SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah — Were you one of the thousands of Utahns who saw or heard fighter jets flying relatively low across the Salt Lake Valley Tuesday afternoon?
Many even called the FOX 13 News tip line, hoping we could provide some answers.
On Wednesday, a Hill Air Force Base spokesperson confirmed that the jets with the 388th Fighter Wing were participating in a flyover ahead of the Utah Talons softball game at Dumke Family Softball Stadium on the campus of the University of Utah.
The lengthy pre-flight over the valley was due to pilots seeking to time the flyover maneuver perfectly and was incorporated into a previously scheduled training mission.
While many people on social media pointed out that HAFB is not far from the Salt Lake area and the pilots need to train, nearly everyone agreed that seeing four jets in formation making so many passes in this area was unusual.
Eyewitness accounts and flight data indicated that there were four jets, taking several laps in a loop around the southeastern part of the valley. They appeared to be going counter-clockwise above Millcreek, Murray, Midvale, Sandy, Draper, Cottonwood Heights, Holladay, then back around again. Some residents said they couldn't see them, but they could hear the roar.
Utahns first started noticing them around 6:00-6:30 p.m., and they continued until about 7 p.m. before disappearing from public flight tracking websites.
