How do you work out why a helicopter is circling your house?

[notknowledgeable]

I don't think they show up on flight radar, do they? Or if they do, I don't know how to see them

Where I am, if it's red, it's the air ambulance, big, red and white, search and rescue, green, the navy or black and gold, the wealthy bastard who lives across the valley.

We get them here. When I check flight radar it will usually give me the type of helicopter so I can google and see if it’s private or something else. We live fairly near a very posh hotel that copters famous people in and out. We also have a secure additional needs school nearby which occasionally children leave when they shouldn’t so helicopters are up to find them when it’s dark.

We are all quite used to it though. It happens quite a lot here. We occasionally have military exercises too.

Keep on eye on the local news for a few days after. We have them quite a bit for different reasons, missing persons, local attack on a person, recently someone leaving the scene of an accident, once a ram raid. Feels like 80% of the time they come along just as I'm trying to get to sleep, but some things are more important than my sleep!

Because it isn't just "a story". They are out there looking for actual real people, with real families, and the speculation is intrusive and unhelpful.

I work on the principle that they only ever put the helicopter up for a very good reason, and, a little bit frustrating though it is if trying to sleep, it really isn't any of my business. I just hope the person is found safe and well (if a vulnerable person) or the criminal is caught where it is someone who needs taking off our streets for other people's safety.

@NewName24 you can hope they find someone safe and well and still be curious about what’s going on. It’s not all or nothing and it’s really not that big of a deal

well, I think it is ok to ask why your bed is being shaken! And from bitter experience, I prefer to know what is happening, since the day a few years back when I was actually on school premises on a Saturday with my toddler and the helicopter was looking for a fugitive with a machete on the premises. Thankfully someone contacted me and told me and I was able to alert the police to our presence - otherwise they would have released the dogs on us.

yes, I like to know what is happening, especially if dogs are likely to be released anywhere around where my loved ones are

Of course it's normal to want to know what's going on around you. Some choppers show in flightradar24 and some on freedar.uk

And its back..... woken me up again, the room is shaking