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Visible Serials – the Future

by | Aug 16, 2024 | Aviation News, Electronic Identity, Online Logging, Spotting, Spotting News, Visible Markings

Aicraft Serial Numbers – the future.

We all know about the serial number or registration on aircraft, it’s generally the primary reference point for all plane spotters. There are exceptions to this where the manufacturers serial number is the primary reference point, but in the main it’s the tail number or serial number. This is particularly true of military aircraft, but it’s probably the first thing we look for when we see any aircraft.

The Air Mobility Command component of the USAF has already announced it’s intention to remove all visible identification marks from it’s fleet of aircraft, there have been a number of sightings of aircraft with no visible identification markings – other than those required by international law. It is impossible to ascertain which partcular aircraft you are seeing, although in general there will be a known aircraft associated with the Hex code that the aircraft is likely broadcasting – the USAF have been increasing their use of tactical Hex codes of late.

The USN have used these codes for some time – they are easy to sort out as the aircraft still carry a serial number, this will not be the case with the Air Mobility Command aircraft. 

Removing Serials

by | Aug 13, 2024 | Application, Aviation News, Electronic Identity, Online Logging, Spotting, Spotting News, Visible Markings

Moving forward.

As I’ve already posted there are a number of aircraft types in scope to have the visible serial numbers removed, at the moment anything in the Air Mobility Command inventory is a candidate. Obviously there is the potential for other commands to follow suit, removing all identifiable markings is not the problem it would have been fifty or sixty years ago.

The United States Air Force approved the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) on all aircraft in 2010, this is a technology that allows for the tracking of any data parameter of an asset. The asset could be a spare part, a vehicle or an aircraft, the tags are small and are inexpensive. A fully active RFID tag suitable for use on an aircraft costs $20 and is effective at ranges of more than 200 meters, so to pinpoint any aircraft or vehicles on an airbase is not that expensive. Passive RFID tags are extremely cheap at around $0.20 each, everybody has seen them – most supermarkets use them in some form. In fact once the infrastructure is installed on the ground, it is probably cheaper to install a few of the active tags than it is to paint the serial number on the aircraft.

The United States Air Force already has the Real Time Location System (RLTS), when combined these systems allow for the accurate recording of positional data for any asset that has a tag – using UHF RFID will also allow satelite tracking of aircraft. There are a number of bases already equiped with the ground tracking technology, many of the aircraft are already equiped with the technology.

So having done some research into this I would say that in the medium term, it is likely that other commands will certainly follow Air Mobility Command in removing the identifying marks from air assets as they are no longer needed. There are no significant technical challenged to be overcome, there are infrastructure challenges – but as they have already deployed the required infrastructure at Hill AFB, Tinker AFB and AMARC at Davis Monthan and these are the ones that I’ve found.

I would venture the opinion that it is only a matter of time before the whole United States Air Force aircraft inventory will not carry any visible serial number information, there is simply no need – a sad day for the plane spotters indeed.

AMC Removing Markings

by | Aug 12, 2024 | Airport History, Aviation News, Database, Online Logging, Spotting, Spotting News

Serial Removal

Whats the problem with a visible serial number or registration, there are none if you are a plane spotter – actually they are quite covenient. But from an operational security perspective, they allow a specific asset to be identified. So Air Mobility Command has decided to remove the visible serial number, along with the data block normally carried on the port side of the aircraft – which also gave the aircraft serial.

AMC Announces

Air Mobility Command has directed its refueling and cargo planes to obscure the majority of identifying information painted on the aircraft, citing national security concerns — an unusual move that is alarming to government watchdogs. (Published by Military,com 01/03/2023)

In truth, the visible serial number on any United States Air Force aircraft is probably under threat – not just the Air Mobility Command sircraft. As technology has made the requirement for a displayed serial number redundant. The USAF approved the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) back in 2009, so the visible serial number has probably been on the way out since then – although it seems that the decision for AMC was early 2023.

From a support perspective, the tech’s that have to do work on a specific aircraft – just need a simple RFID reader to confirm that it is the correct aircraft. The technology is well proven, think about tapping your bank card to pay at a checkout.

What does it mean for a spotter?

As spotters, we all like to know that what we see is what we think it is. This change means that you have to place trust in the technology, even the Mk 1 eyeball is of no use whatsoever in the case of an aircraft with no markings to identify it. At the moment I’ve managed to identify (possibly) four aircraft reported as having the serials removed, but that could be just three as two of them are reported as KC-135’s – there’s also a C-32 and a C-130 that I’m aware of.

So when it comes to exact ID of the aircraft, it’s down to what you can get from FR24 or ADSB Global – how much you want to trust that is down to you. In the main it is probably pretty accurate, but it is possible to transmit any code or none.

I’m currently trying to put together a composite list of units and aircraft, I will post these (currently speculative) lists when I get a chance.

 

Support this site.

It does take some time and effort to create these downloads, also there are a number of costs associated with running the site. So if you can consider supporting this site with a donation it would be helpful, if you find the site useful then why not treat me to a doughnut – or even a doughnut and a coffee if you’re feeling really flush.

But regardless of whether you donate or not, I hope that the contents of the files are of some use, also bear in mind that the files are as dated in the bar graph on the down load page – I will try and produce a new data set every month or more frequently if time allows.

Please note these files are provided for personal use, if you want to use them for any other purpose or if you want to make them available through your own site – get in touch first.

 

 

Missing Aircraft Data

by | Aug 12, 2024 | Aviation News, Electronic Identity, Online Logging, Spotting, Spotting Locations, Spotting News, Visible Markings

Hidden Data – may be more apt!

Since the recent visit to Prestwick of the unmarked KC-135, there has been a bit of a hullabaloo on the social media groups and forums used by plane spotters. So in an attempt to explain where we are I’m going to create a couple of posts here, this first post will cover off some of the basics and I’ll get into the detail in subsequent posts,

Some History.

Plane spotters have always been a resourceful group, many spotters work in the aviation industry and have historically been able to access data and disseminate it quickly to other spotters. Even in the 1960’s (before there was any dedicated technology) it wasn’t uncommon to see crowds turn up at some out of the way place if there were unusual movements.

By the 1970’s you could track aircraft listening to Short Wave radio, if you had the right (fairly expensive) equipment. In the late 1970’s along came the ACARS system, where the aircraft identity and some telemetary was transmitted using a a varsion of Teletype data. This system is still in use today, although it doesn’t have the convenience of the newer systems from a spotters perspective.

Latterly the vast majority of aircraft tracking has moved to ADSB and it’s off shoots. So now anyone with a reasonably modern phone can track aircraft, no matter where they are provided they have data coverage.

So what is being hidden?

There are two Federal Aviation Authority programmes that are in operations at the moment, one Limiting Aircraft Displayed Data (LADD) has global reach and in truth just slightly anoying from a spotting perspective. This service is an FAA service and should apply only in US Air Space, but affects anyone taking data from the FAA sources – so if the aircraft is in the LADD programme – that’s the data displayed by third parties taking the FAA feed so aircraft are displayed minus certain pieces of data.

The easiest way to see what data is hidden is to compare an aircraft on Flight Radar 24 and ADSB Global, as you will be able to see there is quite a lot missing but you can still identify the aircraft on the latter site.

The other the Privacy ICAO Address programme (PIA) is currently limited in scope, covering only FAA regulated air space. But there is provision in the latest FAA rules, signed into law in May this year that would allow this to be extended globally with the agreement of other nations. This is a real pain for the spotter, as the aircraft is allowed to electronically hide it’s true identity and broadcast a completely fake identity – there are currently some 55,000 hexcode/registration allocations for these. You can do your own detective work on ADSB global, where you can see that all that is displayed is a call sign and a fake hexcode/registration.

With both of the above programmes, the physical registration must still be displayed – so the Mk 1 eyball still defeats the objective.

What about the military?

So there have been a number of recent reports of unmarked military aircraft, along with some misconceptions about the why. The reason given for the military aircraft flying without any markings other than national insignia (that’s all that’s required by law) is, Operational Security (OPSEC). Currently as far as I’m aware only aircraft operated by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command (AMC) are in scope for the removal of aircraft identification marks and when time allows I will provide a list of these.

But in the meantime, here is a list of the units that fall into the scope of being painted in the new scheme – with no identifying marks.

AIR BASE WINGS
87th Air Base Wing | Joint Base Mcguire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

628th Air Base Wing | Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina

AIR MOBILITY WINGS AND GROUPS
43rd Air Mobility Group | Pope Army Airfield, North Carolina

60th Air Mobility Wing | Travis Air Force Base, California

305th Air Mobility Wing | Joint Base Mcguire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

375th Air Mobility Wing | Scott Air Force Base, Illinois

AIR MOBILITY OPERATIONS WINGS
515th Air Mobility Operations Wing | Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii

521st Air Mobility Operations Wing | Ramstein Air Base, Germany

AIRLIFT WINGS
19th Airlift Wing | Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas

62nd Airlift Wing | Joint Base Lewis-Mcchord, Washington

89th Airlift Wing | Joint Base Andrews, Maryland

317th Airlift Wing | Dyess Air Force Base, Texas

436th Airlift Wing | Dover Air Force Base, Delaware

437th Airlift Wing | Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina

AIR REFUELING WINGS
6th Air Refueling Wing | Macdill Air Force Base, Florida

22nd Air Refueling Wing | Mcconnell Air Force Base, Kansas

92nd Air Refueling Wing | Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington

NUMBERED AIR FORCE
18th Air Force | Scott Air Force Base, Illinois

The list of types operated by the above units is quite extensive, but I don’t have knowledge of them all – although I’m putting the list together. But it does include some aircraft from the following types – KC-46, KC-135, KC-10, VC-135, V-22, C-20, C-21, C-32, C-37, C-5, C-130, C-17 – probably some others. But it should be noted that at the moment, the removal of visible identification marks applies only to Air Mobility Command aircraft – that of course could change.

Already reported by spotters as being used without any visible marks are, the following types – KC-46, KC-135, V-22, C-32, C-37 and C-130.

Now as a plane spotter I’m a bit hacked off with this whole thing, but there’s not a lot that can be done about it – if anyone wants to contribute to this then feel free I’ve covered the LADD and the PIA stuff in earlier posts but not the Air Mobility Command stuff yet as I’m still doing a bit of research.

 

Support this site.

It does take some time and effort to create these downloads, also there are a number of costs associated with running the site. So if you can consider supporting this site with a donation it would be helpful, if you find the site useful then why not treat me to a doughnut – or even a doughnut and a coffee if you’re feeling really flush.

But regardless of whether you donate or not, I hope that the contents of the files are of some use, also bear in mind that the files are as dated in the bar graph on the down load page – I will try and produce a new data set every month or more frequently if time allows.

Please note these files are provided for personal use, if you want to use them for any other purpose or if you want to make them available through your own site – get in touch first.

 

 

US Registered Warbirds

by | Aug 9, 2024 | Aviation News, Database, Online Logging, Spotting, Wrecks and Relics

US Registered Warbirds

Most people reading this will have heard the term “Warbird”, but for clarity I’ll add the current definition as it has changed somewhat over the years. Originally a warbird was a Second World War aircraft, demilitarised and operated by civilians or a preservation entity like The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Now it is considered as any “vintage” military aircraft with a civilian or a presevation society like the BBMF or the Comemorative Air Force as the operator.

Seeing an aircraft like a Mustang, Hurricane, Spitfire or something else from the war years is something quite special. Visiting Duxford in the UK or some of the other locations around the world and seeing these aircraft still flying is memorable, appreciating how much care and attention is lavished on these machines – some approaching 100 years old evokes something akin to awe.

Take a photograph in Black and White and to the average person it could just as easily have been taken 60, 70 or 80 years ago, there is a certain nostalgia that makes itself felt in that moment. It’s not just the fighters with the catchy names that are evocative, the trainers, transports, bombers and utility aircraft of the era also have an undeniable cachet.

Currently there are thousands of these aircraft on the US Civil Register, for example there are 206 “North American F/P-51” Mustangs active (with a CofA) in the August file available from our download page. There are 56 “North American B-25” Mitchell’s and around 180 “Douglas DC-3 & variants”, although these are still effectively being refurbished and re-engined by Basler Turbo Conversions. The aircraft listed above are some of the better known warbirds, but what about the lesser known ones like the Piper Cub.

When you look at aircraft like the Piper Cub (the first US aircraft shot down immediately before the attack on Pearl Harbour), which started life as the Taylor E-2 in 1930 with production ending in 1947 – almost twenty thousand being built between 1938 and 1947 – at peak production an aircraft rolling off the line every 20 minutes. There are still over 3,800 of these currently active on the US Civil Register, the youngest of these is 76 years old. Should they be classified as a warbird, personally I’d say yes.

They maybe didn’t have the zingy Spitfire, Mustang, Thunderbolt, Warhawk name and except for a few examples they weren’t armed – but they fit the original and new criteria in equal measure. There are many others that fit the bill, the Harvard under several designations such as the AT-6 or SNJ(pick a number) with at least 700 still current.

In all there may be more than ten thousand warbirds currently active on the US Civil Register, quite a respectable 3% or more of all aitcraft on the register.

 

Support this site.

It does take some time and effort to create these downloads, also there are a number of costs associated with running the site. So if you can consider supporting this site with a donation it would be helpful, if you find the site useful then why not treat me to a doughnut – or even a doughnut and a coffee if you’re feeling really flush.

But regardless of whether you donate or not, I hope that the contents of the files are of some use, also bear in mind that the files are as dated in the bar graph on the down load page – I will try and produce a new data set every month or more frequently if time allows.

Please note these files are provided for personal use, if you want to use them for any other purpose or if you want to make them available through your own site – get in touch first.

 

 

Serial Number Missing!

by | Aug 8, 2024 | Aviation News, Online Logging, Spotting, Spotting Locations, Spotting News

No Number Visible!

I recently visited Prestwick, to see a couple of Australian C-130’s and have a quick look at some other stuff that was in. There was a KC-135R sitting over on the North side, the only discernable marking was the US Flag on the tail. There was no serial number visible, this is in line with the new Air Mobility Command policy – but is not a great help to a plane spotter.

I had watched it on ADSB as it came over the western approaches, watched as it did a quick pirouette and then landed at Prestwick. It’s transponder code matched the known code for 62-3553, but from the mound there was nothing visible on the aircraft to confirm that. Today I loaded the pictures I had taken to have a look for the Data Block, it was not visible anywhere on the port side of the aircraft – even with the photographs zoomed in to 200%.

Plane spotters have known that the removal of the visible serial numbers was happening, however I for one was unaware that the data block would be removed or relocated to somewhere that it wasn’t visible.

So when the next one comes in, I’ll need to try and be there when it arrives and when it departs – just to try and find the data block. Without a visible serial, the plane spotter is effectively in the dark as to the true identity of the aircraft. The transponder can be set to transmit pretty much any code, which could equate to any aircraft – the loss of the ability to use the Mk I eyeball to confirm the ID is pretty catastrophic.

I have known that this would happen for 15 years, as back in 2009 Lockheed, Boeing and the USAF started the project for the use of RFID tracking of Aircraft and Parts. The original news article is here, there are quite a few others around one of the most informative is this one here.

So spotters will have to become a bit more creative about how they get the actual numbers, or they just have to trust that the Hex Code is correct – not that easy to do when you remember that in the past there have been USAF aircraft with a different serial on each side of the tail!

 

Support this site.

It does take some time and effort to create these downloads, also there are a number of costs associated with running the site. So if you can consider supporting this site with a donation it would be helpful, if you find the site useful then why not treat me to a doughnut – or even a doughnut and a coffee if you’re feeling really flush.

But regardless of whether you donate or not, I hope that the contents of the files are of some use, also bear in mind that the files are as dated in the bar graph on the down load page – I will try and produce a new data set every month or more frequently if time allows.

Please note these files are provided for personal use, if you want to use them for any other purpose or if you want to make them available through your own site – get in touch first.