Plane Over Tewksbury Was Low, But Not As Low As Some Thought

TEWKSBURY, MA -- The Federal Aviation Administration says a low-flying aircraft that flew in a northwest direction over Tewksbury around 11:30 am Tuesday morning was a helicopter. Residents who witnessed the flight path insist it was plane. Thomas Brawley, a private pilot and Tewksbury resident who saw the plane -- yes, plane -- from his backyard says both sides are probably right.

"As a private pilot I certainly know what a airplane looks like," Brawley said in an email to Patch. Brawley estimates the plane was flying at an altitude of about 1,200 feet when it passed over Tewksbury, much higher than the 200 feet some witnesses estimated. The flight path was so low -- and so unusual for Tewksbury -- that Brawley took photos of the plane as it passed over.

"But it was uncharacteristically loud compared to what we normally would see and low in comparison to what we normally see around here," Brawley said. "I think it was a on a long final approach to [Hanscom Field in Bedford]."

Brawley said he also saw the low-flying helicopter that the FAA said was the low-flying aircraft over town on Tuesday. The helicopter inspecting pipelines, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said.

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Photo by Thomas Brawley.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).