AIR PICTURE — CHAGRIN FALLS, OH — 2026-09-25
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Quiet day — traffic running 54% below the 7-day average, with a parade of absent regulars, several foreign registrations overhead, and a handful of contacts that warrant a second look.
NOTABLE TRAFFIC
KOW860 [ABD096] led the altitude sweepstakes at 47,000 ft westbound — above standard commercial ceilings, consistent with a large business jet or something that doesn't want company. EJA829, EJA830, EJA110, and LXJ432 round out a busy day for the fractional/bizjet crowd, several pushing into the low 40s.
BAW186 [4074E3], UK-registered, transited at 41,000 ft. APZ135 [71C517], Saudi Arabian registry, cruised through at 38,975 ft. Neither unusual for a Great Lakes overfly, but worth noting the international flavor.
PAT586 [AE571B] checked in at 24,000 ft with a US military ICAO hex and a callsign that matches government/military prefix lists. No drama, but it gets a star on the board.
EDV4646 was doing 130 kts at 550 feet. That is not a typo. Either a very enthusiastic approach or a very misreported altitude.
ANOMALIES
- VTM990 [0D0A7D] and XAJCV [0D08E3]: ICAO hex codes fall outside any known national allocation. Unidentified registration territory. File under "worth watching." - COUGR02 [AE0195] and VICE08 [AE5BDF]: Both carry US military hex codes. VICE08 is a callsign that sounds exactly like what it is. - SVL12 and N254SB: Both flagged low-and-fast — 235 kts at 2,750 ft and 221 kts at 1,675 ft respectively. Could be normal; could be a story. - CGEPH [C050C6]: Canadian-registered, appeared in the data multiple times at low altitude (1,000–1,400 ft range), apparently not in a hurry to leave. - TCN621 [A81A7F]: 47,000 ft. No further comment needed.
PATTERN NOTES
Traffic today was sharply suppressed — 729 contacts against a 7-day average of 1,596. The missing-regulars list is extensive, spanning Delta, United, Southwest, American, FedEx, UPS, and regional operators. This is a systemic reduction, not selective. Cause unknown from air picture data alone. Canadian traffic (JZA, CJT, WJA, ROU series) transited normally at cruise altitude. The low-altitude general aviation picture was thin but present.
END OF DAILY AIR PICTURE