Several times a week there are flights in and out of Birmingham Airport by elderly Antonov An-12 cargo aircraft - all over 50 years old, and looking like a Russian version of a Hercules. Not always the same individual aircraft - they belong to various carriers and are usually registered in Belarus or Ukraine. According to FlightRadar, they are mainly plying between Birmingham and various destinations in Slovakia.
Anyone got any idea what they might be carrying?
Dunno. But there is a lot of allied military aviation going on in and around Ukraine at the moment, all viewable in flightradar24 and often findable from the Most Tracked Flights box. Refuelling tankers are regularly flying down there from the UK and there is a more or less continuous patrol of US high altitude drones coming out of Sicily.
I presume that it is so easily findable to blatantly advertise it to the Ruskies (who I'm sure can track it without flightradar24)
Nick
On 05/05/2021 14:28, Nick Odell wrote: snip
OK, does anyone know why na Sikorsky S-92a left Kirmington a short time ago, flew to Ladybower, did a 180 and went back to base? That meant it flew over my house twice and scared the hens.
Bill
freight
(I suspect you mean AN10 if they are commercials. the 12 was military, and there don't seem to be any of either still flying
Giant Amazon warehouse in Slovakia?
Well, according to FlightRadar, Tuesday's flight was an An-12BP (see
I would not know but remember one being used to ship kind of makeshift surgical units built into sort of portacabins or shipping containers a few years ago. Also these have been used to transport space modules and all sorts, but Birmingham is hardy French Guiana... ahem. Brian
Maybe they were avoiding very built up areas? Helicopters seem to do that around here, or they fly up following the Thames. Brian
I thought they mostly had been flogged off to private companies by the Russians,which begs the question, if they really are intent on ruling the world how do they get their troops there now, charter an a380?
Brian
Aircraft flying over built-up areas are required to be able to land clear of the area in the case of engine failure. Helicopters can't glide very far if their engines fail, hence the helicopter route through London is along the Thames. Police helicopters operate under special rules.
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