Airbus Encountered Unidentified Fast-Moving Cylindrical Object Over New Mexico

[Jakin]

Hello all,

Here is the link:
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zo...ast-moving-cylindrical-object-over-new-mexico

Many greetings
Jakin

 

[kamalktk]

In case the site has issues with the EU, here is the first part:

"American Airlines Flight 2292, an Airbus A320 flying between Cincinnati and Phoenix on February 21st, 2021, had a bizarre close encounter with what its crew described as a "long cylindrical object that almost looked like a cruise missile" moving extremely fast over the top of their aircraft as it cruised along at 36,000 feet and 400 knots. The incident occurred over the remote northwest corner of New Mexico, to the west of the tiny town of Des Moines.

Steve Douglass, an experienced radio interceptor and the proprietor of Deep Black Horizon, told The War Zone that he was recording from his arsenal of scanners when he heard the strange transmission. The War Zone has reviewed over an hour of audio that Douglass has provided to us from before and after the strange radio call. We are working to authenticate it from the FAA and get further information and comment from the agency on the event. We have also reached out to American Airlines for any additional details they can provide. "

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

As the article refers to the proximity to "White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) along with a bevy of other military facilities, installations, and restricted areas" and the pilot says it resembled a cruise missile, it does sound like a classified missile test.
Hopefully it didn't have a live warhead!
The fact that it was close enough to be seen from the A320 means someone at WSMR probably screwed up badly by not liaising with air traffic control and securing a safe launch window.

 

[Jakin]

Hello all,

It is pleasing that more and more pilots are daring to report something like this. No longer a taboo subject?

Many greetings
Jakin

 

[ChasFink]

White Sands is a pretty big place. Practically any air traffic in southern New Mexico is it in proximity to it.

 

[eburacum]

This could have been a meteor, of course. I wonder if any of the meteor-cams captured it.

 

[Aurora Newman]

This is the actual plane that flew that day.
https://www.planemapper.com/aircrafts/N647AW

 

[maximus otter]

If it was at 36,000' it's highly unlikely to have been a "cruise missile". To assist in survivability, they tend to operate at very low altitude:

maximus otter

 

[Aurora Newman]

Have a look at this missile.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/a1101/4203874/

 

[Aurora Newman]

Also sometimes planes that lost their wings look like missiles when they're crashing.

 

[Jakin]

SUPPLEMENT to the news item of 22.02.2021.

American Airlines confirms encounter with unidentified cylindrical object over New Mexico. FBI has taken over the investigation.

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zo...izarre-cylinder-shaped-object-over-new-mexico

Many greetings
Jakin

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

If it was at 36,000' it's highly unlikely to have been a "cruise missile". To assist in survivability, they tend to operate at very low altitude:

maximus otter

Hi Max.
Cruise missiles (not counting air-launched variants, such as Stormshadow) only hug the terrain when they approach their target.
The first part of the flight path for a ground-launched missile, requires a climb to typically between 8km and 20km (to maximise range), which certainly overlaps the altitude of the Airbus.

 

[maximus otter]

Hi Max.
Cruise missiles (not counting air-launched variants, such as Stormshadow) only hug the terrain when they approach their target.
The first part of the flight path for a ground-launched missile, requires a climb to typically between 8km and 20km (to maximise range), which certainly overlaps the altitude of the Airbus.

View attachment 35810

I'm not up to speed with the bewildering new varieties of Cruise. I still think Tomahawk, which has a flight altitude of 30-50m above ground level.

maximus otter

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

I'm not up to speed with the bewildering new varieties of Cruise. I still think Tomahawk, which has a flight altitude of 30-50m above ground level.

maximus otter

The only one I've had any involvement with was the RAF's Stormshadow mission planning software, but I know that air-launched and surface launched cruise missiles have very different flight paths.
Regarding the pilot's account here, I am tempted to take it at face value and accept that he did spot a cruise missile test flight straying uncomfortably close to his Airbus.

 

[Coastaljames]

If it looked like a missile and behaved like a missile, I'm pretty willing to believe it was a missile.

 

[eburacum]

That has been proved wrong on so many occasions. Indeed it is a pretty good rule of thumb; if someone sees something they think is an unidentified missile, it almost never is; another explanation, such as an aircraft contrail or bolide, is usually forthcoming.

Conversely when people do see a missile they often misidentify it, because rocket launches often look very different to expectations.

 

[Aurora Newman]

Could it be a Cigar Craft left over from the 60's?
https://strangesounds.org/2021/02/cigar-shaped-ufo-california-video.html

 

[eburacum]

That cigar-shaped UAP does look a little odd, almost as if it were bent in the middle.

I suspect it is a balloon, probably a solar balloon heated by the sun's rays. I saw something very like that at Perranporth one time, flown by the holiday-makers on the beach.

 

[EnolaGaia]

If it was at 36,000' it's highly unlikely to have been a "cruise missile". To assist in survivability, they tend to operate at very low altitude ...

The more probable explanation would be a UAV / drone rather than a cruise missile.

 

[charliebrown]

According to ABC Nightly News TV, American Airlines said it verified all voice transmissions, and Americans Airlines said they will not deny a possibility of a UFO, but has no other information.

The FBI said they will not stop investigating this UFO report because White Sands Testing Range said no tests were going on and no government planes were in the sky.

Also, nothing painted on air traffic control radar.

The FBI claims they will try to come up with an answer.

 

[charliebrown]

I was surprised that NBC Today Show TV presented this event this morning.

You may think this is nothing, but it a “ game changer “ because for years an airline would not come close to talk about a UFO.

Here is American Airlines saying evidence points to a UFO.

The attitude about UFOs is definitely changing in the world.

Is this the next step in disclosure?

Will the required Pentagon report in June add more information?

 

[Coastaljames]

Is this the next step in disclosure?

Will the required Pentagon report in June add more information?

Probably going to open a can of worms here and pretty sure there is already a thread on the matter.

However,

I finally got round to looking at some of the stuff released by the Pentagon.

Interesting that all of it could be fairly easily explained by flight and aviation experts as being the result of perfectly normal things. All paralax innit bruv

So...the Pentagon were willing to be percieved as incompetent for some reason? Why would they do that...


However you look at it - seems a smoke screen.

 

[eburacum]

The analysis at Metabunk suggests this may have been a Lear Jet 5000 feet above the Airbus.
I'm not entirely convinced - the timings don't quite match up - but whatever it was, it almost certainly wasn't a cruise missile.

 

[charliebrown]

Well, I did not see that coming !

According to a web site TMZ, the FAA told the FBI since there is no radar data anywhere, for the FBI to stop their investigation into the UFO.

Like in Star Wars, move on, there is nothing to see here!

 

[EnolaGaia]

Probably going to open a can of worms here and pretty sure there is already a thread on the matter. ...
I finally got round to looking at some of the stuff released by the Pentagon. ...

See:

The Pentagon Finally Admits It Investigates UFOs
https://forums.forteana.org/index.p...on-finally-admits-it-investigates-ufos.65864/

 

[kamalktk]

I look forward to the FBI reporting it was flying swamp gas.

The analysis at Metabunk suggests this may have been a Lear Jet 5000 feet above the Airbus.
I'm not entirely convinced - the timings don't quite match up - but whatever it was, it almost certainly wasn't a cruise missile.

There seems to be a follow up article on the initial website stating the Learjet possibility was investigated but ruled out.

My personal guess is it was a "dont say it exists" military device.

 

[eburacum]

The War Zone article here mentions the Lear Jet, but it doesn't seem to be ruled out, except by the timings.
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zo...nter-with-unidentified-object-over-new-mexico

In the radio communication the pilot says "Do you have any targets up here? We just had something go right over the top of us - I hate to say this but it looked like a long cylindrical object that almost looked like a cruise missile type of thing - moving really fast right over the top of us."
The encounter with the Lear Jet happened nine minutes before this; if, for some reason, the pilot waited nine minutes before making this transmission, the Lear Jet would be long gone, and of course there would be no traffic on the radar.

 

[Kondoru]

Havent pilots talked about UFOs, -at least in private, -a long time?

 

[eburacum]

Yes. On average, one in every two pilots sees something they can't identify during the course of their career.

My contention is that this entirely consistent with honest misidentification, and would happen at approximately the same rate whether there were aliens flying about in the atmosphere or not.

 

[charliebrown]

I am again surprised.

This morning the national news stations ran this story, and now the local news TV are having a good time with story tonight.

So much TV coverage ! !

If the TMZ story is true, how can the FAA tell the FBI to get lost ?