a flight of two aircraft going relatively fast (300kts+) and low (3,000′) which is also Very unusual. The track started at LAX, so we wondered it it’s related to President Biden or associated resources and personnel going from there to Portland.
We watched it progress offshore between VAFB and Santa Maria, and then it stopped. Assuming it didn’t crash into the ocean, most likely the aircraft crew simply turned off their position reporting avionics (ADS-B). By now it was clear this was a military flight, first from the loud engine noise, but more obviously from the fast and low flight through relatively busy airspace. In this morning’s weather, at low altitude these flights could well be flying in zero visibility and that again would seem more likely military since they presumably have excellent on-board radar and exceptionally skilled crews.
Later we saw another flight with a similar profile (fast and low) and a track starting over Hwy.166 in the Carrizo Plain area and abruptly stopping over 101 a few miles this side of Arroyo Grande.
Does it seem as though we’re having more military drills and practice since the Ukraine invasion? Other ideas or info anyone?
That’s certainly a fantasy number you picked there. Try subtracting at least 60 billion.