Saw this getting discussed on another forum last week and yeah, the timing is hard to ignore. Flight restrictions popping up before something happens rather than after is the bit that gets me. If it was just a reaction to an incident fair enough, but before? That suggests somebody knew something was coming or was already happening on the ground.
I'll be honest I dont know enough about how the FAA normally operates to say if theres a mundane explanation. Maybe someone here does. But from what I've read about Skinwalker Ranch going back years, the activity there has never really slowed down, its just the media attention that comes and goes.
Would be interested to know the exact timestamps on the restriction filings versus when the incident was reported publicly. That gap would tell you a lot. Anyone actually dug into the documentation on this?