Doing an analysis of the missile…
• Impossible for it to have been the Alaska Airlines. Was ≈30 miles away per FlightAware at time photo was taken and still at 17,500' (landing lights are usually not turned on until they are below 10,0000')
• Air Ambulance Helicopter could be plausible. No flight tracking available that day on FlightAware (however, there are similar tracks the day before… slightly odd) Flight path, per company, goes directly through field of view of camera… noted with the line.
>>> Twitter.com/AirliftNW (Air Ambulance Company)… claim pilot was operating IFR (instrument conditions) with the searchlight on facing downward in the stowed position like what is visible in the photo from underside of the helicopter… Nav/Strobe/Beacon lights are not observed which is very odd.
• From looking closely at Skunkweather photo, object does not appear to be traveling vertical but rather somewhat to the South-South-East… perhaps at about a 45 deg angle…if it were vertical, we should see illumination of the upper clouds as it passed through… however, it could be an optical illusion of the heli passing directly overhead.
>>> If headed South, could the target have been Seattle or SF? I don't believe the trajectory matches it being the "UFO" near AF1 in Alaska. If Seattle, military would have had minutes to react. (about 40 miles away)
>>> Does not appear that launch point was the Military base… too far away. Looks like it came from the water or the bay just behind the stretch of land in the images
>>> If missile, would have to be type that does not leave a trail. (Some do, some don't)
>>> Peculiar that the bit of the "missile" is not blurry… also that the trail does not perfectly align with the missile in some closeups.
Does anyone have an original image from Skunkweather? Do we have any idea what became of the missile? Thoughts?