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Two Eurofighter Typhoon Jets Over Dartmouth Last Saturday - Why? |
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Written by D.L. McCracken
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Wednesday, 11 April 2007 |
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 It's not every day that Dartmouth residents can glance into the sky above and watch in shock and awe as they witness two unrecognizable fighter jets flying in formation alongside a fairly large and also unrecognizable 747-like aircraft. But that's exactly what happened last Saturday.
One eyewitness account describes watching three aircraft flying at a lower than expected altitude as he and his wife exited a local Dartmouth department store at approximately 11:30 last Saturday morning. He describes the scene as unsettling after he was able to see some markings on both wings of the fighter jets - RAF or Royal Air Force. There was no question that the airborne trio were flying in precise formation but not so, according to Stanfield International Airport mouthpiece Peter Spurway.
What eyewitnesses describe as a large 747-like aircraft being escorted by two strange fighter jets low in the sky over Dartmouth was merely "a whole lot of nothing". Of course we all know that when any spokesperson attempts to shrug off any unexplained incident with a casual denial, what they're really saying is, "it's none of your business".
So let's take a look at this, shall we? Spurway states that the two RAF jets had just taken off from an airport, decided to take "a loop around" the skies over Dartmouth and just happened to be in the general vicinity of an Air Canada aircraft. The two RAF jet pilots suddenly get the bright idea that it might be fun to "escort" the aircraft to god knows where. Yeah right.
The two RAF fighter jets were in fact "Eurofighter Typhoons" a delta strike fighter aircraft which was designed and built by several European aerospace manufacturers. There are at least 114 Eurofighters in current operation in the UK, Italy, Spain and Germany. In 2006 Saudi Arabia ordered 72 of them. There are no Eurofighters in North America.
Eurofighter Typhoons are considered to be state-of-the-art in fighter aircraft and boast classified stealth features. A completely armed Eurofighter can carry a payload of:
**1 Mauser BK-27 cannon
**Air-to-air missiles including AIM-9 Sidewinders
**Air-to-Ground missiles including AGM-88 HARMs and Storm Shadows (AKA "Scalp EG")
**Paveway 2, Paveway 3, Enhanced Paveway, JDAM bombs
**LITENING pod laser designators
Two of these were apparently playfully looping around in the skies over Dartmouth on Saturday.
And what about that larger 747-like aircraft that Spurway described as an Air Canada jet in the vicinity? Turns out that aircraft was a RAF VC-10, a British passenger airliner which began service in the early 1960s. There are only a few VC-10s in operation today and are used mostly for aerial refueling and aircraft transportation by the British air force. The aircraft is also used for the rapid deployment of troops, weaponry and fighter jets to combat points around the globe.
The only nation still using the VC-10 in military operations is the United Kingdom. There are however several countries which incorporate this particular aircraft in civilian operations including but not limited to Britain, Ghana and The Government of the United Arab Emirates (Saudi Arabia). There are no VC-10s in North America.
 The VC-10 has a maximum speed of 933 km/h, a range of more than 9,000 km, and can carry 150 people. This was the aircraft that was seen flying low over the skies of Dartmouth on Saturday being escorted with military precision by the two Eurofighters.
And the only explanation that Spurway can come up with is what it wasn't - we're certain the people of Dartmouth will be relieved to know that it wasn't a secret love tryst between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay.
So while we're trying frantically to get that image out of our heads, we're still left hanging on what the truth is surrounding the mini air show last Saturday morning.
The many eyewitnesses to this event were unsettled and more than a few were fearful of this spectacle in the sky and for good reason considering the state of the world right now. The "official" explanation was demeaning and disrespectful to every last person who voiced concern. At the very least Mr. Spurway, the people of this city and province deserve to be spoken to in a respectful manner as opposed to the mockery bestowed upon them by you and your department.
The fact of the matter is that two foreign Eurofighter jet aircraft were escorting a foreign VC-10 airliner used in part to transport military personnel and equipment, low over the skies of Dartmouth last Saturday morning. Tell us that the whole incident is classified if you have to but don't assume we're all morons who will accept that it was a "whole lot of nothing".Care to comment? Were you an eyewitness? Email
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