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What are the chinook helicopters up to?

(19 posts)

Started 1 year ago by Area Man
Latest reply from Asinine

Area Man

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Just wonderin

Posted 1 year ago #
Streaker Troll

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Was wondering the same thing. They were flying in tight formation, even banked in concert. Probably taking part in a memorial day flyover of some sort. CH-47's definitely aren't something you see every day here. The occasional UH-60 seems to be more common around Seattle.

Posted 1 year ago #
Area Man

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Thanks neighbor for wondering with me. I bet you're right about the day.

Posted 1 year ago #
ballardpilot

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I agree. These do come by every now and then, but I've never seen a formation of them. I just heard (and felt) them as they went by a few minutes ago (makes my whole house jiggle slightly) - I knew it one one of those but didn't bother to go out and see if it was more than one - three, eh? No doubt part of some Memorial Day ceremony. Those suckers sure do beat the air into submission.

Posted 1 year ago #
Streaker Troll

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It was a formation of two ballardpilot. Still, its unusual to see multiple in the city, much less holding a close formation like they were. I have seen a group of 5 or 6 Blackhawks around here before, but those were strung out pretty far from one another.

Posted 1 year ago #
BlueJay

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Yes, we saw two. Loud for sure. Immediately thought of friends who are Nam Vets and how these types of flyovers trigger flashbacks....

Posted 1 year ago #
VeganBiker

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I was walking up 28th as those two Chinooks flew by traveling East from the sound. And about 3-5 min. later there were 2 fighter jets in a very tight formation flying South East over Magnolia and downtown!
Quite exciting. My friend who was at Sunset Hill Park suggested there might have been some terrorist activity in Kent!

Posted 1 year ago #
great idea

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if I was a terrorist, Kent would probably be my first target.

Posted 1 year ago #
Cate

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Darrington.

Posted 1 year ago #
Cate

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Strange things go on in Darrington. Maybe THEY are the terrorists coming to smite Seattle.

Posted 1 year ago #
ballardpilot

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And the 2 Chinooks just went by again - the house is still shaking. I suppose they were on their way home.

Posted 1 year ago #
Streaker Troll

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Yup, heard them thunder by back westwards. Wonder where they're basing out of... The only military facilities out that way that I know of are NAS Whidbey and Indian Island, both navy facilities. Would have thought they'd be out of Ft. Lewis.

Posted 1 year ago #
Alferd Packer

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I've seen a pair of CH-47s several times headed east out of the Ft Lewis area. So they are around. These puppies have been flying a looooong time. As BlueJay said, they were used in Nam, and they were pretty new then. By now, at about 60 years, they've got to be approaching the end of the design and getting a tad long in the tooth.

Twenty years ago or so, I saw a very impressive exercise where one of these deployed a large Zodiac type boat onto the water with personnel on board.

Posted 1 year ago #
Novalis

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Damn it, they found me again ....

Posted 1 year ago #
Edog

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It was a small platoon of tea bagging militia - AKA deathers - following up on a tip about Osama Bin Laden's where abouts. Because in the absence of a long form death certificate, we can not miss a chance to follow a lead this solid to its logical end - invade Ballard!

Posted 1 year ago #
boatgeek

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"Wonder where they're basing out of... The only military facilities out that way that I know of are NAS Whidbey and Indian Island, both navy facilities. Would have thought they'd be out of Ft. Lewis."

They might transit back to Ft. Lewis over the Sound, since it's (a) clear of commercial air traffic lanes for Sea-Tac and Boeing Field, and (b) less likely to generate noise complaints.

Posted 1 year ago #
great idea

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I thought that helicopter I heard was T.C from Magnum, p.i. searching for the Higgins Boson.

which oddly looks a lot like Henry VIII.

Posted 1 year ago #
Alan

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There is an Army Reserve medium-lift helicopter company based out of Paine Field in south Everett. The pilots and crew chiefs need to maintain X number of hours of flying time per year, so one will hear/see Chinook dual-rotor 'copters around quite often.

Posted 1 year ago #
Asinine

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I heard these guys. Gotta love a show of American air power! Almost went out and fired off a celebratory flare volley. God Bless the USA and the NRA!

Posted 1 year ago #