Missile Launch off California coast - Pentagon has no clue

[Yossarian]

Only thing I've found is this:

NOTAM for LA.

KZLA LOS ANGELES A2832/10 – THE FOLLOWING RESTRICTIONS ARE REQUIRED DUE TO NAVAL AIR WARFARE CENTER WEAPONS DIVISION ACTIVATION OF W537. IN THE INTEREST OF SAFETY, ALL NON-PARTICIPATING PILOTS ARE ADVISED TO AVOID W537. IFR TRAFFIC UNDER ATC JURISDICTION SHOULD ANTICIPATE CLEARANCE AROUND W537 AND CAE 1176. CAE 1155 WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE FOR OCEANIC TRANSITION. CAE 1316 & CAE 1318 WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE FOR OCEANIC TRANSITION. CAE 1177 WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR OCEANIC TRANSITION. W537 ACTIVE, CAE 1176 CLOSED. SURFACE – FL390, 09 NOV 20:00 2010 UNTIL 10 NOV 01:00 2010. CREATED: 08 NOV 20:52 2010

I read somewhere yesterday that these are issued as a matter of routine, whether or not they actually do launch anything.

A show of power by China being able to maneuver one of her three boomers off the coast of the western US and launch a test of their latest SLBM would be an awesome event.

Awesomely stupid, maybe.


And yeah, I now think this was a plane.  The only bit of evidence that doesn't add up to it being a plane is the way that the contrail looks right as it leaves the 'thing', but that could be the result of a weird viewing angle.

[dedalos]

don't be so dense.  

A show of power by China being able to maneuver one of her three boomers off the coast of the western US and launch a test of their latest SLBM would be an awesome event.  Especially with the president out of the seat of power playing foreign kiss and tell in Asia.  Of course any test launch will head over the empty pacific, but what better demonstration, and warning.   Puts the US on notice.

This is a possibility.  If so, and coupled with the fact that the US military would have had zero clue, this development would be bitterly disappointing and frighteningly alarming. 

  Yeah, always look for the most extreme and stupid possibility.  That is what you do if you are trying to start a war.  I guess because the US government neglected to tell you what exercises or test they have planed, there is no way it would be something simple as that.   Tell you what, maybe it was a UFO?  Must have been an alien craft taking off from their under water base (Atlantis) heading back home to avoid 2012.  It is a possibility right? 

[Yeager]

Ded, word on the street is the military was not involved.  In my experience they don't hide these matters of missile launching and if deep secrecy is important they typically don't do things out in the open close enough to shore where news helicopters can see things.  Put some thought into it.

[Yeager]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/11/10/california.contrails/index.html?section=cnn_latest

Pentagon spokesperson describes event as likely aircraft contrails.

I've seen countless contrails at all positions relative to the sun, and I have seen some stunning and even freaky displays of contrails....but the one caught on film is truly a beast of a contrail.

At least the Pentagon still has the capacity to function in the national defense role, even if a few days late.  Hey, wherethehell has the dept of homeland security been?

[dedalos]

Ded, word on the street is the military was not involved.  In my experience they don't hide these matters of missile launching and if deep secrecy is important they typically don't do things out in the open close enough to shore where news helicopters can see things.  Put some thought into it.

I did, and I concluded that it was a Chinese sub 

[greens]

I bet that was valdals finally blowing his top, i jk i miss the guy

[Yeager]

It is far better to plan on something that might happen and does not than it is to not plan on something that does.

And of course, density can be a good thing.  

[Yeager]

While there is nothing at this time that leads the Department of Defense to believe this is a missile launch, the department and other US government agencies with expertise in aviation and space continue to look into the condensation trail (CONTRAIL) seen and reported off the coast of southern California on Monday evening.   

All DoD entities with rocket and missile programs reported no launches, scheduled or inadvertent, during the time period in the area of the reported contrail.  NORAD and USNORTHCOM confirmed that it did not monitor any foreign military missile launch off the California coast yesterday and has determined that there was no threat to the US homeland.

In addition, the FAA ran radar replays from Monday afternoon of a large area west of Los Angeles. Those replays did not reveal any fast-moving, unidentified targets. The FAA also did not receive reports of any unusual sightings from pilots who were flying in the area Monday afternoon.

If any new information comes to light in the coming days, we will update the press and public.

DoD statement attributed to Col. Dave Lapan, DoD spokesman.

[dedalos]

It is far better to plan on something that might happen and does not than it is to not plan on something that does.

And of course, density can be a good thing.  

Haha, true, but we are not planing anything.  We are just speculating.  I am pretty sure the government knows what it was

[Yeager]

They know what it wasn't.  Def not any sort of missile.  They got that figured out.  Speculation is that it was an aircraft.  No reason for it to be anything else.  Odd things happen up there in the thin air.

I have enjoyed this

[Cthulhu]

Something to ponder:

An aircraft flying at 30,000 ft, 200 miles away is actually below the horizon (you know, that whole 1492, Columbus, round-Earth thingie), so if the aircraft is flying towards an observer on the ground, it's contrail appears to originate from the ground. But to a ground observer adjacent to the flight path, it's just another airplane.

IMHO just another slow news day on the Left Coast 

[rpm]

Just watched an interview with the KCBS helo pilot that filmed it. He watched it for over 10 minutes and thought it was an incoming missile.
Uh, 10 minutes? That thing would have been in LA if it was a missile, unless they have developed some super secret slow flying missile.


Aircraft contrail.

[Tupac]

This is the super secret slow flying WW2 technology missile

[warhed]

Just watched an interview with the KCBS helo pilot that filmed it. He watched it for over 10 minutes and thought it was an incoming missile.
Uh, 10 minutes? That thing would have been in LA if it was a missile, unless they have developed some super secret slow flying missile.


Aircraft contrail.

Have you ever watched a missile launch/test in Southern California before?
With the amount of planned launches I've watched in that same general area, it wasn't a far fetched story.  Add to that, they have denied launches before, only to admit to it a few days later.
This wasn't a big story BECAUSE there was a possible launch, it was a big story because a perceived launch was said to be a mystery from the government.

[rpm]

It was America West Flight 808 Honolulu to Phoenix. Oh look, here it comes again the next day at the same time.


Glad they run a tight ship at Secret Missile Launch HQ, errr I mean America West Airlines!