Why Planes Seemed to Be Flying Low Around Portland, Maine

For some, it was a sound that jolted them right out of their seat.

Several people took to social media around 9am yesterday morning to ask why planes were flying so low around the Portland, Maine, area. One deleted commenter suggested that her entire house rattled from the noise.

As it turns out, it wasn't pilot error or just a cruel trick being played on residents. Instead, it was a designed training exercise by the United States military.

The United States Navy Was Doing Training Exercises Over Portland, Maine

For the second time in just a few months, the United States Navy was using the Portland, Maine, area for training exercises involving their P-8 Poseidon aircrafts.

The P-8 Poseidon actually looks similar to a traditional commercial plane, which can easily confuse people looking up from the ground level.

The P-8 Poseidon is an anti-submarine warcraft that witnesses said was practicing a maneuver called 'touch-and-go', which calls for the aircraft to land but take off again without ever coming to a complete stop.

Portland, Maine, Has Become a Popular Place For Military Trainings

Roughly about three months ago, a different military training exercise involving the P-8 Poseidon warcrafts took place over Portland, Maine.

Shared on Facebook by Flightradar 24 Flight Spotters, they tracked all the various paths the P-8 Poseidons took over Maine. Some of the communities that saw the planes including Westbrook, Scarborough as well as Old Orchard Beach.

Additional military training exercises have also been taking place this summer in New Hampshire as well.