A PLANE has been spotted flying in repetitive circuits over Lancashire for hours this morning.

The aircraft, owned by Reconnaissance Ventures Ltd, could be seen in the skies above Preston, Chorley, Blackburn and Burnley going back and forth in circuits.

A Reims-Cessna F406 Caravan II with the registration REV6AF, the plane took off from the Midlands at around 8am today and has been flying in a rectangular shape over the county.

A spokesman for Reconnaissance Ventures Ltd confirmed that the aircraft was in the air carrying out survey and mapping work, which is undertaken for environment and other government agencies.

They said: “The sensors on board the aircraft collect data in ‘strips’ of varying width depending on the resolution of data required, hence the up and down flying patterns you might see on Flightradar24. These ‘strips’ are then joined together to produce a complete survey of the area being studied. Night-time flights are usually collecting thermal data or LiDAR imagery to be used in constructing 3D models of the terrain, most often to calculate changes in flood risk by environmental agencies.

“As these aircraft conduct environmental survey work on specified areas, it is uncommon that we have to fly over the same ground frequently. However, return visits are sometimes necessary to re-capture data or to further investigate issues identified during previous surveys.”

As of midday on Thursday (January 20) the plane could still be seen in the skies over Lancashire’s coastline.