It was a Sonic boom, a loud noise similar to an explosion, that is heard when an aircraft, usually military, breaks through the sound barrier. According to the meteorological portal ‘Proyecto Mastral’, this is what happened on Tuesday afternoon in Vega Baja.
A group of meteorology enthusiasts from Torrevieja refer to the data recorded by the ‘Flight Radar’ portal, which records all the flights currently flying through the airspace. Around the time the alleged ‘explosion’ occurred, around 5:30 p.m., a Eurofighter Typhoon FG4 of the British Royal Air Force was flying through the area south of Alicante.
According to the radar, the plane left an air base in the province of Albacete. From there it crossed the Segura mountain range through Riópar to enter the Region of Murcia through the high districts of Lorca, where it has made several turns on itself. Subsequently, it crossed over several cities in the Region of Murcia and Orihuela.
The last ‘stopover’ was on the coast of Vega Baja, where it made many other turns in front of Torrevieja, Orihuela Costa, Pilar de la Horadada and San Pedro del Pinatar, before then returning to its base in Albacete.
The bangs were nothing to worry about and were the result of a Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon, flight code SHARK034, registration ZK331, breaking the sound barrier whilst flying on exercises across the region.
Dozens of residents, especially on the Vega Baja coast, said they experienced moments of fear and confusion. Quite a few were startled by the effect of the sonic explosion that, some say, it even made the windows of their houses shake.
The flights are controlled from the Los Llanos Air Base (Albacete), thus covering the province of Alicante, and extend into other neighbouring regions.
It would seem that the flights are set to continue and are currently scheduled for November 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29 and 30 from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
