MIRAMAR OFFICIALS: BOOM THAT RATTLED REGION JUNE 8 MAY HAVE BEEN FIGHTER PLANES IN COMBAT TRAINING

Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version Share this
East County News Service
 
Photo via Marines.mil by Sgt. Dominic Romero:  a U.S. Marine Corps F-35C Lightning II lands on Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
 
June 12, 2021 (San Diego) – People across San Diego County are reporting hearing a loud boom that rattled windows throughout our region on the evening of June 8.  Many initially believe the noise and shaking were caused by an earthquake, but the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed that no quake occurred.

Now the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar has issued a statement confirming that military fighter pilot training underway at supersonic speed offshore may have been responsible.  Below is the MCAS statement:  

San Diego Noise Event - 8 June, 2021
 
On the evening of 8 June, at approximately 20:18 PST, a loud boom was heard over the south western portions of San Diego County. While MCAS Miramar cannot account for every sound event that occurs within the area, in this case the cause is possibly due to aircraft training occurring in the W-291 range, approximately 30 miles southwest of San Diego over the Pacific Ocean. Two units departed from MCAS Miramar and were conducting simulated air-to-air combat training.
 
There are many different factors that would cause a sonic boom to travel large distances from its source. Variations in temperature and humidity can create atmospheric conditions that can cause sound waves to travel further than at other times.
 
Since the mid-1970's, the Federal Aviation Administration has largely restricted supersonic flight over land. However, over the Pacific and at that distance, supersonic speed is within all FAA statutes and military regulations. MCAS Miramar is strategically located within one flight's distance of 67% of the military airspace in the U.S., and ranges like W-291 are vitally important to the training of our combat aviators. 
 
This practice has been occurring for well over the 24 years that the Marine Corps has operated from Miramar and continues to enhance the aerial combat skills of our pilots as they continue training and providing for the National Defense.
 

Error message

Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.