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MrBlueSky 3 points ago +4 / -1

Hey fellow planefags - I've started planefags.win (no association with this .win site). If you enjoy planefagging, come on over!

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MrBlueSky 2 points ago +3 / -1

The word you're looking for is amnesty.

"A pardon is distinguished from "a commutation of sentence," which cuts short the term; "a reprieve," which is a temporary halt to punishment, particularly the death penalty, pending appeal or determination of whether the penalty should be reduced; "amnesty," which is a blanket forgiving of possible criminal charges due to a change in public circumstances " https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/pardon

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MrBlueSky 2 points ago +2 / -0

It's basically a flying White House + Pentagon.

"The E-4 serves as a survivable mobile command post for the National Command Authority, namely the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and successors. The four E-4Bs are operated by the 1st Airborne Command and Control Squadron of the 595th Command and Control Group located at Offutt Air Force Base, near Omaha, Nebraska. An E-4B when in action is denoted a "National Airborne Operations Center""

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MrBlueSky 2 points ago +2 / -0

Watching it, too.

PsyOps EC-130E (968153) heading west over Texas panhandle right now.

Boeing 757-23A (C-32B) (L6552) mobile info warfare platform left Fort Bragg earlier today, made a short trip to Fort Knox. Back to Bragg & then took of again a few moments ago. Currently heading north, Virginia / NC line.

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MrBlueSky 3 points ago +3 / -0

Several Dutch F16s this morning, too. When I started watching this morning I couldn't get over the number of military planes in the air over Europe, in general!

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MrBlueSky 3 points ago +3 / -0

Dude, they've been flying them all. day. long.

I've seen transports come in from Washington state... from Honolulu... Nashville... Little Rock... there's one on the west coast right now coming from Japan.

PsyOps aircraft active earlier around DC, too. Check my post from this afternoon.

Crazy times!

Edit: Oh yeah - one of these guys flying high over the south China sea most of the afternoon. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_MQ-4C_Triton

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MrBlueSky 2 points ago +2 / -0

BTW, I think that plane is mislabeled. N43974 (N means it's a US plane). It belongs to a guy in Texas.

https://flightaware.com/resources/registration/N4397R

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MrBlueSky 1 point ago +1 / -0

There were a couple of Israeli jets flying off the coast of LA yesterday.

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MrBlueSky 10 points ago +10 / -0

Ladies & gentlemen, meet the EC-130J Commando Solo III! This bad mf has been loitering between Charlottesville, VA & Harrisburg, PA for a while today. Squak 3665 for those interested.

So what, you say?

This Hercules doesn’t haul stuff or blow stuff up. Instead, like the 1930s-era comic book detective The Shadow, it has the power to cloud the mind of the enemy. The Commando Solo is a very rare version of the Hercules. According to an Air Force fact sheet, only three airframes are in service, all with the 193rd Special Operations Wing of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard. It is equipped as a flying radio and TV station, capable of broadcasting AM radio, FM radio, and color television.

The plane has seen action a number of times, including during the liberation of Grenada (Operation Urgent Fury), Operation Just Cause, Desert Storm, the 1994 intervention in Haiti, the Balkans, and in the War on Terror. I've never seen one operating over the continental U.S.

Oh yeah. There's a second one prowling around the east coast out over the Atlantic. It's popping on & off of ADS-B Exchange, but I've seen it several times. Squaking at 2752.

Want to see inside one? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FYyXlaY-Ic

Throw in a few E-6 Mercury's, a few Blackhawks & an absurd number of transports. That's continental US airspace this morning.

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MrBlueSky 7 points ago +7 / -0

Yeah, it has been a crazy morning! Anyone seeing this that doesn't know what they're looking at - few small planes, but most of those are transports. C130's & C17's. They've been in and out of Andrews all morning long.

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MrBlueSky 2 points ago +2 / -0

Yeah, looks like it's heading to Fort Bragg. Will keep watching.

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MrBlueSky 4 points ago +4 / -0

Kind of insane, isn't it? Been crazy the past few days, but this morning in particular. Did you see the C17 leave Nashville earlier? Absolutely balls to the wall flying to DC.

I guess they could be resupplying the ridiculous number of troops already on the ground in DC?

Also - check out my post about the flight out of Elgin earlier. I found that most peculiar!

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MrBlueSky 8 points ago +8 / -0

EDIT: (8:40AM Eastern) Just landed at Fort Bragg, NC. Will continue to monitor.

Long time lurker, long time planespotter.

I've been aghast at the number of C130s & Globemasters flying in to Andrews over the past few days (this morning, in particular!!). I guess they could be resupplying the troops already on the ground.

What really caught my eye was the flight out of Elgin AFB which appears to be headed to DC. 486th Flight Test Squadron - affiliated with FEMA. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/486th_Flight_Test_Squadron

Any fellow planespotters or military types have thoughts?