Miloch
January 15th 18, 02:20 PM
more at
https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/so-what-were-those-secret-flying-wing-aircraft-spotted-1555124270
So what exactly were those mysterious "flying Doritos" booking it high over the
Texas Panhandle, and more recently, Wichita, Kansas? Nobody may be able, or
willing, to give you a definitive answer, but Foxtrot Alpha is here to lay out
all of the possibilities of what's almost certainly one of the military's big
secrets.
In the skies above the U.S. there have been multiple reports of what are
referred to as flying wing aircraft traveling overhead. None of the images seem
to match up to anything anyone has seen before — at least no one with ability to
talk about it. In the first part of this analysis we'll focus on all the manned
possibilities.
What We Know
This new photo, taken in Wichita, Kansas by photographer Jeff Templin a few
weeks ago, shows a triangular planform twin engine aircraft with some detail.
His report of the sighting states that the aircraft was executing s-turns high
overhead, with no sound coming from the craft at all. If the mystery jet was
trying to slow down, or at least increase its travel time over a finite
distance, which the execution of s-turns usually signify, the engines may have
been at idle, or at low power settings, thus the sound may have been greatly
diminished. This is especially true on an aircraft that most likely has its
engines mounted deep inside its fuselage and its exhaust set above and inward of
the aircraft's trailing edge. There is also the distances involved, probably
around five miles or more straight up, which can greatly dissipate sound.
Theory #1: It was a hoax and/or an illusion and these aircraft do not exist
This theory would state that the pictures, personal accounts and radio
transmissions posted on Steve Douglass's website are a total or partial
fabrication. For a layman just looking at these pictures, which are arguably not
of the best optical quality, I could totally understand how they could say that
they are the result of a creative Photoshop session.
Additionally, Steve has chased secret projects for some time, he even shows us a
picture of his personal command center or sorts in his house, dedicated mainly
to intercepting military radio transmissions and researching military
technology, especially of the classified type. Steve has actually been active in
the more shadowy areas of military aviation for some time, he even wrote a book
that is called The Interceptors Club and the Secret of the Black Manta, a novel
that appears to be about an aircraft similar to the one spotted. The book's very
title does have a slight reference to what the aircraft depicted in the pictures
he posted could be (we will get to that in a moment), and even the art on the
front of his book features an aircraft that is somewhat analogous in design to
the one in the supposed pictures he and a friend Dean Muskett took at Amarillo
International Airport on March 1oth.
Theory #2: They are Airliners, B-2 Spirits or some other known aircraft
This is a theory that I can tell you is bogus with total certainty. People say
that these aircraft are just commercial airliners whose shape are distorted due
to an optical illusion or atmospheric interference. Yeah, not so much.
I have spent many years behind many types of camera bodies and lenses, shooting
almost exclusively aircraft, and I have never taken a picture of an aircraft at
altitude and thought "hey is that a secret flying wing aircraft," nor have any
other aviation photographers I know. Sure, once in a while those "hey what is up
there" shots can be puzzling as to what type of airliner it is, but not where it
clearly shows a flying wing, yet alone three of them in trailing formation! I
have also photographed the B-2 at altitude on multiple occasions, and none were
even interesting enough to post or keep.
Theory #3: Classified Manned Penetrating Reconnaissance Aircraft
I think it is extremely safe to say that the DoD has had many more secret
aerospace projects over the last 30+ years than the few that have been
disclosed. In fact, there is rumored to be a good portion of a massive hangar at
Area 51 full of these long retired but still shadowy programs. There have been
so many in fact that the USAF and industry have been known to just bury these
historical but obscure aircraft as there is simply no room to store them at the
sprawling Area 51 and Tonopah Air Force Base installations.
Additionally, many sightings over the years in and around the sprawling Nellis
Range Complex, the famous North Sea flying triangle spotting and incidents such
as the crash RAF Boscombe Down and other similar events, have added to the pile
of evidence that America invests in multiple clandestine flying programs at any
given time.
much more at
https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/so-what-were-those-secret-flying-wing-aircraft-spotted-1555124270
*
https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/so-what-were-those-secret-flying-wing-aircraft-spotted-1555124270
So what exactly were those mysterious "flying Doritos" booking it high over the
Texas Panhandle, and more recently, Wichita, Kansas? Nobody may be able, or
willing, to give you a definitive answer, but Foxtrot Alpha is here to lay out
all of the possibilities of what's almost certainly one of the military's big
secrets.
In the skies above the U.S. there have been multiple reports of what are
referred to as flying wing aircraft traveling overhead. None of the images seem
to match up to anything anyone has seen before — at least no one with ability to
talk about it. In the first part of this analysis we'll focus on all the manned
possibilities.
What We Know
This new photo, taken in Wichita, Kansas by photographer Jeff Templin a few
weeks ago, shows a triangular planform twin engine aircraft with some detail.
His report of the sighting states that the aircraft was executing s-turns high
overhead, with no sound coming from the craft at all. If the mystery jet was
trying to slow down, or at least increase its travel time over a finite
distance, which the execution of s-turns usually signify, the engines may have
been at idle, or at low power settings, thus the sound may have been greatly
diminished. This is especially true on an aircraft that most likely has its
engines mounted deep inside its fuselage and its exhaust set above and inward of
the aircraft's trailing edge. There is also the distances involved, probably
around five miles or more straight up, which can greatly dissipate sound.
Theory #1: It was a hoax and/or an illusion and these aircraft do not exist
This theory would state that the pictures, personal accounts and radio
transmissions posted on Steve Douglass's website are a total or partial
fabrication. For a layman just looking at these pictures, which are arguably not
of the best optical quality, I could totally understand how they could say that
they are the result of a creative Photoshop session.
Additionally, Steve has chased secret projects for some time, he even shows us a
picture of his personal command center or sorts in his house, dedicated mainly
to intercepting military radio transmissions and researching military
technology, especially of the classified type. Steve has actually been active in
the more shadowy areas of military aviation for some time, he even wrote a book
that is called The Interceptors Club and the Secret of the Black Manta, a novel
that appears to be about an aircraft similar to the one spotted. The book's very
title does have a slight reference to what the aircraft depicted in the pictures
he posted could be (we will get to that in a moment), and even the art on the
front of his book features an aircraft that is somewhat analogous in design to
the one in the supposed pictures he and a friend Dean Muskett took at Amarillo
International Airport on March 1oth.
Theory #2: They are Airliners, B-2 Spirits or some other known aircraft
This is a theory that I can tell you is bogus with total certainty. People say
that these aircraft are just commercial airliners whose shape are distorted due
to an optical illusion or atmospheric interference. Yeah, not so much.
I have spent many years behind many types of camera bodies and lenses, shooting
almost exclusively aircraft, and I have never taken a picture of an aircraft at
altitude and thought "hey is that a secret flying wing aircraft," nor have any
other aviation photographers I know. Sure, once in a while those "hey what is up
there" shots can be puzzling as to what type of airliner it is, but not where it
clearly shows a flying wing, yet alone three of them in trailing formation! I
have also photographed the B-2 at altitude on multiple occasions, and none were
even interesting enough to post or keep.
Theory #3: Classified Manned Penetrating Reconnaissance Aircraft
I think it is extremely safe to say that the DoD has had many more secret
aerospace projects over the last 30+ years than the few that have been
disclosed. In fact, there is rumored to be a good portion of a massive hangar at
Area 51 full of these long retired but still shadowy programs. There have been
so many in fact that the USAF and industry have been known to just bury these
historical but obscure aircraft as there is simply no room to store them at the
sprawling Area 51 and Tonopah Air Force Base installations.
Additionally, many sightings over the years in and around the sprawling Nellis
Range Complex, the famous North Sea flying triangle spotting and incidents such
as the crash RAF Boscombe Down and other similar events, have added to the pile
of evidence that America invests in multiple clandestine flying programs at any
given time.
much more at
https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/so-what-were-those-secret-flying-wing-aircraft-spotted-1555124270
*