Mysterious low-flying plane over Twin Cities raises questions of surveillance

Star Tribune ^ | 5-29-15 | Matt McKinney and John Reinan

[TurboZamboni]

Aviation buff John Zimmerman was at a weekly gathering of neighbors Friday night when he noticed something peculiar: a small plane circling a route overhead that didn’t make sense to him.

It was dark, so a sightseeing flight didn’t make sense, and when Zimmerman pulled up more information on an aviation phone app he routinely checks, he had immediate concerns.

The plane’s flight path, recorded by the website flightradar24.com, would eventually show that it circled downtown Minneapolis, the Mall of America and Southdale Center at low altitude for hours starting at 10:30 p.m., slipping off radar just after 3 a.m.

“I thought, ‘Holy crap,’ ” said Zimmerman.

Bearing the call sign N361DB, the plane is one of three Cessna 182T Skylanes registered to LCB Leasing of Bristow, Va., according to FAA records. The Virginia secretary of state has no record of an LCB Leasing. Virtually no other information could be learned about the company.

Zimmerman’s curiosity might have ended there if it weren’t for something he heard from his aviation network recently: A plane registered to NG Research — also located in Bristow — that circled Baltimore for hours after recent violent protests there was in fact an FBI plane that’s part of a widespread but little known surveillance program, according to a report by the Washington Post.

[UNGN]

The more stuff like ths happens the more I'm convinced Snowden did the right thing.

Here is more on Dirtboxes.

Even the plane type matches up.

[The Great RJ]

Actually the plane spent considerable time circling my neighborhood. Eerily like the black helicopters of the Thought Police in Orwell’s1984. I told my family if I disappear to look for me in one of Obama’s gulags.

[Forgotten Amendments]

“were not there to monitor lawfully protected first amendment activity, and any FBI aviation support to a local law enforcement agency must receive high-level approvals.”

Thanks for confirming our worst fears!

[TurboZamboni]

FBI Tells Local Police To Keep Quiet About ‘Stingray’ Cellphone Trackers
http://dailycaller.com/2015/02/10/fbi-tells-local-police-to-keep-quiet-about-stingray-cellphone-trackers/

[PrairieDawg]

The C130 (SLUFFs - Slow Little Ugly Fat (uh - time for censorship) Fellows) family is by definition low and slow and flies circles often for training. Even out here in the prairie...

[21twelve]

I remember after 911 and the no-fly zone for the weeks afterwards. Every night a large prop plane would fly overhead at a very high altitude heading north (Seattle Area). A few hours later it would head south. Patrolling our coast for incoming airplanes. It was a comforting thought, but more a time of reflection on the past few weeks and what the new “normal” might be like.

Obviously random surveillance of everyday citizens is not a good thing(NSA tracking ALL electronic data, cell phones, etc.) Surveillance of a suspected terrorist cell with some idea of an attack on a large mall - well within the government’s duty, and what I want them to do.

Keeping an eye on a riot in progress to direct fire fighters and law enforcement, and maybe even catch some of the violent rioters - also reasonable imho.

[Rodamala]

I remember after 911 and the no-fly zone for the weeks afterwards.

>n the days after September 11, 2001, I went down to the waterfront in Jersey City to help load boats with rescue supplies they were ferrying across the Hudson. It was creepy enough with the Twin Towers being gone from the skyline, and strangely even creepier that there was ZERO air traffic. Well, eventually, two fighter aircraft came hauling ass up the Hudson... and every just stopped and watched in awe... tensions were high and we all had no clue what was going to happen next.

[Therapsid]

Nothin...welding...fancy sht....one of us was a piolet says it was a cesina...flying illegal...too low...very slow...

[left that other site]

It is weird, isn’t it?

[null and void]

At no point in history has any government ever wanted its people to be defenseless for any good reason ~ nully's son

The biggest killer of mankind

Nut-job Conspiracy Theory Ping!

To get onto The Nut-job Conspiracy Theory Ping List you must threaten to report me to the Mods if I don't add you to the list...

[TurboZamboni]

FBI-

http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_28233542/fbi-behind-mysterious-surveillance-aircraft-over-us-cities?source=hottopics

[bert]

I think the plane was looking for reported drones

[TurboZamboni]

Or looking for the lone conservative in Ellison’s district so when the time comes, the Hellfire knows where to go...

[varyouga]

“FBI Flying Privately Marked Airplanes Over Cities”

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3296001/posts?page=1