The terrain behind the aircraft

Step by step

1. 01

   Studied the terrain

   The aircraft type does not give a place. I noted a braided riverbed, pale gullied slopes and a small settlement; the right side is under cloud.

2. 02

   The date search failedDead end

   A text search on the date gave nothing useful. Another A-10 record over Afghanistan came up and was rejected because the terrain did not match.

3. 03

   Original record

   DVIDS #3441685: taken on 31 May 2017 by Michael Battles, location undisclosed.

4. 04

   Neighbouring frame and peninsula

   The reservoir peninsula in #3441689 from the same flight fits the shoreline around 37.6914, 38.3479 proposed by an independent walkthrough.

5. 05

   Göksu valley

   The reservoir frame is not the same place as the main photo. In the valley marked by published walkthroughs, the riverbed and pale slopes match the photo.

Calculations

• Gap between posting and capture: 1274 days.
• Peninsula tip from the Esri export extent: 37.687401, 38.345602; one pixel is about 2.97 m on the ground.
• Valley (A) to peninsula (B) by Haversine: 22.56 km; the two walkthroughs' valley points are 376.4 m apart.

Limits

• The aircraft's exact position and altitude were not found; only the terrain was located.

Sources

• Gralhix · OSINT Exercise 016Exercise by Sofia Santos
• DVIDS · #3441685U.S. Air Force / Michael Battles
• DVIDS · #3441689Reservoir frame from the same flight
• Ragmthy walkthroughIndependent walkthrough
• Cyber-JotIndependent walkthrough
• Esri World ImagerySatellite imagery: Esri, Vantor, Earthstar Geographics, GIS User Community. Acquisition date not verified.