FAA Won't Tell Residents of MA Town What the Deal is With Low-Flying Aircraft

Reason

For the past two weeks residents of Quincy, Massachusetts have had to put up with a mysterious low-flying aircraft above the city. The aircraft has some residents concerned, but when asked for more information the FAA said only that the aircraft is not a drone. What the aircraft is being used for and by what agency (if any) remains a mystery to the people of Quincy.

From CBS Boston:

QUINCY (CBS) – A mystery in Quincy continues to deepen: Who is flying around the city from dusk to dawn, for the past ten days or so?

"It's frightening, not just weird, but frightening," said one resident of the Wollaston section.

Every night for nearly the last two weeks, residents have spotted a low-flying aircraft doing loops over the city. WBZ has learned the FAA knows what's going on, but the agency isn't telling.

"I mean it is strange. I don't know if they're looking for somebody, I have no idea," one resident told WBZ.

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Comments

[Old Man With Candy]

I blame Belichek.

[Fist of Etiquette]

CHEMTRAILS.

[NeonCat]

FCC looking for a pirate radio transmitter. Or someone who hasn't gotten the word about the Boston bombers being caught, and no one has the heart to break it to them. Or the government is investigating to see how long it takes for blue state voters to break out their Biden approved 12 gauges and take pot shots.

Oooh, the DEA could be looking for the legendary night-blooming cannabis.

[$park?]

Apparently the people of Quincy just need to shut up and mind their own business. It's public air, it's not hurting anyone and the government is aware of it.

[Fist of Etiquette]

They're looking for the tell tale heat signatures of a marijuana growlab.

[The Late P Brooks]

It's DHS, mapping all the boats stored on private property. Because they are a proven terror threat.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Soundproofed black helicopters.

[Marty Feldman's Eyes]

Someone there needs to get some drones and start tailing it.

[PapayaSF]

a low-flying aircraft doing loops over the city

"Loops" have a specific meaning regarding aircraft. I suspect they mean "circling." It is strange, though. What would take 10 nights to survey or find in Quincy?

[Auric Demonocles]

My girlfriend lives in Quincy. I have slept in the town 3-4 times in the past two weeks. I didn't notice any extra noise from planes (above the normal).

Just like I didn't notice any alt-text.

[Auric Demonocles]

Actually, she lives specifically in the Wollaston area. Weird.

[db]

What are doing sleeping when you're visiting the GF?

[Zakalwe]

The aircraft noise is giving her a headache.

[CE]

My girlfriend's uncle's brother lives in Quincy, and makes 85 dollars an hour on the Internet. Last month he made 552,235 dollars in just a few hours on his PC.

[Auric Demonocles]

That is almost exactly 9 months of work.

[RightofCenter]

As a pilot I'm often amused by how unreliable people's descriptions are of aircraft. People will swear a plane was SUPER LOW and then casually describe it passing over a 300' tower that's on a bluff 200' over their head. They'll say IT FLEW RIGHT OVER ME and then accurately describe the side view of the plane because it was a mile or more offset.

Now, back to doing loops (and some aileron rolls, for good measure) in my silent, invisible NWO plane. Oh and Auric, next time put the toilet seat down when the girl asks. We heard that confrontation and it totally WAS your fault.

[db]

Of course the FAA knows what's going on. Quincy is within the surface Class B airspace surrounding Logan airport.

[db]

Which means that it is required to be in two-way communication with the Boston approach controllers, and so if it's a manned craft, it should be a simple matter of someone listening to the ATC radio traffic in the area...

[americanexile]

Here's a brilliant idea: take a picture of the plane with a zoom lens. Google the giant tail number painted on the side.

Mystery solved.

[db]

No mention of the type or class of aircraft? No one can describe it? No one has an audio recording? Why are they just waiting for the FAA to tell them things? There ate investigative methods that could be used to answer some questions.

[CE]

It's dark at night, duh.

[db]

If it's flying so low, it's a simple matter to get a picture of its sillhouette even at night. An audio recording would help determine type of engine (Rotax vs Lycoming or Continental) and number of cylinders, number of engines, number of blades on the prop, etc.

[Robert]

This is a clear example of a UFO, except nobody's calling it that. That term's obsolete if it ever made sense.