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Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

buzzfeed.com

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Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#111

Post by jjwiseman »

mentat wrote: post #75
knz wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This assumes that surveillance aircraft have their ADS-B transponder on. It's not required until January 2020 ( https://www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb/faq/ ).

Running without ADS-B around major airports would be unacceptable. I think drones are going to be required to have them before 2020 which makes me think that isn't quite right.

I track several of these aircraft a week, and they usually don't have ADS-B. I track them via multilateration, combining my receiver's data with data from several other receivers (as part of the Flightaware network: http://flightaware.com/adsb/)

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#112

Post by jjwiseman »

brbsix wrote: post #13

For anyone who wants to see the live data for themselves, go to http://www.adsbexchange.com/ , click 'Global Radar View'. Then click 'Menu', 'Options', 'Filters', then enable the 'Interesting' filter. It's a Sunday, so there's not too much activity. However there's currently an FBI Cessna circling west of Washington D.C. [0] There's also a plane gridding east of LA. [1] It's registered to Dynamic Aviation Group out o…

I've observed the Dynamic Aviation aircraft flying those patterns over LA for over a year, and while at first I thought it could be related to their surveillance operations, I'm pretty sure they're actually Sterile Insect Technique flights: http://www.dynamicaviation.com/flight-solutions-and-services...

There's a lot of info online about Dynamic Aviation doing Sterile Insect Technique flights over southern California, and their contracts to do so.

There are other spooky defense contractors doing what may be imagery collection flights, though. Like KEYW: https://twitter.com/lemonodor/status/647109884488454144

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#113

Post by jjwiseman »

danielrhodes wrote: post #50

Here's my guess based on the following info: - The article points out that the planes are typically only seen M-F, which suggests that what they are doing is usually not time-sensitive. - They mention the planes have a very high quality camera on board. - From the flight patterns, you can see they repeatedly circle the same location, but not apparently for hours and hours at time. When Apple first released their Maps…

Most of the FBI planes (and DHS planes) I've tracked for the past year often do fly over one location for multiple hours. They may sometimes shift position slightly, or occasionally seem to follow someone along a freeway.

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#115

Post by prawn »

hoorayimhelping wrote: post #84
prawn wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? They're putting out more and more quality material, and it could be argued that they're getting interesting topics in front of a broader audience.

The comments are saying that this is largely derivative of someone else's work.

Looks pretty comprehensive to me and links to sources from what I could tell. And much of the journalism around the place is riffing off other work anyway.

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#116

Post by jjwiseman »

hoorayimhelping wrote: post #84
prawn wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? They're putting out more and more quality material, and it could be argued that they're getting interesting topics in front of a broader audience.

The comments are saying that this is largely derivative of someone else's work.

It's not. I've been involved in this story since before anyone published anything. These Buzzfeed journalists have done some excellent, original work.

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#117

Post by treelovinhippie »

brbsix wrote: post #13

For anyone who wants to see the live data for themselves, go to http://www.adsbexchange.com/ , click 'Global Radar View'. Then click 'Menu', 'Options', 'Filters', then enable the 'Interesting' filter. It's a Sunday, so there's not too much activity. However there's currently an FBI Cessna circling west of Washington D.C. [0] There's also a plane gridding east of LA. [1] It's registered to Dynamic Aviation Group out o…

Woah I did that, zoomed all the way out, found one aircraft over the "Firth of Clyde" (west of Glasgow). -320ft/m. Then it disappeared. Data issue or did that thing just crash? Screenshot of the data: http://i.imgur.com/2zvH6qO.jpg

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#118

Post by linhchi »

brbsix wrote: post #13

For anyone who wants to see the live data for themselves, go to http://www.adsbexchange.com/ , click 'Global Radar View'. Then click 'Menu', 'Options', 'Filters', then enable the 'Interesting' filter. It's a Sunday, so there's not too much activity. However there's currently an FBI Cessna circling west of Washington D.C. [0] There's also a plane gridding east of LA. [1] It's registered to Dynamic Aviation Group out o…

Do you know why there is not a single military aircraft for Asia on the map?

Also, for the tag "interesting", I see only one (UK something).. Is it because I'm in Europe?

(Just curious)

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#119

Post by Piskvorrr »

bigiain wrote: post #109
neurotech1 wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With ATC notified, the helicopter could revert to Mode-C [0] transponder mode, using an assigned transponder code and ATC would still track them safely. TCAS [1] would also still function safely when interrogated by secondary radar. ADS-B reduces controller workload as they don't have to manually tag individual aircraft, especially in a high traffic area. ADS-B also works without secondary radar interrogation. When t…

I wonder if a $12 TV Tuner RTL-SDRs can listen in to secondary radar triggered TCAS responses? (I wonder how much trouble you'd get in for setting up a USDR or HackRFOne to transmit your own "secondary radar" signals to make the TCAS respond?)

Interfering with radar equipment by transmitting in a controlled, safety and security critical band? On a bad day, that could land you a truckload of terrorism charges.

Re: Maps Showing Where FBI Planes Are Watching from Above

#120

Post by nsajko »

woodman wrote: post #96
drhodes wrote: post #24

reminds me of a radiolab episode: http://www.radiolab.org/story/eye-sky/ here's the summary, > In 2004, when casualties in Iraq were rising due to roadside bombs, Ross McNutt and his team came up with an idea. With a small plane and a 44 mega-pixel camera, they figured out how to watch an entire city all at once, all day long. Whenever a bomb detonated, they could zoom onto that spot and then, because this eye in the…

Radar has been used to do continuous ground surveillance since the 60s [0]. Most people associate it with anti-armor, but it was originally used to track humans beneath the jungle canopy. Systems had been developed to collect and integrate that data for event analysis long before its application in Iraq. Ross McNutt is simply selling a product, and cameras are easier to sell than radar sensors. [0] https://www.ll.mit…

Visible light imaging presumably offers easier perpetrator identification, though.
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