AIR PICTURE — CHAGRIN FALLS, OH — 2026-07-31
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Unusually quiet day — traffic ran 46% below the 7-day average, and the skies reflected it.
NOTABLE TRAFFIC
The high-altitude parade was largely unremarkable but present. EJM15 and TCN621 topped the board at 45,000 feet, the former barreling southeast at 478 knots, the latter drifting north. LXJ224 checked in at 43,000 feet westbound — corporate iron doing corporate things. JIA5416 merits a look: 29,000 feet, heading 129°, moving at 512 knots — brisk pace for a regional operator. Down low, N5334D was meandering eastbound at 1,900 feet and 84 knots, which is either a leisurely Sunday flight or someone who got very lost. It is Friday.
ANOMALIES
G18814 [AE52C7] — Military hex code, appeared repeatedly throughout the day. No position data in the contact list, just the flag, tripping the wire multiple times. Someone is up to something or the system is being dramatic. Possibly both.
VICE69 [AE5BDB] — Military hex, callsign "VICE69." No further comment is necessary, except to note it was logged once and not seen again, which is exactly what you'd expect.
VTM527, VTM575, VTM599, VTM708 — Four contacts carrying hex codes in the 0D0xxx range, which belongs to no known national allocation. All flying under "VTM" callsigns. Unidentified origin. Worth watching.
AMX680 [0D0AF7] and AVA255 [0ACAAB] — Two additional unknown-hex contacts with civilian-style callsigns and no recognized registration bloc. Added to the list of things we cannot explain today.
LOW-AND-FAST contacts: JIA5411 at 2,875 ft / 205 kts, JBU2041 at 2,800 ft / 226 kts, and DAL349 at 2,950 ft / 212 kts. All flagged for atypical altitude/speed combinations. Misreported altitude is the most charitable explanation.
Foreign registrations noted from Canada (multiple Jazz Air and Cargojet contacts), Netherlands (THY91J, THY184), Germany (BOX390), and United Kingdom (DHK869). All transiting. Nothing remarkable beyond their passports.
PATTERN NOTES
Traffic began the day at roughly 97% below average and never recovered, closing at 46% below the 7-day norm of 1,358 contacts. The missing-regulars list is extensive — DAL, UAL, SWA, RPA, EDV, and SKW family flights absent in numbers suggesting a schedule disruption or a data feed issue upstream. Recommend verification before concluding the airlines simply took the day off.
END OF DAILY AIR PICTURE