Fighter Jets (Bangor, Augusta, Houlton: attorney, land, money)

[Mint Chip]

I am amazed that even out in rural Maine, there can still be fighter jets flying right over your head. That "sound of freedom" would irritate the heck out of me if I was in such a rural setting. I have lived near a military base for the last 3 years, and the daily noise from the jets and helicopters can wear on me, but I accept it as a part of urban living. Out in rural Maine, I would have much harder time accepting it unless it was a very rare occurrence.

Thanks to flycessna for the Military Operations Area info. I was not aware of the MOA maps, and they could be very useful in my search for a quiet, peaceful place for retirement.
Moderator cut: You must have 10 posts before supplying links here.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Yeah, we have protestors in Bath every time they launch a ship too. The ship still gets launched and the protestors go off to feel good about themselves.

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

Yeah, we have protestors in Bath every time they launch a ship too. The ship still gets launched and the protestors go off to feel good about themselves.

That sure seems to be off topic to raise the issue of launching ships in bath in a thread about fighter jets. Good grief!

[flycessna]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

didn't someone post that maine has the one of the most ufo sightings??

maybe these jets are chasing all these ufo's away

if maine ever did have a close encounter- what better place than abbott maine??

Georgios on Minot ave in Auburn have a sandwich they call UFO (unbelievably filling object)

Its the only UFO I've seen in Maine and its pretty darn good!

[Northern Maine Land Man]

This is an anti-military thread, along with a rural Maine thread.

It is not uncommon for a float plane to pick up some fishermen and their canoe from a remote pond and have a jet fly under them as they struggle for altitude. Pilots from away are astounded when they see a float plane with one and sometimes two canoes strapped onto the floats. My wife and I flew in to Baker Lake to do the St. John River before there was a road to Baker Lake.

[namder1]

Anti military??!! Hardly NMLM! I am very pro military. I am just curious/concerned about the low flying aircraft is all.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Our pilots must fly nap of the earth to stay below radar. This enables them to surprise the enemy. It also surprises the indigenous people like me. We were a party of four canoes headed north on Pocumcus lake around 1968 when a B-52 passed over us from behind. The noise was awesome as those eight engines passed over us. The pilot wagged his wings at us a little. He was so low he would have had to climb in oder to turn so he would not drag a wing tip in the lake. The downdraft was huge and the smell of burnt jet fuel was like a jillion kerosene lanterns.

Nobody capsized. Up around Rangely there is a route used by the A-10 Wart Hogs out of Westover AFB in Mass. I hope they keep the Wart Hog because we don't have another aircraft to replace it.

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by namder1

Anti military??!! Hardly NMLM! I am very pro military. I am just curious/concerned about the low flying aircraft is all.

I went back and re-read the entire thread. There were no anti-military posts.

Low flying military aircraft happen lots of places. The ones I've heard of most frequently are in remote areas where they disturb few people. I'd take a guess that the locations are chosen with that in mind.

When we are in WV, we occasionally see high speed aircraft. They like to use the local airport for practice because it offers particular challenges. Air Force One (well, actually the airplane that becomes Air Force One when the President boards) has used it for STOL practice.

[kellysmith]

Back in 1989 when I was just getting into flying, I did a cross country trip from Houlton to Augusta. I called the FAA that morning to file a flight plan. They informed me that the MOA was "hot" for a Tomahawk missile flight. The next morning in the Bangor Daily there was this picture of a Tomahawk missile flying with a fighter jet escorting it. Mt. Katahdin was in the background. That picture must be out there somewhere on the internet.

[cebdark]

The 101st Air Refueling Wing is host to many, many, transient aircraft from around the world (including fighters jets worldwide). It used to be a humble Air National Guard unit operating only first and second shifts for refueling missions. Before that, it was a large Air Force Base (Dow). It played a large part during the ice storm of 1998 in operating a shelter at the base and providing water to outlying areas affected. The National Guard is supposed to be more like a state militia. Technically speaking, they answer to the Governor as their commander.

Then 9/11 happened. It's been 24/7 ever since. It is an integral part of the military now and might as well be a full time Air Force unit since it deploys personnel overseas with longer deployments with increased frequency (even though we're supposedly standing down with some operations). With very little notice, they can get an order for a "package" of KC135 refueling planes and personnel to operate them at any time. It's nothing like it was pre-9/11.

It could have been any one of the many fighters that train around here, or are coming from overseas from another country to stop in Bangor.

http://www.101arw.ang.af.mil/