AIR PICTURE — CHAGRIN FALLS, OH — 2026-10-07
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Significantly below-average traffic day — 654 contacts logged against a 7-day average of 1,654, representing a 60% shortfall. The skies over northeastern Ohio were quieter than usual, though not without points of interest.
NOTABLE TRAFFIC
The bulk of overhead traffic consisted of routine domestic mainline and regional operations. Delta, United, Southwest, JetBlue, and their regional affiliates (Endeavor, Republic, GoJet, SkyWest) were all represented at typical cruise altitudes between 26,000 and 41,000 feet. LXJ618 topped the domestic business jet pack at 45,000 feet, heading northeast at 472 knots. Down low, N195EA was poking along at 1,200 feet and 65 knots heading south — the gentleman is in no apparent hurry. SWA4721 was captured at 1,900 feet on a southwesterly heading, consistent with approach into Cleveland.
ANOMALIES
Several contacts warrant attention:
- HEART77 [AE6C86] and G72269 [AE201C] both carry US military ICAO hex codes. No further details in the data. They were here. Make of that what you will. - APZ135 [71C704] is a Saudi-registered aircraft cruising at 40,975 feet. Callsign flagged as matching a government/military prefix list. Noted. - [C00638] — a Canadian-registered contact at 39,825 feet transmitting no callsign whatsoever. Mode S active, identity withheld. The strong, silent type. - EIN9LT [4CAE35], QTR51U [06A12D], QTR8188 [06A2E3], VTM342 [0D0842], ANA102 [86D9D2], and ANA110 [869582] all carry ICAO hex codes outside any known national allocation range. Six of them. That's not nothing. - MDS211 [A1BEB8] and N908GW [AC8D8F] were both flagged low-and-fast — under 3,000 feet at over 200 knots. Neither is in the primary contact list; flagged by anomaly detection only. - N245BD was observed above 47,000 feet, exceeding the standard commercial ceiling. Business jet or something more interesting — data doesn't say.
PATTERN NOTES
Traffic ran consistently 60–98% below the 7-day average throughout the day, a sustained and significant deviation. Over 200 expected regular flights failed to appear, spanning nearly every major carrier. No single obvious cause is apparent from the air picture alone. The missing regulars include cargo operators (FedEx, UPS) and Canadian carriers — this was a broad-based reduction, not carrier-specific.
END OF DAILY AIR PICTURE