1135: TEAM 11 (KC-10A McGuire) with Atlantic City Approach descending to 8000 feet...124.6
1138: TEAM 11 at 5000 feet heading for McGuire...124.6
Radar currently showing freezing rain across Carroll, Frederick, Baltimore, Harford Counties and across the lower tier of counties in Pennsylvania. However, temps are warm - low 40s at BWI.
1203: REACH 225 to Dover CP...IDs as a Dover C-5 off from Charleston...says he's supposed to meet an ETHYL 99 tanker from Niagara Falls for an AR op. He wants Dover to call the Command Post at Niagara Falls and ask if the tanker will be on time and to tell them that REACH 225 is airborne and on time....349.4
NOTE: My primary callsign database lists the ETHYL callsign as KC-135s from Altus AFB OK - and I suppose most of you use the same database. I've often wondered about that since I always hear the ETHYL callsign used in the New England area. REACH 225 made it pretty clear ETHYL is from Niagara Falls. I suppose it could just be staging from there but that doesn't explain why the ETHYLs are always operating in that area. If correct, that would make the ETHYL ID "KC-135R 107th Air Refueling Wing, NY-ANG Niagara Falls"
1223: ROMAN 41 (F/A-18 VFA-106, NAS Oceana VA) with ZDC-Dominion at FL 240...377.1
1225: ROMAN 41 handed off to ZDC-Montebello and checks in at FL 240...284.7
1232: ROMAN 41 handed off to ZDC-Casanova and again checks in at FL 240...282.2
1249: JAWS 21 (Probably F-16 VT-ANG Burlington/Langley) with ZDC-Montebello at FL 230...284.7
1253: JAWS 21 repeats he's at FL 230 a couple of times...then reports "no joy on 284.7"....284.7
1254: JAWS 21 comes up with ZDC-Azalea, reports at FL 230 and is cleared to FL 220...263.1
1256: U/I aircraft to Davison AAF to say he's early for the afternoon shuttle and wants the fuel truck aware of that...139.4
1257: TOPCAT 3 (KC-135 108th ARW McGuire) telling ground controller to call him when "they" get airborne. Not sure who the "they" is - presumably his receivers...303.0
1301: Speaker(may be TOPCAT 3) asking TORCH Control (108th ARW) to let him know when TOPCAT 2 gets airborne...303.0
1308: FUZZY 11 [female] to McGuire CP reports 20 minutes out, A-1, to make a dropoff...gives her tail number as 58-0023 and self IDs as a KC-135R...that makes her from the 136th ARS/107th ARW at Niagara Falls...319.4
1318: FUZZY 11 gets her parking space at McGuire...Bravo-4...319.4
1332: _____ 18 and TOPCAT 2 on 311.0 and then on AR freq 238.9. They are talking about meeting an IP time of 1848Z. The 18 aircraft (at 1326) says he's 70 miles from Norfolk. (The ___ 18 aircraft may be TOPCAT 18 but not positive of it)
1338: ____ 18 says the IP is at the Oceana 095 degree radial/78 miles at 1848Z...238.9
1347: JAWS 21 up again with ZDC-Irons at FL 210...360.85
1348: JAWS 21 now at 16,000 feet and requests an approach to Oceana to do a practice approach there...360.85
1357: JAWS 21 with Norfolk TRACON...370.925
1359: An ELT type warbling tone just heard on HUNTRESS freq 324.0. It lasted about 15 seconds and then turned off.
Langley sure has been quiet the past several days. A dozen F-22As left on the 7th and headed to Hickam in Hawaii and then on to Kadena in Okinawa for the deployment...but where is everyone else?
1427: WILD 1 flight of F-16s from Andrews up with TRACON climbing out...heading to Patuxent...348.725
1428: WILD 1 using interflight freq...143.6 (Flight of two F-16s)
1430: WILD 1 handed off to ZDC-Calvert and checks in passing 9000 for 15,000 feet...281.4
1432: WILD 1 handed off to Patuxent Approach and checks in at 12,000 feet...cancels IFR...305.2
1434: WILD 1 handed off to BayWatch...checks in...270.8
1435: WILD 1 says they'll be in the area for 20 minutes...when leaving they request a bobsled to runway 32 at Patuxent and request airspace up to FL 300...270.8
1436: SCARY flight of F-16s off the deck at Andrews...with TRACON...348.725
1437: SCARY flight of two on interflight freq...139.15
1437: SCARY flight handed to ZDC-Calvert and check in there....281.4
WILD and SCARY and it's not even Halloween
1439: SCARY handed off to Patuxent Approach...check in at 15,000...cancel IFR...305.2
1439: WILD tells BayWatch they'll be in R-4005 surface to 9000 feet...270.8
1441: SCARY asks Patuxent if WILD was able to get below the weather...305.2
1442: SCARY handed off to BayWatch and checks in as a flight of two at 15,000 feet...will be in the area for 25 minutes...R-4005 south exclusive...354.8
1445: SCARY pair begin ACM activity...139.15
1450: SCARY moving on down to R-6609...354.8...starting a new ACM at FL 190-200 at 350 knots...139.15
1453: SCARY flight to Pax Approach...at 12,500 feet requesting entry to R-6609...report VFR, cancel IFR...told to monitor BayWatch on 354.8...305.2
1456: U/I aircraft reports hitting a bird during an approach to Dover...wants to land and offload his cargo...says he doesn't think the bird was sucked into the #3 engine...says they're out over the Bay at this time...about 15 minutes out...349.4
1459: TESTER 12 (USN Test Pilot School, Patuxent NAS) to BayWatch to report he did a supersonic run topping out at mach 1.025 at 31,000 feet...270.8
1504: Northrup Grumman test flight freq active...123.225 (And later the 123.2 freq also active)
1511: SCARY flight sounds like they're doing a practice approach to runway 14 at Pax...270.8/139.15
1512: WILD flight also doing their bobsled at Pax...switching to Tower...270.8/143.6
1513: TESTER 12 finishing up with BayWatch...270.8
1515: TESTER 03 asking BayWatch if the south spin is still hot...354.8
1517: Leesburg Radio and PAT 45 (helo) on FSS talking about opening a flight plan. PAT 45 took off at 1450 local and is heading for Davison. Leesburg tells 45 he'll send that message to Davison...255.4
1521: TESTER 962 says he'll be manuevering in his present position...270.8
1543: JESTER 21 with ZDC-Woodstown...363.0
1545: WILD to SOF to report 10 minutes out, both jets Code 1...gives a PIREP to SOF for the area between Pax and Andrews...139.9
1547: JESTER 21 handed off to ZDC-Kenton and checks in at FL 180 heading down to 13,000...354.15
1551: WILD flight with TRACON heading for runway 19R at Andrews...335.5
1552: SCARY flight also with TRACON heading for Andrews...335.5
1555: WILD flight over to Andrews Tower...report gear down for approach...349.0
1556: WILD 1 reports executing missed approach...349.0
1558: WILD 2 cleared to land 19R...gear down...349.0
1600: WILD 1 reports, "base, gear, stop, right"..."cleared to land"...349.0
1601: SCARY report low approach to 19R...335.5
1601: SCARY flight to ADW Tower...2 will do a full stop, following by 1 after 2 lands...SCARY 1 cleared for the option...349.0
1604: SCARY 2 reports, "base, gear, stop on the right"...349.0
1606: SCARY 1 reports, "gear down, base, full stop right"...349.0
And then there were none. All done. The end.
Ref next two messages below: Hearing you loud and clear. I guess we need to find out then the purpose of the ETHYL callsign - when/why they use it rather than their squadron callsigns. For refueling missions of receivers heading overseas perhaps? Or a static callsign for missions assigned to/by the NorthEast Tanker Task Force? Hmmm...who can I call to find the answer? All the units you've noted where you've heard that callsign belong to the NETTF. Well, actually, McGuire isn't part of the NETFF but everything flies into McGuire at some time or another anyway. Many flights stage out of there. NETTF is Bangor, Pease, Niagara Falls and Pittsburgh. One report I read showed the 756th at Andrews as being part of the NETFF and mentioned it was the only non-ANG unit that was part of the Task Force. All other reports about NETFF have just shown the four ANG units.
