Ranger_10X Posted April 14, 2017 Share Posted April 14, 2017 Ok, so this is the fourth time I've seen this so I thought I'd come here and ask y'all if you can identify it. Like most of you, I always keep an eye on the sky to see what's flying over, and living next to an FBO I've seen some interesting aircraft. This sighting has never been an inbound though - always an overflight. The aircraft in question is a large, four engine piston / prop plane with rectangular wings. No noticible sweep and no radius of the wingtips. Not a wide fuselage, natural aluminum finish. Flying quite high - I'd guess 15-20k. And SLOW - takes at least five minutes to go horizon to horizon. This last time I noted it was heading due north over Western Pennsylvania. I can't imagine anyone operating something like this commercially, but it's too early for the air show season. Any idea what this might be? Appreciate any replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly_tornado Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 could be anything but the US still have a lot of C130s flying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnewbery Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Buffalo airways has some DC-4s but wings are noticeably not constant chord Side note: The recent wet weather in South East Queensland had promoted a fungus that lives in septic tanks. When it rains the fungus gets into the air. A primary indicator is when sufferers think C-130s have piston driven engines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 piston/prop. Dunno what. Could be something doing geophysical survey mapping. Pistons are long endurance. Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnewbery Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Commemorative airforce B-17? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger_10X Posted April 15, 2017 Author Share Posted April 15, 2017 Buffalo airways has some DC-4s but wings are noticeably not constant chordSide note: The recent wet weather in South East Queensland had promoted a fungus that lives in septic tanks. When it rains the fungus gets into the air. A primary indicator is when sufferers think C-130s have piston driven engines. Lol - haven't been to Queensland lately so I'm not afflicted 'C-130 not-a-turboprop-Itis' , besides the fuselage is not wide like a cargo plane would have. And also not a B-17 either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 You need a telephoto lens handy next time it flies over - a photo would help, even a silhouette. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger_10X Posted April 15, 2017 Author Share Posted April 15, 2017 You need a telephoto lens handy next time it flies over - a photo would help, even a silhouette. I thought that too. Wondering if those gadgets that clip to your iPhone camera lens would work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Check out this link: https://luxhd450.com/LuxHdZoom-ww/index.php?AFID=1985&SID=LRnew1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger_10X Posted April 15, 2017 Author Share Posted April 15, 2017 Check out this link: https://luxhd450.com/LuxHdZoom-ww/index.php?AFID=1985&SID=LRnew1 Just ordered one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyflyer Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Next time it flys over, get onto Flightradar24.com - Live flight tracker!, move the map to your area and see if it shows up. If it has ADSB it should show up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaba-who Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 The rectangular wings is the detail that kills most of the possibilities. I don't know of anything that fits that. Everything has some tapering to the tips. The really slow makes me think maybe a Dash 7. We had a couple flying out of Cairns a few years back and it was really off putting to get behind them on final. Even in my Robbie 22 I had to slow down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Dash 7 is a turboprop, not piston. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaba-who Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Dash 7 is a turboprop, not piston. Original post says piston. "Piston/prop". Not sure if that means it's prop driven and he's sure it's a piston or that's he's sure a prop driven and assuming piston but could be turboprop. However I'm assuming that viewing an aircraft at 10 - 20 k feet from the ground "prop" could mean either piston or turboprop though. May be difficult to tell it's either type except it's a prop driven. If it was a radial you could be pretty sure but a thin nacelle could house an inline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Header says recipro, so I assumed he could hear the engine noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaba-who Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Header says recipro, so I assumed he could hear the engine noise. Ok - too many assumptions going on here. Ranger_10x, can you refine your statement a little. Is the aircraft a turbine or a piston engine? Or are you limited to only knowing it's prop driven? If it's piston - is it radial or in-line? How do you know? Visual or sound or both? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 DC-4 is not pressurised. DC-6 and later are. Dash 8 and ATR are high aspect winged twins. Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 Next time it flys over, get onto Flightradar24.com - Live flight tracker!, move the map to your area and see if it shows up. If it has ADSB it should show up. Or you could just go to the Resources section here at Recreational Flying Flight Radar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riverduk Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 Ok as a bit of a side track, just watched a show last night about the Antonov AN-124, so as Admin had put the Flight Radar link here I decided to have a look at the whereabouts of any of the said aircraft, turns out that UR-82008 is currently flying over Australia, having passed over Broome at about 10:30 EST and has now just crossed over the WA - NT border tracking towards Yulara. no listed destination at this time. Flight number is ADB2068 currently cruising at around 35k ft at 506 kts, will be interesting to see its final destination, if its Melbourne, I'm in the car and going! As an edit, she changed to a more Eastward heading at Yulara and now appears to be tracking to Sydney, so no road trip for me now, darn it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly_tornado Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 could it be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 Why not? Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bexrbetter Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 I rang a guy at the local newspaper and it's definitively a Cessna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old man emu Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 I rang a guy at the local newspaper and it's definitively a Cessna. Can't be. It flew over. If it was a Cessna it would plummet to the ground, but the heroic actions of the pilot would direct it away from the child care centre and adjacent retirement home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 And he died doing what he loved most . Crashing in he beloved Cessna. How he managed to avoid the children with both wings off the plane is a testimony to his great skill as a pilot..Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBob Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 Not bad, OME...though you omitted the essential word 'resilient'........also failed to mention how it's all in 'lockdown' ....not that it is, but it could be....and that definitely adds to the drama! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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