World's most advanced fighter jets, America's F-22 Raptors, startle residents across north Antrim as Donald Trump faces off with Iran
The roaring engines of up to six of the world's most advanced fighter jets - America's F-22 Raptors - have startled residents across North Antrim.
Accompanied by several Boeing KC-135 refuelling aircraft, their appearance over Northern Ireland on Tuesday night is likely linked to the US military build-up in the Middle East as it negotiates with Iran.
The “loud thundering” was reported by people in Larne, Bangor and even Carrickfergus, with one resident reporting seeing six of the fighters.
Described as the world's most advanced fighter jet, the F-22 is designed to fly missions without opponents even knowing it was deployed.
They can fly in stealth mode faster than the speed of sound for 2,000 miles and drop bombs on targets 20 miles away.
Significantly, because it is so advanced they are rarely used outside of American airspace.
Also seen were two Boeing KC-135 – refuelling tankers to support the long-range movement of other aircraft, with numbers now much higher than normally seen in Europe.
Speaking of their role in the US attack on Iran in June, Suffolk-based aviation analyst Roger Smith said they would most likely have been used to deploy countermeasures in the operation, targeting the Iranian air defence radar "to render those threats useless".
North Antrim UUP MLA John Burrows said that many consitutents had reported "a loud thundering overhead" on Tuesday night.
"It wasn’t the Finance Minister opening his wallet, but rather what appeared to be several F‑22s from the US Air Force making their way across the Atlantic, accompanied by fuel tankers," he said on social media.
The post prompted quite a few responses.
John F Read said: "We currently sit on a very strategic bit of real estate as in WW2 key to the gateway to Eastern Europe and the baltics and as a hop off destination half way between the USA and the Middle East."
Donald Knox said he saw the two refuelling aircraft on an online flight trackers, but that the F-22s had did not appear on it "for obvious reasons".
Shawna Kristine was shaken by the noise.
"Not gonna lie, I thought something was gonna land on the house it was that loud," she added.
But Barbara Ann had another Ulster-style explanation for the roaring. "In all seriousness it really was my husband snoring," she said.