No, not Mike Sidonio dressed like the Mario Brothers
Was up at 1:10 am this morning with a teething child. The baby room and our room is on the third floor, and has a pretty clear view east, north and south. We are basically just west of the extended centreline for runway 36 at Maroochydore (YBMC), and about 3km directly from it - aircraft on approach do their finals not far from our position (unless a straight in approach). We get RPT 737's and A320's, plus some Dash-8's, G.A aircraft, military traffic (mainly C-117's) and a lot of helicopter traffic (McDermott aviation training is at YBMC).
Anyway, at 0110, there is no RPT traffic. None. GA is limited. No wok-wok training either. At 0110 I see a VERY bright light that looks for all the world like an approaching heavy, but there is something odd about the light - it's not "probing"like regular landing lights - so either the atmosphere was incredibly clean/clear, or these were not landing lights.
It continues roughly on it's east to west course. No nav or position lights observable - just the bright "landing light". I expected it to turn for finals, all the time thinking this did not look right. It then does NOT turn onto the final for RWY 36 as I expected, but comes almost straight over the house.
AND NOT A SINGLE SOUND WHATSOEVER!!!!
WTF. Hackles came up. I gave the wife bub and ran out to the balcony on the other side of the house, expecting to see and hear something. All I saw was the same light continuing the same course before making a slight change of direction slightly South-west and totally devoid of any sound, and yet the aircraft was mere hundreds of feet high. And the light was not beaming directly ahead like landing lights, but rather all-radiating. DOUBLE TAKE WTF!
I kept watching it as it quite slowly continued due west. I lost sight of it toward the Blackall Range about 0119. Not a single sound, and one light - very bright one - only.
I am NOT calling UFO in the sci-fi / kook sense of the word, but UFO literally as in Unidentified Flying Object. After 20 years working daily in aviation, and growing up in an aviation household, I know what I am looking at in terms of aircraft. This one stumped me.
My initial thoughts were it was either a glider (crazy one at that!), an RC ARV of some sort doing lord knows what, or something I have no clue about. My mind sprang to the alleged Black helicopters
They didn't come to get me. PHEW!
There have been a rash of "UFO" sightings along the coast recently, and this one was just truly peculiar.
Here is one local:
http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au...r-cal/2234704/
(no, it wasn't me in the article). It was intriguing to say the least. Be interesting to see if the local paper reports anything today or tomorrow.
The object I saw was bright magnesium flare white, not orange as his was.
My hypothesis at this point is ball lightning (from a totally clear sky, as has been reported before).
Last thing I thought about was camera - I was just watching it.
