Low-flying Herc causes huge stir across East Lancashire (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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Low-flying Herc causes huge stir across East Lancashire
9:20am Thursday 16th August 2012 in Rossendale
By Jonathon Dillon, Assistant news editor
A LOW-flying military plane caused a stir when it swooped over rooftops and trees across East Lancashire.
Scores of people witnessed the RAF Hercules plane as it carried out a night time training exercise on Tuesday night.
The aircraft, which is based at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, flew over Darwen, Accrington, Rossendale and Burnley.
Steven Whitehead, from The Kilns, in Burnley, was walking his dog Roxy in Towneley Park at 8.50pm when the military transport aircraft swooped overhead.
“It was flying really low and was just above the trees,” he said.
“It was massive. I heard a bit of a whoosh and it suddenly appeared. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I thought it was going to crash at one point as it was extremely low. It was crazy. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
Julie Stanley watched in amazement as the plane flew over Chapel Street, Haslingden, with her daughter Megan, 12. She said: “It was so low it was like you could reach out and touch it. Megan said ‘Did you see the plane mummy?’ as we just arrived home and I looked up and saw it. It was mad.”
Rising Bridge resident Phillip Heap, 36, said: “We could literally see the pilot. He had to pull up over the hill and then he banked around and went towards Burnley. It was quite a manoeuvre.”
Coun David Heginbotham, who represents the Cliviger with Worsthorne ward, said: “It flew over about 7.30pm and I thought, good lord, that is low.
“I thought it was going to hit the hillside. It cleared the hilltop by about 100 feet.
“It was lovely to see old aircraft still flying, it gave me a bit of a buzz.” Dorothy Farrington, who lives in All Saints’ Close and is a Goodshaw ward councillor, said she and her two grandsons, 12 and nine, went out into the garden to see what was going on. She said: “My grandsons were saying ‘wow, wow’, they were really excited. We were dancing about and waving, pretending we could see the people in the cock pit.”
A spokesman for the RAF confirmed the plane was conducting routine low-level night flying training. He said: “The RAF always strives to be a good neighbour and to minimise any disturbance caused by our activities. We regret if the flight caused any concern.
“However, our pilots’ world-class training ensures that they carry out such flights safely.”
Comments(16)
Billy_Bunter
says...
11:01am Thu 16 Aug 12
RUinsane
says...
11:15am Thu 16 Aug 12
CapitaBackHander wrote:Strange statement there mate, Lightning that makes no noise yet you heard two explosions, am I missing something???
Nothing in the paper re huge explosions at about 10.30pm. Pretty sure lightening hit ground twice on street nearby but no rain or thunder.
CapitaBackHander
says...
11:37am Thu 16 Aug 12
Billy_Bunter wrote:It WASN'T Duckworth Street.
That was Monday if you are referring to the bangs in Darwen. It was some young lads on a carpark near Duckworth Street with two huge fireworks.
IT WAS thundering and lightening in the distance and I doubt very much this was a firework as there was no one nearby when it lightened!
Lightening doesn't make a noise re comment above!
CapitaBackHander
says...
11:38am Thu 16 Aug 12
Billy_Bunter wrote:Think you are right about Monday night though.
That was Monday if you are referring to the bangs in Darwen. It was some young lads on a carpark near Duckworth Street with two huge fireworks.
thoroughbred
says...
11:51am Thu 16 Aug 12
co.uk/science/across
-the-universe/2012/a
ug/10/perseid-meteor
-shower-astronomy?fb
=optOut
RUinsane
says...
12:42pm Thu 16 Aug 12
CapitaBackHander wrote:lightning doesn't make a noise?? are you being serious or yanking my chain.?
Billy_Bunter wrote:It WASN'T Duckworth Street.
That was Monday if you are referring to the bangs in Darwen. It was some young lads on a carpark near Duckworth Street with two huge fireworks.
IT WAS thundering and lightening in the distance and I doubt very much this was a firework as there was no one nearby when it lightened!
Lightening doesn't make a noise re comment above!
Markr
says...
1:07pm Thu 16 Aug 12
Do you all just sit there waiting to pounce on the first one who posts ?
woolywords
says...
1:26pm Thu 16 Aug 12
http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=C8D1-FvI6
DE&feature=related
Flitting around the Lake District and the Highlands of Scotland hones their ability to fly at low level before deployment to Afghanistan. It is a tribute to the skill of the pilots that they never fly into the ground.
DaveBurnley
says...
3:16pm Thu 16 Aug 12
CapitaBackHander
says...
5:49pm Thu 16 Aug 12
thoroughbred wrote:I watched that between midnight and 2am before giving up re clouds. Only saw about five, last year was nearly one every two mins.
It was a huge show put on by the Perseid Meteor Shower, it was quite spectacular and the bangs/explosions, were simply dust particles hitting earths atmosphere...surely even Burnley folk knew about this...ha ha http://www.guardian.
co.uk/science/across
-the-universe/2012/a
ug/10/perseid-meteor
-shower-astronomy?fb
=optOut
JPB
says...
6:16pm Fri 17 Aug 12
amazed
says...
7:46pm Fri 17 Aug 12
I also thought that the article was about a plane and not thunder and lightning and fireworks but that is what happens with these people - can't resist an argument - and DON'T mention politics - wow that really turns them on!!
I saw the plane fly over Darwen. It was just below low cloud level so not low enough to cause me any worries. It must have lost height over Burnley - so much to see in Burnley but better at a great height I would have thought!
Nice to see an old four engined plane - obviously not a jet because of the sound of the engines. Just wish I had my camera and telephoto lens handy.
Darwenbert
says...
10:27pm Fri 17 Aug 12
thoroughbred wrote:that is correct its a good show every year. next decent one is the Quadrantids jan 4th
It was a huge show put on by the Perseid Meteor Shower, it was quite spectacular and the bangs/explosions, were simply dust particles hitting earths atmosphere...surely even Burnley folk knew about this...ha ha http://www.guardian.
co.uk/science/across
-the-universe/2012/a
ug/10/perseid-meteor
-shower-astronomy?fb
=optOut
JB75
says...
11:54am Sat 18 Aug 12
Lightning and thunder are the same thing, the thunder is the sound of lightning! It's a larger version of the sound of an electrical spark.
amazed
says...
2:20pm Sun 19 Aug 12
CapitaBackHander says...
10:21am Thu 16 Aug 12