They appeared to fly over a fair bit of NW London. Quite a sound to behold on a Saturday evening Typhoon jets to fly over borough in Olympic test Jan 19 2012 By James Cracknell EUROFIGHTER Typhoon jets will fly over RAF Northolt this weekend in preparation for when they are based here during the Olympic Games. A pair of the supersonic fighter planes will conduct two sorties at 1,000ft over Hillingdon between 7 and 10pm on Saturday (21) - but will not land. Although residents will be unfamiliar with their sound, a spokesman for the RAF base said the jets would be less noisy than their Tornado cousins, which sporadically visit the area already. "Typhoons are very capable aircraft and will have climbed to a much greater height by the time they fly over the station," the Gazette was told. "Residents will hear the Typhoons but I don't envisage it will cause too much disturbance." The planes are able to travel at supersonic speeds without the need for afterburners, making them slightly quieter than comparable aircraft. During July, August and September this year several Eurofighter Typhoons will be based at RAF Northolt, in case of any terror alert during the London 2012 Olympic Games. Pilots will need to familiarise themselves with the base and the local landscape before then. Typhoon jets to fly over borough in Olympic test - Uxbridge Gazette
Certainly heard them over the Walton on Thames part of the region... With Concorde well and truly parked up it was a wonderful surprise (once I got over the "oh excrement, Typhoons over London; that can only be bad news..." part) to hear afterburners overhead...
I heard some loud jets yesterday evening - thought they were low passenger planes but I wonder if the were the Typhoons? I am in NE London/Essex.
Yes Mike the bit in the article said "Although residents will be unfamiliar with their sound, a spokesman for the RAF base said the jets would be less noisy than their Tornado cousins, which sporadically visit the area already." did make me laugh ,rattled the windows at a 1000 feet they did.
They also circled above the Hadleigh Castle in Essex where the mountaining biking will be taking place. Local paper wrote ' the MOD confirmed the disturbance was caused by two RAF Typhoon jets prasctising security operations ahead of the London Olympics'
Haven't seen Typhoon flying. Does it sound as good as Tornado when Typhoon is on reheat? Well Mike, I`ve seen plenty of Tornados and plenty of Typhoons take off in reheat and there`s no comparison in performance that`s for sure. The Typhoon has so much power it`s incredible. When they perform an "unrestricted climb" departure from Coningsby the Typhoon is off the deck in the blink of an eye. The Tornado on the other hand, well, it shows its age. They rumble and rumble in reheat and eventually get off but it`s not a sound I`d personally describe as good. In fact it bl**dy awful when your next to it. Over the years I`ve been at the end of the runway several times when Tornados have launched, and we`re talking next to the piano keys on-base, and with ear defenders and ear plugs in it`s still uncomfortable. You can feel the vibration through your chest as well. Starfighters and Phantoms, now then your talking a lovely sound, but alas one`s gone and the other`s an endangered species. Regards, John
they gave me a good half hour show on Saturday night over Dartford, Kent. Watched them repeatedly doing mock dive in, roll or climb away attack exercises. Could not tell what they were in the dark but came fairly low. The noise on full afterburner certainly made the crockery jingle. Usually when I look out the window I can see 5-20 planes stacking for Heathrow or coming in on finals for city airport. Saturday nothing else in the sky. The same tonight I noticed, so expect them back.
I work with an ex RAF engine fitter - whist base in Germany he worked on F4's and F104G's - goes all dewey eyed when talking about them... I worked at LHR from just before the first Concorde delivery until '81 and lived under some part of the flightpath for over 50 years - those Olympus engins on full throttle were something to behold, which I did whenever I could, right up to both the last night-flights out... When we compare notes my usual comment was that he worked on Ferrari's whilst I worked on busses... Seen Typhoon's fly on several occasions and the performance is astounding... The sound of a B1 is pretty impressive too...
RAF Northolt An exercise begins on Wednesday, May 2nd, and runs until May 10. During this time, the Eurofighter Typhoons guarding the skies over the capital during the games, which will be housed at the base in West End Road, South Ruislip, will carry out a series of training exercises. Sea King helicopters will also make Northolt their home during the games, providing surveillance, and they are expected to perform a number of take-offs and landings during the exercise. Work is also being carried out to modify parts of the perimeter fence. A section of hedge has been grubbed up because it was at risk of catching fire from the jet blast from the Typhoons. It has been replaced with special fencing designed to dissipate engine blast and stop debris being blown at high speed across the ground. Signs are being installed along the A40 Western Avenue where it runs along the base perimeter warning drivers of possible unusual noise. But the goodwill of neighbours of the base has not been taken for granted, and the RAF is laying on the chance to get up close - or fairly close - to the Typhoons when the exercise is over. On May 10, provided you have arranged the visit it advance, you may be able to come into the base and chat to some of the pilots and support crews and RAF staff will be able to answer questions about the base's role in the Olympic Air Security Plan. For details of how to visit, go to RAF Northolt - RAF Station homepage Things will quieten down again after the exercise but pick up in the run-up to the Games, which start on July 27, and things will return to normal once the Paralympic Games end on September 9. During the Games themselves, aircraft activity at RAF Northolt will drop right off. The normal commercial and military traffic will be reduced and the Typhoons will only fly if it is necessary. There may be some VIP traffic associated with the Games. Typhoon tests mean noisy time ahead for Northolt neighbours - Uxbridge Gazette
there was a C-130 type did a high altitude flyover on monday, headed south over the main stadium. The noise of it, even though it was so high!
I heard some loud jets yesterday evening - thought they were low passenger planes but I wonder if the were the Typhoons? I am in NE London/Essex. Mike fair bet they were nice and loud From my personal experience of seeing and hearing the German Luftwaffe versions, the Small Typhoon is quite loud, but unbelievabley acrobatic. On the BBC Teletext there was a quote stating that the London residents would be upset and against the planes being stationed nearby. I think that back in 1940 the residents welcomed the sight of the RAF Fighters in the sky as protection. Regards Tom
Unless they are flying constant standing patrols I wouldn't have thought noise would be too much of a problem. Personally I would rather enjoy it, an airshow on your doorstep!
We now live on the edge of Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire and often hear the jets when there are exercises on the Plain. They are now part of daily life with the sounds of firing and we say they always hunt in pairs. We used to live near RAF Northolt and all we heard and saw were helicopters and if there was a "fly past" over Buckingham Palace they "flew up our road and away". The polution from these flights will not make any difference to the air quality in the area as it is already one of the worst poluted areas in the country with Heathrow nearby. When we opened our back door on a still morning it smelt as though we were on the runway at Heathrow!
PICTURES: RAF Typhoons land at Northolt for Olympic exercise well they are here all quite at the moment I look forward to the scramble (re heat I hope) Not many people complaining,but as ever you will always get a few. I am off out to get some glass and putty just in case
Unless they are flying constant standing patrols I wouldn't have thought noise would be too much of a problem. Personally I would rather enjoy it, an airshow on your doorstep! Hehe my dad works away during the week ( Yes I am sad I live back at home) at the weekend he still thinks seeing an Apache or F15 is worth telling you where one in the air is if he sees one when in the car. MY dog Zara who could and will bark for England does not even bother to at them she is so used to seeing them. She does however when there is a supersonic scramble over the house at 3 am but I don't think there has been on since the star of the Arab spring.
we've had the British Apache's fly over a couple of times, but it's usually Chinook pairs, once a week since 2006. Dont know if some battle playground has moved from somewhere to somewhere else and so their troop transport route has altered to be over east London OR if they're actually really just trying to entice out whichever rooftop jihadi in Forest Gate (Vipers Nest) has the cheap Chinese manpad SAM... Me, personally, I think we should have gone with the whole WW2 thing, which us Brits and English are so very proud of, and taken that vibe to a whole new level and surrounded the whole of London with barrage balloons. Much cheaper, cost effective, and a timely reminder that we dont ever stop going on about the war ... they could have been designed by Norman Foster or something
