Low flying military planes over Phoenix today

Thought I'd make a thread about what we've been seeing today. I live in Mesa, AZ and several times today we (my family and I) have witnessed extremely low flying military planes which seem to be in some sort of formation. It's three planes and they are flying so low that it shakes all the windows in my apartment.

I have my camera out now and am hoping to get video if they fly over again. It's happened three-four times today. Does anyone know what may be going on? Was there some kind of air show or something going on today?

reply to post by DJDigitalGem


I live in North Phoenix by deer valley. I too saw group Jets and lights flying in groups of 3 yesterday and last night.

I checked an air show schedule and didn't see anything for today. The last time I saw the three planes was about 15 minutes ago and they were headed east bound.

reply to post by DJDigitalGem


I'll keep an eye and ear out.

Just pulled up info posted on the net by Luke Air Force Base.... This is a tad disturbing if you ask me....

At times, people who live some distance from Luke may see or hear jets flying at a low altitude. This normally occurs in designated Military Training Routes, or MTRs, throughout the state. MTRs are low-level routes used to train pilots in a wide range of airborne tactics. Low-level training is necessary because in times of war, low flight is the best way for a pilot to survive.

SOURCE

It also looks like Luke is an F-35A training facility. I looked up some pictures online but I don't believe those were the planes I saw.

reply to post by LongbottomLeaf


Thanks! If you can get any video or pics that would help too. These things were just so dang loud! At first I thought it was a police chopper but then I looked out my window and saw the three planes.

hope you get video

This is the time of year the National Guard does DRX, Disaster Response Exercises. Might want to check the AZ NG website and see if they have a PR release about it. Probably routine annual training for the Air Guard.

We live in the airspace of the Mesa Airport, used to be the Williams Air Force Base WWII era.
Since moving to Arizona in 97 it was not uncommon to see large military jets doing touch and go landings.
Also, Boeing has a location in Mesa and tests and builds military helicopters, so the airspace east of the Superstition Mountains is often buzzing with high tech aircraft.
There also appears to be several privately owned small aircraft flying from airports within a five mile radius of the area.
However, I have noticed two curious activities; first there appears to be an increase of nighttime flights of helicopter type aircraft, up and above what we have previous heard and seen, and secondly and most interesting about two weeks ago I observed 3 small, single engine aircraft flying in a wing formation.
Initially I paid little attention and I don’t sit outside watching the sky.
This new behavior was however easily noticed as I would often walk outside and observe these 3 aircraft, fly “very” low in the wing formation, and returning quite sometime later in the same formation.
My observations tell me these 3 aircraft are flying east to west following a grid pattern.
My first thoughts are small aircraft, either civilian and disguised military equipped with high tech equipment searching for meth labs or marijuana labs. Both types are very easy to find given the heat signatures given off.
I have not observed the military planes flying low today as we just did return from a weekend up north.
I have however heard some very unusual aircraft flying over head at night, very, very low. Sometimes they seem to fly circular patterns it appears, but it is very difficult to tell as these aircraft emit virtually no sounds, just the slightest of swooshing sounds.

Just a thought, today was the annual Washington's bday Celebration Stars and Stripes airshow in Laredo, TX.
Check out the schedule here

There is no complete lineup of planes that I can find, but the acts and planes generally are flown in and out on the day of the show, if the planes home base or next show are in your general direction, you may have witnessed them either coming or going.

Doesnt account for the low-flying aspect of your story, but possibly the frequency of the flights.

I'm in mesa also I saw them (2 small 1 larger, very loud) yesterday and today cross over my house moving east to west. they look like older planes like you might see in an air show. What seemed odd was how low the were and how close the were to each other. I didn't think it was legal to fly that low over populated areas. A mid air collision would be a disaster.

don't worry guys they are just practicing bombing runs on your house for when mitt romney orders military takeover and dissenters are classified as terrorists.

jk(i hope), anyways i also live in mesa didn't really hear or see anything around here. but i work throughout the valley and see a lot of f-16's training over on the west side of phoenix, surprise sun city areas

They just flew over my home again. I heard them and ran for the door but they were already gone. It's too dark for me to take any video now but I am going to keep my eyes and ears open tomorrow.

Is anyone else in the Mesa, Arizona area, or for that matter anywhere in the valley seeing the three small planes flying grid patterns low and slow?

I can rationalize the F models and the large miliary cargo and the helicopters, but I have only seen small aircraft fly patterns like that while following a a search grid... it is always in a right wing formation

reply to post by DJDigitalGem


You got it man, I have my handy cam ready for action I've also seen a large orange light accompanied by a black ball looking thing that is lighted white on the bottom. Anyway I've seen these things hovering over the west side of Phoenix between Thunderbird rd and Bell ave They just sit there for about 20 minutes then the orange light goes off, then comes back on about 5 minutes later. Then they fly away together, I've seen them twice.I need to get a camera to keep in the car.....

reply to post by LongbottomLeaf

Sweet! From what I've gathered these past hours, I seem to be hearing and seeing them right around every three hours. Coming up on that time frame soon......

reply to post by DJDigitalGem


The skies are empty up on my end, But I have the windows open and I'm listening

I didn't see (or hear) anything unusual today, but F-16s out of Luke aren't uncommon -- usually not on Sunday though. I occasionally see F-18's on their way to Yuma flying out of Sky Harbor. Willie is home to ATSI which has several different small jets which might be out and about for a number of reasons. Mostly old A-4's.

Originally posted by LongbottomLeaf
reply to post by DJDigitalGem

 

I live in North Phoenix by deer valley. I too saw group Jets and lights flying in groups of 3 yesterday and last night.

I too live in North Phoenix (around 31st and 101) and heard nothing. A few years ago I lived in Mesa (hate that town!) and most of the "out of the ordinary" aircraft that I saw in the sky was usually headed to Falcon Field for one goofy thing or another. But these are always WW2 era aircraft.

reply to post by azbowhunter


Yeah I see the old farts in their old planes everyday it seems