Sometimes, It’s Good To Be Seen - Part 1
Visibility can be a powerful tool
BLUF: Visibility can be a powerful tool. When a Gatekeeper (GK) makes a covert move to Texas, and you've cultivated an online reputation as the go-to expert on GKs, this influence can yield remarkable results - like getting eyes on some of the most exceptional images of a GK ever captured.
Southern Rumors
On June 6, 2023, I received the following messages:
I find messages like these incredibly intriguing. For those not immersed in aviation or intelligence, it's akin to learning that the Pagani Zonda C12 chassis #001 is about to appear in your friend's backyard.
For people who do not know what a Zonda C12 is, this is a Zonda C12:
And yes that is Chassis #001, the one originally unveiled at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show. Now back to the planes…
As I covered in Albania (Again) the Gatekeepers are supposed to be "low-vis." In a recent effort add to their "low-visiness" (deal with it) they've removed their registrations from the exterior of the planes. This was part of a larger effort by Air Mobility Command to increase the "Operational Security" for its fleet of mainly cargo and refueling aircraft. The Northern Gatekeepers belong to the 150th SOS which is underneath the 108th Wing of the New Jersey Air National Guard. Without getting too into the weeds on military/militia chains of command, the 108th itself can fall under the command of AMC when required. The Gatekeepers are considered a cargo aircraft (the "C" in C-32B) so they are following this new ruling. (So far only 00-9001 has been seen without a visible registration. It is likely that 02-4452 has also had it's registration removed but there are no pictures of it online since it returned from maintenance.)
Previously, 9001 looked like this:
But now looks like this:
Big difference right? As you can see the latest photo is dated 2023-04-05 which is well before the events of Albania (Again). So if the planes are still trackable why is it so exciting that people are informing me there's a GK at Fort Worth Alliance Airport or the fact that the registration has been removed in recent months?
Well for one, notice how I said "Northern Gatekeepers" earlier? There are two of them and if you look at the FY 01 aircraft procurement request that is exactly what you'll find. A request for two FEST/DEST C-32Bs. But what if I told you there are also Southern Gatekeepers? These Southern Gatekeepers(SGKs) are much harder to track. The tail numbers for the SGKs are 99-6143 and 02-5001. They are based in Florida at Eglin Air Force Base. (this will come into play later)
Recently 99-6143 was spotted in the Texas area on 2023-05-19 but only for a small period of time:
5001 and 6143 are rarely tracked but will occasionally transmit some ACARS data about their flight. (ACARS is like sky texting, more info here)
Using a website developed by an individual on twitter who goes by TheBaldGeek (who graciously added the GKs to their website for me) I am able to tell when the GKs are moving even if they do not show on tracking websites. Recently however, 5001 has been not present at all and 6143 updates sporadically. 6143's last update coincided with its last visual track above Texas.
Fort Worth We Have A Problem
Here's is where the issue arises. I have reports of a Gatekeeper on the ground in Texas, but no movement indicators, except for 02-4452, which recently completed its first training sortie since maintenance. The routing for this training run followed a similar pattern to ones that have been observed in the past. This involves "Circuit" or "Touch & Go" training. This originates at McGuire AFB before departing to do the same at another airport, this time in Syracuse in New York. before returning back to McGuire. This rules out 4452. That leaves 9001, 5001 and 6143. 6143 had been transmitting recently via ACARS in the previous days so I considered that it might do the same for this trip leading me to believe it was likely still in Florida.
So now it's narrowed down to 5001 or 9001. I figure it can't be 9001 because I have notifications for whenever it moves (I have it for all but only 9001 and 4452's notifications are reliable as long as they leave NJ.) This leaves 5001, at this point I realize I need to get eyes on the plane in order to positively ID it. Now we have another problem. I'm about as far away from Fort Worth Texas as you could possibly be. I needed to put out a call to The Community:
The Request For Information (RFI) was not only answered, but the response exceeded expectations.
Initial Shots And Speculation
The first shot I received looked like this:
Not the best since it’s a picture of a picture but at least it was a shot of the tail.
As you can see there is just an American Flag. This leads me to believe that the southern pair have also had their registrations removed. This is great as I can break this "news" on my publication that I recently had pivoted to covering the GKs. That night I drift off to sleep ideating on how I can turn this into a post. Over the course of the next day I would receive even better shots of the aircraft but these shot's ended not only proving me wrong but became the key to unlocking answers to questions that would arise later
Hi-Res shots
The morning of of the 2023-06-07 a member of a [REDACTED] stated that they were going to KAFW to get photos. The photos they took ended up not only being some of the best ground shots I have seen but also inspired a whole host of other people to employ their skillsets to dig a little deeper into what particular GK this was. But why do we need to dig deeper if we have already ruled out the other GKs you ask? Well that is a question best answered in a separate post as it involves diving into the world of Open-Source Intelligence or OSINT. This post is already getting long enough, but I can't talk about these photos without showing at least one:
Takeaways
Perception can significantly influence what people are willing to do with and for you.
Total anonymity is difficult to achieve.
Large, all-white passenger jets are quite conspicuous.