Shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday evening, Mar. 25, a C130 Hercules plane flew low over Wilton — possibly as low as 500 feet or less.
Residents took to social media and called Wilton Police to report the sighting — and the noise — of the large military plane as it flew just above tree lines. Reports showed up from Olmstead Hill Rd. and Merwin Meadows to Skunk Ln. and South Wilton.
Many residents were initially unsure whether the aircraft was in distress or part of a planned operation.
According to radar images, the flight was a C130 Hercules attached to a National Guard base out of Peoria, IL. Wilton Police confirmed it was a military training flight on routine practice and there was no cause for concern.
While military aircraft occasionally pass overhead, low-altitude training flights like this are relatively uncommon in inland Fairfield County and can be startling for residents.
The C-130 Hercules is a four-engine military transport aircraft used for everything from troop transport to disaster relief, and it is known for its ability to fly at low altitudes in tactical situations.
Earlier in the evening it was tracked from a Cape Cod Coast Guard station flying west toward Springfield, MA and turning to fly south over Connecticut. At about 6:49 p.m. it was picked up on radar over Westport flying southeast toward the Long Island Sound. By 7:19 p.m. radar tracked the plane flying at 500 feet over New London.
Did you see or hear the plane? Share your photos or videos with us at editor@goodmorningwilton.com.
Thank you for your prompt reassurance. Is there a reason why they don’t notify residents ahead of time?
We’re not sure why the armed forces personnel didn’t warn the public, but I’ll bet it’s something they don’t do all that often for training exercises. Wilton officials couldn’t notify residents because it sounds like they didn’t know it was going to take place either.
There are hundreds of US military aircraft on training flights over the Continental U.S. on a typical day (not kidding you – I just checked). The Military would have to notify thousands of communities across all 50 states of planned military flights on a given day. That’s simply not practical. Think about how many towns this particular C-130 overflew.
Perhaps it was really practice for arial Amazon delivery.
We continued to track it as it flew over Groton/New London then flew to Springfield turning southwest and lining up for a landing at Bradley before turning off its transponder over Newington.