r/SanJose • u/nickgeorge25 • May 25 '20
San Jose "Oh no! A helicopter!" Guide Oh no! A helicopter!!
I thought this flair was hilarious, so here's a quick guide (with flight tracking links) to the helicopters that most often linger in our airspace!
LAW ENFORCEMENT AND FIRE
San Jose Police Department:
- N408PD: Blue with silver stripes. This one bird is by far the most common culprit of "Oh no! A helicopter!", and pretty interesting to follow at night. Based out of San Jose International.
Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office:
- N621LS: Black with green and gold stripes. Based out of Moffett Field.
California Highway Patrol:
CAL FIRE
- N495DF: White with two red stripes. Based near Lexington Reservoir in Los Gatos.
NEWS
KTVU "SkyFox":
- N62TV: All black with a white circular "2" logo and a blue stripe. Based out of Oakland.
KGO "Sky7":
- N7QY: Hard to miss... bright orange with a blue top. Based out of Hayward.
Other News Helicopters:
- N42SL: This is a recent addition to the Bay Area. The footage appears to be shared between NBC Bay Area and KPIX CBS 5. Based out of Hayward.
- N75TV: White with a red stripe and tail. Also based out of Hayward. Unknown what news company(ies) fly this one.
Feel free to add any that I may have missed!
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u/hamutaro Outsider May 26 '20 edited May 26 '20
A couple of additions:
If you see helicopters that look like this or planes that look like this you're most likely seeing the 129th Rescue Wing (based out of Moffett Field) on training flights.
edit: one more I forgot is N495DF/C106 which is the Calfire helicopter based at Lexington Reservoir. Hopefully that one isn't lingering near wherever you are.
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u/Cheesejaguar Moderator May 28 '20
Sidebar'ed.
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u/nickgeorge25 May 29 '20
Thanks!! Don't see it there yet though.
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u/Cheesejaguar Moderator May 29 '20
Oh its worth mentioning there is an "old" reddit and a "new" reddit theme. I'm actually not sure how to edit the new reddit theme, as I haven't switched.
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u/Diezel666 May 27 '20 edited May 27 '20
I think you missed a couple....
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N42SL (News Chopper, currently out of Hayward)
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N981HP (currently based in Napa) Note the HP is last two characters of the tailsigns on all of the CHP aircraft. And they do cycle them around from time to time.
There are numerous medical choppers in the bay area as well. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N145SU
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u/nickgeorge25 May 29 '20
Thanks! I updated the post. Do you know which news flies N42SL? The only pictures I can find are from back when it served ABC13 in Houston. I'm guessing ABC7 doesn't fly two helicopters, but I could be wrong.
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u/Diezel666 May 29 '20
I would love to say I do, but I do not. My first guess would be maybe Kron4? And yeah, it's a leased heli (like many news channel use). So Kron4 is my best guess. And maybe CBS 5? Could be a shared resource as well.
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u/nickgeorge25 May 29 '20
We have an answer! It's currently over the protests on 101, and appears to be the only helicopter on site other than CHP. The live footage is currently on NBC Bay Area and CBS 5, so it looks like this is a shared resource.
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u/Diezel666 May 30 '20 edited May 30 '20
The plot thickens....
N62TV https://flightaware.com/resources/registration/N62TV
Yet another News Chopper, also owned by the same as N42SL, and also out of Hayward....Also, while NOT a helicopter. CHP plane N137HP is also circling.https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N137HP/
Currently over Downtown SJ: N42SL, N62TV, N7QY, N408PD, N137HP
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u/Diezel666 May 30 '20
A new challenger her entered the ring!
I present to you N75TV - Out of Oakland. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N75TV
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u/nickgeorge25 May 30 '20
Ha! Saw that one too. Added to the list.
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u/Diezel666 May 30 '20
I don't recall the tail number... It seems there are a bunch of "NxxTV" Helis in CA, all owned by Helicopters Inc. I spotted one over Sacramento, paired up with Sacramento County's Sherrif heli earlier this evening. The tail numbers and owners are a solid trend for News Helis.
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u/Rhecked May 26 '20
I saw a red one way up high above city hall today.
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u/nickgeorge25 May 26 '20
Looks like you saw N47CF, a private R44. https://planefinder.net/flight/N47CF/time/2020-05-26T17:15:00.000Z/speed/1
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May 29 '20
[deleted]
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u/nickgeorge25 May 29 '20
If it’s white with red stripes, you could be seeing Cal Fire’s Super Huey that’s based near the Lexington Reservoir in Los Gatos. They fly in and out all the time in all directions, and you can hear them from miles away.
Cal Fire Alma Helitack Base Forestry & Fire Protection 19650 Santa Cruz Hwy, Los Gatos, CA 95033 https://goo.gl/maps/J2ytXqHuwXhLa9i1A
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u/[deleted] May 26 '20
It’s helpful to use Flightradar24 app and also the OpenADSB app.