Mystery Plane over Newcastle

[cloudspotter]

Good day for trail spotting on Saturday

Mystery plane there didn't show up on Flightradar or Planefinder

 

[Trailspotter]

Mystery plane there didn't show up on Flightradar or Planefinder

There are more mysteries about these planes. According to FlightAware, Norwegian Air Shuttle 1836 SVG -> LPA crossed the UK over Scotland quite far North from your location:
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/NAX1836/history/20161217/1135Z/ENZV/GCLP

Could you please check and let us know the exact time of your annotated photo?

 

[cloudspotter]

There are more mysteries about these planes. According to FlightAware, Norwegian Air Shuttle 1836 SVG -> LPA crossed the UK over Scotland quite far North from your location:
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/NAX1836/history/20161217/1135Z/ENZV/GCLP

Could you please check and let us know the exact time of your annotated photo?

12:20 on the 17th

 

[Trailspotter]

12:20 on the 17th

In this case, your mystery plane was Easyjet 6936 that was at about the same altitude as WOW 761 at the time. Perhaps, having descended to this altitude, it resumed contrailing.
This is how the three trails look from your (approximate) location on Google Earth:

I have modelled a fragment of the NAX 1863 track myself, the other two tracks are attached.

 

[cloudspotter]

In this case, your mystery plane was Easyjet 6936

I'm pretty sure it wasn't since I watched that unknown plane approach from the south(ish) and the Easyjet track converging with it

 

[Trailspotter]

I'm pretty sure it wasn't since I watched that unknown plane approach from the south(ish) and the Easyjet track converging with it

I intended to use the word 'probably' [Easyjet 6936], but omitted it inadvertently. Nevertheless, the Easyjet 6936 aircraft was at a contrail altitude and in the right location relative to the allotment site, from where you took one of your earlier photos

 

[Trailspotter]

I'm pretty sure it wasn't since I watched that unknown plane approach from the south(ish) and the Easyjet track converging with it

There is a plane spotting site in your area that you may be aware of: http://www.otne.co.uk/

Home
These pages are designed as a resource for seeing and understanding a little more about those white trails crossing those blue skies.

That is, when we get blue skies !!

The core 'zone' is a 25nm radius around Seaham which is, for this websites purpose, the 'NorthEast'. In reality reception can considerably better this and can reach over 200nm which would easily encompass as far south as Manchester, Liverpool and Nottingham. Predominately, traffic will be ins & outs to Newcastle and Durham Tees Valley as well as en-route Pole Hill, Ottringham & Talla.

Civil and military will be covered equally.

Navigation between the website pages is by using the links in the orange band above.

I've looked into their archive page for the date, there are no other reported planes at the contrail altitudes around the time of the photo:

 

[cloudspotter]

There is a plane spotting site in your area that you may be aware of: http://www.otne.co.uk/

I've looked into their archive page for the date, there are no other reported planes at the contrail altitudes around the time of the photo:

So it remains a mystery

 

[Trailspotter]

So it remains a mystery

Well, I looked through more archive pages from that site; there are USAF C-17 and C-5M flying along this route, for example, earlier today:
20/12/2016: 10:54->11:15 04-4132 [C17] RCH963 (US Military Supply) 2512 30,000 30,000 296 11:04->11:10
The route appears to be frequented by foreign military planes and, perhaps, not all of them are detected by the local planespotters community.

So it seems possible that there was a plane other than the EasyJet in approximately the same location flying in essentially the same direction at about the same time. However, it is up to you to present a better evidence of it being a different plane indeed. A close-up of the aircraft would be great.

Perhaps, you should arrange yourself a Christmas present - a camera with a big optical zoom (x30 or more)

It would bring your mystery aircraft closer, allowing the recognition of its type and livery, like in the photo I've taken this morning:

 

[cloudspotter]

Perhaps, you should arrange yourself a Christmas present - a camera with a big optical zoom (x30 or more)

And carry it with me at all times

https://www.metabunk.org/photos-of-...t-you-took-yourself.t1487/page-12#post-140005

TBH though if you look at the where the trail from the Edinburgh flight petered out and the far end of the trail from the unknown flight I can't really see how they can be the same plane

 

[Trailspotter]

TBH though if you look at the where the trail from the Edinburgh flight petered out and the far end of the trail from the unknown flight I can't really see how they can be the same plane

The EasyJet flight was not level but descended by about 5000 ft. The wind could move the trail differently at different altitude.
However, as you mentioned the far end of the trail from the "mystery" flight, there is a hint of the Crow instability, suggesting that it might be a heavier plane than A320. Unfortunately, it is hard to see at this resolution and behind your annotation. Could you please crop a part with the trail from the original photo and post it here?

 

[cloudspotter]

The EasyJet flight was not level but descended by about 5000 ft. The wind could move the trail differently at different altitude.
However, as you mentioned the far end of the trail from the "mystery" flight, there is a hint of the Crow instability, suggesting that it might be a heavier plane than A320. Unfortunately, it is hard to see at this resolution and behind your annotation. Could you please crop a part with the trail from the original photo and post it here?

How's this?

 

[Trailspotter]

How's this?

View attachment 23531

Better. May well be from a four-engine plane. Why did you cut off the other end?? Even if the plane is not seen, the contrail shape at the beginning could provide a clue to its type.

 

[cloudspotter]

Better. May well be from a four-engine plane. Why did you cut off the other end?? Even if the plane is not seen, the contrail shape at the beginning could provide a clue to its type.

Sorry, I thought that was the part you were interested in.

Here you go

 

[Trailspotter]

Sorry, I thought that was the part you were interested in.

Here you go

View attachment 23534

Thanks. It does look like the contrail of a heavy plane, probably a four-engine one. Note the two separate strands of contrail running side-by-side from the plane. In a two-engine plane they normally would merge soon after the plane before separating again at quite a distance from it.