The 1952 Sighting Wave Radar-Visual Sightings;one;
This UFO wave that occurred in the 1950s was to establish a whole new perception on unknown objects entering and leaving restricted air space at will, in short it shook the official stance on the UFO situation to one of ridicule and head burring to one of the utmost seriousness; This UFO was now being picked on radar physical evidence in this form was very hard to ignore and below is a list of cases that involved radar detection
The 1952 Sighting Wave Radar-Visual Sightings Establish UFO As A Serious Mystery
By Richard Hall
(Revised version adapted from the Journal of UFO History for the NICAP web site.)
Fran Ridge:
This is a 54-page comprehensive and qualitative effort and it will take many months, if not years, to get active links to cases all in place. Sixty additional case links were added on July 7. With the help of William Wise (Project Blue Book Archive), and Dan Wilson (digging out the cases from my checklist), the task was much easier. But without Brad Sparks Comprehensive Catalog of Project Blue Book Unknowns, the entire project would have been impossible.
Sparks also provided several historic entries. And our thanks go to Jean Waskiewicz who created the online NICAP DBase (NSID) that helped make it possible to link from the cases to the reports themselves. Others who provided information are also noted with their contributions. (Items on the Chop clearance list are coded "CCL"). But none of this would be complete without the story behind the wave of 1952, as told by none other than Richard Hall.
On March 2, 1950, a Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) meeting focused on establishing goals for a minimum air defense by 1952. The followoing month at a USAF Commanders Conference at Ramey AFB, Puerto Rico, planners familiarized commanders with the thinking behind the plan of minimum defense as welll as with its contents. Referred to as the Blue Book Plan, it stipulated that a minimum air defense could be in place by mid-1952.
It was estimated that July 1, 1952, as the critical date when the Soviets would pose a dangerous threat. General Charles Cabell expected the Soviets to have between 45 and 90 atom bombs and 70 to 135 Tu-4 bombers (copied B-29s) by that time. Was there a nuclear connection between this threat and the massive UFO sighting wave of 1952 and the events over Washington in July?
Richard Hall:
The summer 1952 UFO sighting wave was one of the largest of all time, and arguably the most significant of all time in terms of the credible reports and hardcore scientific data obtained. Electromagnetic (EM) effects and physical trace evidence were more prominent in other waves, but 1952 (and 1953) featured recurring radar detection of UFOs, often from both ground and airborne radar, visual sightings by jet interceptor pilots sent up to pursue the mysterious objects, and cat-and-mouse chases in which the UFOs seemed to toy with the interceptors.
Further, Air Force investigators who plotted the sightings noticed that they were concentrated around strategic military bases, and this clearly posed a threat to national security since their origin was unknown. Senior generals in the Air Force concluded that UFOs were interplanetary in origin, and broadly hinted this belief in LIFE magazine for April 1952.
The 1952 UFO Sighting Chronology;
All 1952 Sightings By Month;
NARA-PBB1-45 - January Sightings;
1952; London, Ont., Canada
Astronomer observed elliptical UFO with 2 bright body lights. [UFOE, VI]
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Jan. 1952; Weston, Wyoming (BBU)
10:30 p.m. 38-year*old rancher saw a "shooting star" suddenly stop in mid-air between him and a mountain, spinning clockwise, with one red window periodically facing the observer, went down toward the Little Powder River, come up again. He turned his car to send light signals, object seemed to respond by stopping its red window to face witness. Spinning resumed, object rose and came down. Similar object arrived, then both went into the deep valley out of sight. (Vallée Magonia 88)
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January 3,1952, SECRET Memo
Brig. Gen. William M. Garland, Assistant for the Production of Intelligence, wrote a memorandum for General Samford with the title (SECRET) "Contemplated Action to Determine the Nature and Origin of the Phenomena Connected with the Reports of Unusual Flying Objects." (Courtesy, Joel Carpenter)
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Jan. 9, 1952; Kerrville, Texas
Cat 3. Odd "roaring" interference on radio as UFO circled town.
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Jan. 16, 1952; Artesia, New Mexico (BBU 1037)
A motionless dull-white, round object 5/3 larger than balloon.
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Jan. 20, 1952; Fairchild AFB, Wash. (BBU)
Two Air Force master sergeants, intelligence specialists, reported a bluish-white spherical object with a long blue tail that flew beneath a solid overcast.
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Jan. 21, 1952; Mitchel AFB, N.Y.
A Navy TBM torpedo bomber pilot chased a dome-shaped circular white object that accelerated and pulled away from him.
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Jan. 22, 1952; Nenana, Alaska (BBU)
12:20 am.(AHST) Ground radar outpost and three airborne radar sets on F-94 interceptors tracked a distinct unexplainable target. USAF Lt. A. L. B. a CPS-6B radar operator at ADC radar site F-2, Murphy Dome AFS (about 19 miles WNW of Fairbanks), Alaska, tracked an inbound or outbound target at 210° azimuth at about 1,500 to 2,400 mph, and after 10-12 radar sweeps 12 secs each, urgently called twice (at 12:25 and 12:26 a.m.) for interception, and 2 USAF F-94 jets were scrambled [possibly multiple reversals of UFO direction in this time interval].
At 12:52-53 a.m., unidentified target was tracked inbound at 210° azimuth heading N at 45 miles range for about 1 min, first F-94 at 30,000 ft was vectored on 180° heading to attempt intercept at 20 miles projected range of target to radar site, but target reversed course over an 8-mile radius of turn (roughly 5 gs) and headed outbound at 1,500+ mph heading S and away from radar site and F-94. Pilot Lt. C. E. G. and radar observer Capt. V. D. R. on first F-94 tracked two targets, one strong one faint on.
F-94 circled for an hour before getting another target at 12 o'clock low, dropped to 25,000 ft with 100-knot closure rate, no visual contact, had to pull up at 200 yards distance to avoid collision, F-94 released to return to base at 2:13 a.m. Pilot Capt. R. time also obtained radar lock on to a target at 12 o'clock high at 17,000 yards range for 2-3 mins. (BB Status Rpt 7; McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index; cf. Ruppelt)
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Jan. 22 [21?], 1952; SE of Mitchell AFB, New York (BBU)
9:50 am. (EST). USN TBM*3W bomber chased a a white circular domed-disc which shot away and climbed out of sight. (GRUDGE Rpt; Project 1947)
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Jan. 29th, 1952 Briefing mentioned in Grudge Status Report No.3
Brig. Gen. William M. Garland, Assistant for (Intelligence) Production, and his staff at the Directorate of Intelligence, HQ USAF, were briefed on the status of the Project Grudge UFO Study. At this meeting Gen. Garland introduced a revolutionary new intelligence policy and methodology which emphasized the use of instrumentation for intelligence collection, including to detect and track UFO's (which would eventually be the basis for terminating Project BLUE BOOK as an intelligence function, converting it to a PR psych war propaganda function beginning in July 1952 over a 6-month transition period).
As an interim last-chance measure to prove whether anecdotal sightings had any value, Gen. Garland approves of Ruppelt's publicity plan to draw in UFO reports from the public so that triangulations might be obtained, and this leads to Garland secretly backing the LIFE magazine article (plan backfires and is blamed for July 1952 flap).
On the same date, Jan. 29, Gen. Garland gave the welcoming address to the SECRET compartmented MIT Project BEACON HILL in Cambridge, Mass., where he gave the marching orders to the assembled scientists to study ways AF intelligence methodology can be revolutionized through use of technology. (Later Gen. Garland sent Ruppelt and Col. Sanford H. Kirkland of ATIC, and Lt. Col. William A. Adams of AFOIN, to brief BEACON HILL on UFO's on March 26 and in April 1952, respectively). (Credit Joel Carpenter for BEACON HILL.) (Brad Sparks)
Ruppelt Discovers AF Intelligence Has More UFO files
On this trip to the Pentagon to brief Gen. Garland, Ruppelt visits the offices of AF Intelligence (AFOIN) having collections of UFO files and discovers they have more complete files than does ATIC in Dayton, and he arranges to have copies made of the various missing files made for him at Project Grudge at ATIC (though multiple visits were required to obtain the copies and Ruppelt probably did not succeed in getting everything). These AFOIN offices with UFO files include the Technical Capabilities Branch (TCB) of the Evaluation Division (AFOIN-TCB or AFOIV-TC) and the Collection Control Branch of the Collection Division (AFOIN-CC or AFOIC-CC). (Brad Sparks)
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Jan. 29, 1952; Wonsan, Korea (BBU)
11:00 pm. 30 miles SW of Wonsan, USAF crew of B-29 flying at above 20,000 ft and 148 knots (170 mph) ground speed saw an orange luminous rotating and pulsating 3 ft sphere [or disc?], with blue flame halo, follow the B*29 at a distance of about 600 ft at the 8 o'clock position advancing forward to 9 o'clock then falling back to 8 o'clock [at one point almost withdrawing from view then returning?]. (LIFE Incident 9; Project 1947; Loren Gross)
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Jan. 29-30, 1952; Sunchon, South Korea (BBU)
11:24 p.m. USAF crew of B-29 at 20,000 ft and 125 knots (144 mph) ground speed saw an orange sphere follow the B-29 at their level or slightly below [sun*like in brightness and 600 ft away?]. (LIFE Incident 9; Project 1947; Loren Gross)
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Jan. 31, 1952 - AFOIN-C/CC-2 To Be Revised
The 1951 directive, "Reporting Information on Unidentified Flying Objects", which outlined reporting procedures for Project Grudge, was inadequate and was to be revised for Project Blue Book (Pg. 59 of Project Grudge Report No. 3, 31 Jan 1952). The new one requested that all reports be made by wire to ATIC, ADC, and V/TC, and that this wire report be followed up by an AF Form 112 direct to ATIC and V/TC. (V/TC = AFOIN or AF Intelligence, Evaluation Division, Technical Capabilities Branch, which had been tasked by Gen. Cabell in 1950 to conduct field investigations of UFO cases independent of AMC/ATIC Project GRUDGE, and which TC Branch now had Capt. Dewey Fournet assigned) (Francis Ridge)
Feb. 1, 1952; 10 miles W of Terre Haute, Indiana (BBU)
9:30 p.m. Military aircraft pilot saw a close group of moving lights changing color from blue to green to yellow. (Project 1947; BB files??)
Feb. 2, 1952; E. of Pusan, South Korea (BBU)
10:30 am. Radar track of 767 mph unidentified target. 2nd track from position 35°30' N, 129°40' E, at 10:40 of 1,257 mph unidentified target. (Jan Aldrich)
Feb. 2, 1952; E of South Korea (BBU)
7:35 p.m. USS Philippine Sea heading S 180° at 13 knots (15 mph) tracked approaching radar target from the N 0° azimuth at 25 miles, veered off in a wide left turn to the E radius about 12 miles (when visual observers spotted exhaust trails), reversing course on radar away from the aircraft carrier accelerating from 600 mph to 1800 mph at 52,000 ft altitude, split into 2 targets 5-12 miles apart on a slightly zigzag wavy course headed due N 0° to disappearance at about 110 miles. Visual observers sighted 3 exhaust flames at 30° azimuth [?]. (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 126-8)
Feb. 11, 1952; Pittsburgh, Penna. (BBU 1052)
3 a.m. USAF Capt. G. P. Arns and Maj. R. J. Gedson flying a Beech AT-11 trainer saw a yellow*orange comet-shaped object pulsing flame for 1-2 secs in straight and level flight. (Berliner)
Feb. 12, 1952; Bet. Friendship Airfield and Baltimore, Maryland (BBU)
9:30 p.m. USAF MATS C-47 pilot and copilot saw a bright white object move slowly then speed away. Then at 10 p.m. they saw 10 miles S of Baltimore a similar object. (GRUDGE/BB Rpt; FUFOR Index)
Feb. 13, 1952; Granite City, Illinois (BBU)
10:30 p.m. The 3903rd Radar Bomb Scoring Group observed an unusual radar return while attempting to score a bomb run. It was assumed at the time that the "target" was an aircraft pacing the bomber on its attack run, but the unusual target reached a speed of 1090 MPH. (McDonald list; BB Rpt 6) adar. (McDonald list; BB Rpt 6)
February 1952, Fournet Becomes AF Intelligence "Project Monitor"
Maj. Dewey J. J. Fournet in the AF Intelligence (AFOIN) Evaluation Division's Technical Capabilities Branch (TCB) replaces Lt Col Milton D. Willis as UFO investigation officer for AFOIN (in the June 1952 reorganization many assets in the Evaluation Division are transferred to the new Topical Intelligence Division, headed by Col. William A. Adams, including Fournet who is assigned to the Division's Current Intelligence Branch, headed by Col. Weldon H. Smith). Fournet also assigned as "Project Monitor" for ATIC Project Grudge in the wake of widespread publicity on the Korean UFO sightings. (Brad Sparks)
Feb. 16, 1952; About 60 miles E. of Pusan, Korea (BBU)
2:40 and 3:50 p.m. USMC GCI Sq 3 at Yongil (36° N, 129° E) CPS-5 radar tracking of unidentified target traveling at 4,320 knots (5,000 mph). 2nd track at 3:50 at position 36°30' N, 129°30' E (a few miles off the coast of South Korea) of large target equivalent of 6-8 jet aircraft, traveling 1,380 knots (1,600 mph) target heading 170°, faded momentarily, then continued on 120° heading until lost. Visual sighting of contrail in direction of radar track. (Jan Aldrich; McDonald files; FUFOR Index, Dan Wilson)
Feb. 17, 1952; 25 miles SE of Roswell, New Mexico (BBU)
1:45 a.m. (MST). USAF crew of B-29 bomber saw 3 ft [?] greenish-blue ball of fire flying straight at 15,000 ft. (Project 1947)
February 19, 1952; Letter to Col.John G. Ericksen
Col. Ericksen, , Chief of the Technical Capabilities Branch, received this letter from: Albert E. Lombard, Jr. Chief, Research Division, Directorate of Research and Development. Re: Declassification of Project TWINKLE denied because Green Fireballs considered man-made.
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Feb. 20, 1952; Greenfield, Mass.
Congregational Minister saw three very bright silver objects, apparently spherical, traveling in a perfect V. [VII)
Feb. 21, 1952; Sen. Russell letter to SAF
Washington, D.C. Sen. Richard B. Russell, Armed Services Committee, letter to Secretary of Air Force requesting an official report on recent UFO sightings by combat airmen in the Far East.
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Feb. 24, 1952; Antung, North Korea (BBU 1061)
10:15 [11:15?] p.m. USAF 345th Bomber Sq Captain/B-29 navigator saw a bluish cylinder, 3x long as wide, with a tail and rapid pulsations, come in high and fast, make several turns and level out under B-29 which was evading mild antiaircraft fire. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
March 3, 1952- Dr. Walther Riedel Convinced
Formerly a German rocket scientist at Peenemunde, said: "I'm convinced saucers have an out-of-world basis." (Life Magazine, Apr. 7, 1952 issue)
March 4, 1952; 15 miles W of Ashiya AFB, Japan (BBU)
10:35 a.m. The pilot, 1st Lt. E.J. Weed, and crew, co-pilot 2nd Lt. T.G. Camidge and engineer S/Sgt. T. Dendy, of a USAF C-54 aircraft, 53rd Troop Carrier Squadron, observed a bright orange oval-shaped object. The object, approximately 50 to 100 feet in length and 50 foot thick, was flying at a terrific speed at an estimated altitude of 10,000 feet and was observed for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Lt. Weed further stated that the object was definitely not a jet aircraft. (Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
March 7, 1952; Bet. Claremore and Tulsa, Okla.(BBU)
1 a.m. USAF copilot of C-54 transport saw a bright light pass from right to left, lose altitude and blink out 3 times. (Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
March 10, 1952; Oakland, Calif.
An engineering metals inspector watched two dark wing (or hemisphere) shaped objects pass overhead, swaying back and forth like a pendulum. (NICAP report.)
March 13, 1952; Keflavik, Iceland
7:12 a.m. Eight separate unidentified radar sightings were made by a GCA team while working a C-47 aircraft on practice runs at Keflavik, Iceland. The first of the eight objects appeared at 0712Z (7:12 a.m. local time). The last object was observed at 8:09 a.m. The estimated airspeed of the objects was 250 knots and at estimated altitude of above 8000 feet. One report stated that one object crossed the scope at a speed much faster than an F-86. (Dan Wilson)
March 14, 1952; near Hawaii
Evening. Navy Secretary Dan Kimball was flying to Hawaii when two disc-shaped craft streaked in toward his Navy executive plane. "Their speed was amazing," he told Keyhoe later, in Washington. "My pilots estimated it between fifteen hundred and two thousand miles an hour. The objects circled us twice and then took off, heading east." Note that Adm Arthur Radford was a witness in a second plane.
Mid-March 1952, AF Initiates TOP SECRET UFO Project
AF Intelligence (AFOIN) Assistant for (Intelligence) Production Brig. Gen. William M. Garland initiates a TOP SECRET compartmented project (to be designed and built by AF R&D) to establish a global instrumented UFO detection and tracking system that would obviate the need for non-technical anecdotal UFO sighting reports, eventually resulting in approval of an official AF policy to deemphasize or reject anecdotal UFO reports (July 28, 1952). (Brad Sparks)
March 19, 1952; Ruppelt Briefs ADC
Ruppelt: "I briefed General Benjamin W. Chidlaw, then the Commanding General of the Air Defense Command, and his staff, telling them about our plan. They agreed with it in principle and suggested that I work out the details with the Director of Intelligence for the ADC, Brigadier W. M. Burgess. General Burgess designated Major Verne Sadowski of his staff to be the ADC liaison officer with New Grudge."
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March 20, 1952; Centreville, Maryland. (BBU 1074)
10:42 p.m. WW1/WW2 veteran A. D. Hutchinson and son saw a dull orange-yellow saucer-shaped light fly straight and level very fast. (Berliner) (This link/version may or may not be the right case, but appears to be).
March 22, 1952; 20 miles S of Yakima, Wash. (BBU 1076)
6:05 p.m. USAF pilot and radar operator of F-94 jet interceptor made 2 sightings of a stationary red fireball that increased in brightness then faded over 45 secs. Note: Project Blue Book Status Report #7 (May 31, 1952) says target was also tracked by ground radar at 78 knots (90 mph) at 22,500 ft and 25,000 ft altitude. (Berliner)
March 24, 1952; 60 miles W of Pt. Conception, Calif. (BBU 1077)
8:45 a.m. [p.m.?] B-29 navigator and radar operator tracked unidentified target on airborne radar at about 3,000 mph. (Berliner; Shough)
March 25, 1952. Project BLUE BOOK Named
Grudge was upgraded to a separate organization, the Aerial Phenomena Group, and the name was changed to Project Blue Book. According to Ruppelt this change was made because of the steadily increasing number of reports we [the Air Force] were receiving. (Ruppelt, p. 131.)
March 26 [?], 1952; Ft. Stockton, Texas (BBU 1079)
2:10 am. SW of Pecos, NW of Stockton, Texas and Arizona [8:30 and 10:13 p.m. ?] USAF pilots of 4 B-50D's [McClelland and 3 others] saw red and green running lights moving at high speed. 2nd sighting over Arizona at 10:13? Airborne radar scope photo. (Berliner; cf. Weinstein; FUFOR Index) (Fran Ridge: No longer an unknown)
March 26, 1952, Ruppelt and Col. Kirkland Brief BEACON HILL
Gen. Garland sends ATIC Technical Anaysis Division Chief, Col. Sanford H. Kirkland, and Project Blue Book Chief, Lt. Edward J. Ruppelt, to brief MIT's Project BEACON HILL on UFO's. (Brad Sparks)
March 29, 1952; 20 miles N of Misawa AFB, Japan (BBU 1082)
11:20 a.m. Lt. David C. Brigham, pilot of AT-6 trainer, saw a small, very thin, shiny metallic disc fly alongside the AT-6, then make a pass at an F-84 jet fighter, flip on edge, flutter 20 ft from the F-84's fuselage and flip in the slipstream. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
March 29, 1952; Elizabethville, Belgian Congo. (BBU)
Two fiery discs were seen over uranium mines gliding in curves, changing orientation many times thus appearing as plates, ovals and lines. Discs suddenly hovered then took off in a zigzag to the NE. Commander Pierre of Elizabethville airfield took off in a fighter aircraft in pursuit and came within 120 meters (400 ft) of one disc. (McDonald files; Jan Aldrich)
March 29 [April 24?], 1952; Glen Burnie, Maryland. (BBU)
10:45 p.m. Donald F. Stewart [Steward?] and George Tyler III saw 50 ft flat silver disc with cupola/dome to one side, a porthole and hatch on the dome, neon-like lighting around the edges [strangely pulsating?], approaching car from ahead to the NE about 60° elevation, then hovered and "wavered slightly" for 3 [2?] mins several hundred feet off the ground, whirring sound like a vacuum cleaner, car engine died while object hovered.
Witness got out of car with Thompson submachine gun considering whether to shoot the disc, companion urged him not to. Object suddenly turned up on edge seeming to "roll across the sky" faster than a jet to the SW disappearing about 3-1/2 miles away. Witness claimed car wires "magnetized" and paint cracked. Secy. AF Finletter interest, AFOSI investigation. Hoax? (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 196-8; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index; Loren Gross Jan-May 52 pg. 25)
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March 30, 1952, Editorial Page of Boston Traveler Magazine
"Have You Heard", by Bill Schofield. This was a bargain day in the flying saucer department, and you get two stories for the price of one -- the first from a resident of western Massachusetts and the second from Navy Sec. Dan Kimball.
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NARA-PBB1-48 - April 1-15 Sightings
NARA-PBB1-49 - April 16-30
NARA-PBB1-50 - More April Sightings
ADC in near frenzied state
By the spring of 1952, Air Defense Command was in a near-frenzied state over the potential of a Soviet sneak attack. Its eyes and ears, the Lashup radar network and the GOC, had proven discouragingly unreliable, and, lacking credible intelligence on Soviet capabilities and intentions, it had no real basis for assessing the nature of the threat. (see report linked above). Little more than two weeks later, the worst possibility seemed to have come true. (See April 17)
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April 2, 1952; Lake Meade, Nevada
9:00 am. While on a fishing trip to Lake Meade with his wife and a friend, a man observed a UFO. It was silver in color, very large and at a tremendous altitude. It was described as a B-36 without wings. Not a BB unknown.
April 2, 1952, Ruppelt & Col. Kirkland Brief CSI-Los Angeles
On the eve of the release of the bombshell LIFE magazine article, Ruppelt and his boss, ATIC Technical Analysis Division Chief Col. Sanford H. Kirkland, give an extraordinary briefing, technically unclassified but in fact quasi-classified, to a group of aerospace engineers organized as Civilian Saucer Investigations, in Los Angeles, along with LIFE magazine reporters who give them advance copies of the article in exchange. (See extremely rare and revealing Transcript obtained by Project 1947.) (Brad Sparks)
April 3, 1952; Marana, Arizona. (BBU)
8:15 [8:23-9:15? MST] a.m. Pilot of T-6 aircraft and 6 pilots on ground saw a bright aluminum shiny oblong object above 54,000 ft. 52-minutes. (Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
April 4, 1952, Ruppelt Briefs Rand Corp. Satellite Project
Gen. Garland arranges for the AF-Rand Corp. Satellite Project to receive a UFO briefing from Ruppelt on a visit to ATIC. Ruppelt meets and befriends Rand satellite engineer Jim Thompson. (Brad Sparks)
The 1952 Sighting Wave Radar-Visual Sightings;TWO;
Here is part two of the 1952 UFO wave,for a more in depth individual specific case study go to link provided and click on individual case link
April 5, 1952; Phoenix [Glendale?], Arizona (BBU 1096)
10:40 a.m. Mr. and Mrs. L. G. Ryan, R. L.. Stokes, and D. Schook saw a large, dull grey circular object, followed by 2 more, fly straight and level at high speed. (Berliner)
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April 5, 1952; Miami, Florida (BBU 1097)
9:15 p.m. L. E. VanDercar and 9 year old son saw 4 dark circular objects with mostly fuzzy edges, cross the face of the Moon [in the S at 175° azimuth 77° elevation, 83% illuminated or almost full], each 1/2 the angular size of Moon. (Berliner)
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April 6, 1952; Temple, Texas [Miller-Graughan AFB?]. (BBU 1099)
2:59 p.m. H. L. Russell saw 50-75 grey*white discs change position within formation continually, tilting in unison every 12-15 secs. (Berliner)
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April 7, 1952: Life Magazine article, "Have We Visitors From Space?
When newsmen began asking him whether the article was Air Force inspired, Ruppelt replied that they had furnished Life with some raw data. My answer was purposely weasel worded, he said, because I knew that the Air Force had unofficially inspired the Life article...
[and also knew that the strongly implied answer that UFOs were interplanetary] was the personal opinion of several very high-ranking officers in the Pentagon - so high that their personal opinion was almost policy. (Ruppelt, p. 132.)
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April 8, 1952; Nr. Big Pines, Calif.
Disc-like UFO observed by TV network engineer. [UFOE, VI]
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April 9, 1952; Bet. Shreveport and Barksdale AFB, Louisiana (BBU)
2:30 p.m. (CST). USAF C-46 crew [pilot and copilot] flying E at 90° heading at 9,000 ft saw a 30-40 ft cream color disc-shaped object ahead of the plane at about 4,000 ft, object reversed course heading E [but was overtaken by C-46 and passed under it ??], C-46 and object both [?] made 360° turns, object climbing into clouds at 12,000 ft at 200*400 mph. Similar sighting at 2:45 p.m. by another C-46 5-6 miles N of Barksdale AFB of an object disappearing on a N heading at 11,000 ft. (BB Status Rpt 6; cf. NARCAP)
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April 9-10, 1952; 6 miles W of Pecos [near Lackland AFB?],Texas(BBU)
10:40 p.m. (CST). Bethune. (Hynek UFO Rpt p. 43; FUFOR Index)
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April 12, 1952; North Bay CFS, Ontario, Canada (BBU 1108)
9:30 p.m. RCAF Warrant Officer E. H. Rossell, Flight Sgt. R. McRae saw a round amber object fly fast, stop, reverse direction, climb away at 30° angle. (Berliner)
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April 13 [12?], 1952; Moriarty AFS, New Mexico (BBU)
4:45 p.m. (MST). 4 USAF airmen saw silver disc-shaped object to the E traveling very erratically at high speed, then dove. [CPS-5 radar tracking?] (McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; BB Rpt 6; FUFOR Index)
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April 14, 1952; LaCrosse, Wisconsin CIRVIS Report (BBU)
12:35 p.m. Unidentified CAL (Central Air Lines) pilot saw several light colored objects fly in V-formation. (Berliner) Objects sighted from ground, tremendous speed.
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April 14, 1952; Memphis, Tennessee (BBU 1112)
6:34 p.m. U.S. Navy pilots Lt. jg. Blacky, Lt. jg. O'Neil flying on 18° (about NNE) heading at 2,000 ft over NAS Range Station saw to their left an inverted bowl glowing bright red, 3 ft long and 1 ft high, with vertical slots, approaching at high speed on 300° heading, straight and level at 2,000 ft, passing 300 ft from their aircraft and below overcast at 4,200 ft. [Red glowing trail?] (Berliner; McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; cf. NARCAP)
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April 15, 1952; Santa Cruz, California (BBU 1115)
7:40 p.m. Mr. Hayes, brother of Master Sgt., saw 2 faint objects flying fast along the horizon through 20x spotting telescope. (Berliner)
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April 16, 1952; Shreveport, Louisiana (BBU)
9:28 p.m. (CST). Senior USAF pilot Capt. E. Maths [Mathis? Matthis?]. Course reversing light. 70-secs. (Willy Smith pp. 25-29; FUFOR Index)
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April 17, 1952; Nellis AFB, Nevada
Large group of circular UFOs. [UFOE, III]
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April 17 [18?], 1952; Yuma Test Station, Arizona (BBU 1127)
3:05 p.m. (MST). Group of Army weather observation students, including several graduate engineers saw a flat-white, circular object flew with an irregular trajectory and a brief trail. (Berliner)
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On April 17, Air Force Intelligence warned Col Burgess, at ADC Headquarters, Ent AFB, that a classified source (possibly an electronic intercept) had provided an "indication" of ominous Soviet military activity.
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April 17, 1952; Alaska / Atlantic
7:00 PM. Nationwide Air Defense alert triggered by vapor trails and radar detections indicated a possible Soviet attack. (Jan Aldrich)
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April 17 [13?], 1952; Longmeadow, Mass. (BBU 1124)
8:30 p.m. S. B. Brooks and chemical engineer J. A. Eaton saw a round, deep orange object fly fast and erratic, occasionally emitting a shaft of light to the rear. (Berliner)
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April 18, 1952; Bethesda, Maryland (BBU 1128)
11:30 [1:30?] a.m. (EST). R. Poerstal [Parstel?], Mrage, Watkins and another man [Young?] saw 7-9 circular, orange-yellow lights in a 40° V-formation fly overhead silently from S to N. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 18, 1952; Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada (BBU 1129)
4 [3:30?] a.m. Janitor C. Hamilton saw a yellow-gold object make a sharp turn, leaving a short, dark trail. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 18, 1952; Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada (BBU 1131)
10:10 [9:40?] p.m. Reporter Chic Shave saw a round, yellow-gold object fly S then return. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 18, 1952; 50 miles NW of Kyushu, Japan (BBU 1130) [CCL Item # 29]
12:07 p.m. [9:07 p.m.?] A radar operator tracked unidentified target at 2,700 [2,100?] mph. (Berliner; UFOR Index) (Chop clearance list shows this as April 19. A T-6 pilot, Lt. D.C. Brigham, reported to ATIC the sighting of a small disc shaped object closing in on a fighter, maneuvering around it.)
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April 19, 1952; U.S. Planes Alerted
April 20, 1952; [Flint, Mich.? ] (BBU)
9:15-9:40 p.m. (EST?) Naval aviation student [Kohut ? Choot?], wife and several others at a drive-in movie saw about 20 groups of 2-9 aircraft-shaped objects fly over enveloped in a red glow, mostly on straight-line course, except for occasional standard aircraft-like turns. (Battelle Unknown No. 2; FUFOR Index)
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April 20, 1952; Toronto, Canada
At around 11:00 p.m. local time, the Air Traffic Control at Cleveland Hopkins Airport received calls that objects were sighted west of Toronto heading west and leaving vapor trails. Toronto ATC requested Cleveland to call Niagara AC&W for indentification. At 11:18 p.m., calls came in from 3 RCAF aircrew members who saw four objects traveling east to west. At 11:21 p.m., Buffalo Tower saw vapor trails NW of tower headed SE. At 11:28 p.m., London, Ontario, Tower saw trails north of London and Centralia Tower operator estimated they crossed from horizon to horizon in 3 seconds at between 30,000 and 35,000 feet.
At this same time there were approximately 15 RCAF F-51 and T-3 aircraft airborne and most pilots reported seeing these objects. Trans-Canada Airlines pilots also saw these objects. One pilot reported he was able to track 11 objects on his radar equipment. He said they flew from horizon to horizon in 3 seconds. (Canadian Dept. of National Defence documents; Dan Wilson)
************************************************** *************April 22, 1952; Naha AFB, Okinawa. (BBU 1144)
9 p.m. Crew of B-29 bomber, on ground saw an elliptical object, followed by 2 then another 2, each with a white light that blinked every 1-2 secs as they performed erratic maneuvers. (Berliner)
April 24, 1952; Bellevue Hill, Vermont (BBU 1147)
5:00 a.m. Crew of USAF C-124 transport plane saw 3 circular, bluish objects in loose fingertip formation, 2 flying parallel to the plane. (Berliner; Project 1947)
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April 24, 1952; Great Blue Hill near Milton, Mass. (BBU 1148)
2:30 p.m. (EST) AF Cambridge Research Center, Radar Systems Lsb, Electronics Research Div, electronics engineers, Alfred P. Furnish and Herbert J. Brun, and MIT electrical engineering senior Joseph Page, were in an observation tower on top of Great Blue Hill saw to the NW 2 very thin flat, dull reddish orange squarish objects with no corners or ovals pulled in at the waist about 10-15 ft wide, with a lip around outer edges, fly wobbly in consistently undulating "swooping" motion in horizontal flight at about 2,000 ft altitude.
Objects then climbed about 15° elevation at an estimated 240 mph, then flew away and disappeared due to distance. No trail or exhaust, no sound, visibility 70+ miles. [Unclear whether observers used 6x aircraft tracking telescope.] (Berliner; FUFOR Index; Loren Gross Jan-May 1952
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April 24, 1952; Clovis, New Mexico (BBU 1151)
8:10 p.m. USAF Flight Surgeon Maj. E. L. Ellis saw many orange-amber lights, sometimes separate, sometimes fused, behave erratically, varying speed from motionless to very fast. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 24, 1952; Colorado Springs, Colorado
10:15 pm. MST. Civilian report in BB files but not a BBU. Project 10073 Record Card: "Dark (object) with luminous glow, swept wing, no fuselage. Straight and level maneuvers. Possibly conventional a/c except for the absence of sound. If object was large and report indicates it was, an a/c could be heard...Disappeared behind roof line. Viewed through bare tree branches - no sound. 10 times larger than jet a/c."
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April 25, 1952; Darmstadt, West Germany (BBU)
9:15 pm. (2115 MT) Air Force instructor pilot and his co-pilot in a C-47 observed a brilliant white circular object at a point 2,000 over Darmstadt, West Germany. The pilot, Capt. Wienieski, took evasive action when the light appeared to be on a collision course with their aircraft. He contacted the main Rhein Tower and they in turn contacted Frankfort Airways and they reported that no other aircraft were in the area. The object was last seen climbing at a high rate of speed.in a northwest direction. (Weinstein; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index).
April 25, 1952; San Jose, California
Cat 2. Scientists close encounter with small daylight disc.
April 27, 1952. 1952; Roseville, Mich. (BBU 1160)
4:15 p.m. H. A. Freytag [Freitag?] and 3 male relatives, including a minister, saw an silver oval roll, descend and stop. 2 silver cigar-shaped objects appeared, one departing to the E, one to the W; 3rd silver cigar flew by at high speed. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 27, 1952, Pontiac, Michigan
11:06 pm. Witness observed an object approximately 200 feet in diameter and approximately 200 feet off the ground. This one is labeled insufficient data for evaluation by Project Blue Book.
April 27, 1952; Yuma, Ariz. (BBU 1163)
8:30 p.m. Off-duty control tower operator M/Sgt. G. S. Porter and wife saw a bright red or flame-colored discs, appearing as large as fighter planes; 7 sightings of one disc, one of 2 in formation. All seen below 11,000 ft overcast. (Berliner)
April 27, 1952; Birmingham (NW of Detroit), Mich.
10:45-11:15 [10:06?] p.m. Family of 4 of Mr. [John ?] Hoffman in a car saw a brilliant white round-flat object with 2 tiers of windows descend from the NE, hover with rocking motion at about 15° elevation, stop and start at 100 mph drifting to NW. Witnesses pursued in car, lights went off and on 4 times changed color to white*orange, got 4 other witnesses, called police, Detroit Times newspaper and Selfridge AFB. Object disappeared over treetops to NW. [Same witness(es) as in May 25, June 18, 1952, cases??] (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 70-73; FUFOR Index)
April 28, 1952; Homewood, Illinois
5:00 pm. Two civilian witnesses reported to the Air Force that an object in the SE that resembled a white parachute was apparently circling a large airplane for about three minutes. Not listed in BB unknowns or Sparks CCPBBU.
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April 29, 1952, AFL-200-5
Ruppelt:
The number of reports did take a sharp rise a few days later, however. The cause was the distribution of an order that completed the transformation of the UFO from a bastard son to the family heir. The piece of paper that made Project Blue Book legitimate was Air Force Letter 200-5, Subject: Unidentified Flying Objects. The letter, which was duly signed and sealed by the Secretary of the Air Force, in essence stated that UFO's were not a joke, that the Air Force was making a serious study of the problem, and that Project Blue Book was responsible for the study.
The letter stated that the commander of every Air Force installation was responsible for forwarding all UFO reports to ATIC by wire, with a copy to the Pentagon. Then a more detailed report would be sent by airmail. Most important of all, it gave Project Blue Book the authority to directly contact any Air Force unit in the United States without going through any chain of command. This was almost unheard of in the Air Force and gave our project a lot of prestige.
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April 29, 1952; Marshall, Texas (BBU 1167)
3:30 p.m. (CST). Private pilot R. R. Weidman [Weedsman?] saw a round, white object fly straight, with a side-to-side oscillation. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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April 29 [28?], 1952; N of Goodland, Kansas (BBU 1168)
10 p.m. (CST). B-29 bombardier Lt. R. H. Bauer saw a white fan-shaped light pulsing 3-4 times per second. (Berliner; Project 1947)
Bruce Maccabee:
Ruppelt's claim that at least some high level officers actually believed saucers were interplanetary is confirmed in an indirect way in a memorandum written on April 29, 1952. This document was written to justify a trip to Europe by Dr. Stephen Possony and Lt. Col. Sterling, both members of a special study group that had been organized to study "advanced delivery systems,"
LINK; http://www.nicap.org/520429goodland_dir.htm
April 30, 1952; Moriarty AFS, New Mexico (BBU)
7:40 and 7:46 a.m. (MST). CPS-5 radar tracking of 4,000 mph first target at 230° azimuth (about SW) at 149 miles range moving 11 miles per 10-sec sweep for 4 sweeps heading into the radar site. 2nd track at 7:46 a.m. of 4,000 mph target at 280° azimuth (about W) at 140 miles moving 11 miles per 10-sec sweep for 6 sweeps [toward the radar] until disappearing at about 70 miles range. (McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index)
Ruppelt:
In May 1952, Project Blue Book received 79 UFO reports compared to 99 in April. It looked as if we'd passed the peak and were now on the downhill side. The 178 reports of the past two months...had piled up a sizable backlog....During June we planned to clear out the backlog, and then we could relax. But never underestimate the power of a UFO. In June the big flap hit....- Capt. Edward J. Ruppelt, (Ruppelt, pp. 138-39.)
Early May, 1952; Willow Grove, PA
Time not given. The Naval Air Station Ground Control Approach radar picked up a target in bad weather conditions near the center of the scope. By the next sweep (32 rpm) the target had moved almost five miles, indicating the object was moving approximately 3,600 mph. It was seen to move as the trace swept past it. (A similar evnt occurred at Washington National in July where the target "blossomed" on the scope.)
By the fourth sweep the target had moved off to the ten mile limit of the GCA scope. Target was visible on two radar scopes, operating on two different fequencies, so this was no malfunction. Object was tracked the next day under similar weather conditions. (Project Interloper, Jan Aldrich)
May 1, 1952; Moses Lake, Washington (BBU 1174)
0532 PST, Civilian AEC employees observed a slow moving wingless silver object at 5,000 feet altitude in the Hanford area. Sighting lasted 1 1/2 minutes.
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May 1, 1952; Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Ariz. (BBU)
9:10 am. Two shiny discs overtook a B-36 bomber as it passed over Davis-Monthan AFB in the morning, slowed and positioned themselves near the plane. One moved close alongside and was observed from the waist blister by the crew members. Witnesses on the ground also saw the objects, which were about 20-25 feet in diameter. After several minutes the objects departed at extremely high speed in a southerly direction. (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 109-112; FUFOR Index)
May 1, 1952; George AFB and Apple Valley, California (BBU 1176)
10:50 a.m. (PDT?). 3 men on the arms range, plus Lt. Col. Lyle Albert Silvernail 4 miles away in Apple Valley saw 5 flat-white discs about the diameter of a C-47's wingspan [95 ft] or length of P-51 [32 ft] fly fast about 1,000 mph at about 4,000 ft height, make a 90° turn in a formation of 3 in front and 2 behind, and dart around. Silvernail reported the sighting and was told radar was tracking the object(s) and fighters were being scrambled. Note: Recent informations suggests Silvernail confirmed a radar track. See link above. (Berliner; NICAP) 15-30 secs 5+ witnesses 2 Full Moons ? RV?
May 5, 1952; Tenafly, New Jersey (BBU 1183)
10:45 p.m. Mrs. M. M. Judson saw 6-7 translucent, cream-yellow objects, one moved in an ellipse, others moved in and out. (Berliner) The objects were observed for approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
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May 10, 1952; Paphos, SW Cyprus (BBU)
8:30 p.m. British scientist and others saw a luminous circular object rise from sea level, waver back and forth for an interval before fading from sight directly overhead. (Jan Aldrich)
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May 7, Keesler AFB, Mississippi (BBU 1185)
12:15 p.m. (CST). Capt. Morris, a Master Sergeant, a Staff Sergeant, and an Airman First Class saw an aluminum or silver cylindrical object dart in and out of the clouds 10 times. (Berliner)
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May 7, Barra da Tijuca, Brazil
Questionable UFO photos.
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May 8, 1952; Atlantic, 600 miles E of Jacksonville, Florida (BBU)
2:27 a.m. (EST?) Pilot Capt. Cent and copilot 1st Ofcr Gallagher of Pan Am Flight 203 flying DC-4 airliner at 8,000 ft on 180° heading from NYC to San Juan, Puerto Rico, saw brilliant white approaching from the left below the solid overcast at 10,000 ft. and streak by the left [?] wing at 1/8 to 1/4 mile, followed by 2 smaller orange balls of fire. (NARCAP; McDonald list; Project 1947; Ruppelt pp. 133-4)
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Ruppelt:
May 8, Washington, D.C. Secretary of the Air Force Thomas K. Finletter was briefed for an hour about the Project Blue Book UFO study. He listened intently and asked several questions about specific sightings when the briefing was finished. (Ruppelt, p. 138.)
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May 9, 1952; George AFB, Calif. (BBU 1194)
10:30 a.m. 2 USAF F-86 pilots (Crown and another) in the air and a witness on the ground saw a round silver object. (Berliner; FUFOR Index)
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May 10, 1952; Albuquerque, New Mexico (BBU)
2 [3?] p.m. (MST). USAF Lt. Col. M. G. B. and wife in the yard of their home saw 2 silvery disc-shaped objects one after the other moving SW to NE at above 20,000 ft, first object seeming to waver on axis or "flop over," 2nd object followed similar path but at higher altitude. Officer alerted radar station but unable to track object(s). (McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index)
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May 10, 1952; Paphos, SW Cyprus (BBU)
8:30 p.m. British scientist and others saw a luminous circular object rise from sea level, waver back and forth for an interval before fading from sight directly overhead. (Jan Aldrich)
May 10, 1952; Ellenton, S.C. (BBU 1198)
10:45 pm. Employees of DuPont Corporation at the Savannah River Plant, Atomic Energy Commission, saw four disc-shaped objects approach, then two other discs pass high overhead from different directions. They were luminous yellow-gold color, traveling at a high rate of speed. One disc approached at such a low altitude that it had to rise up to pass over some tall tanks at the facility. One witness reported that the objects were weaving from left to right while continuing on a steady course. (FBI report.)
May 11, 1952; Investigation Requested With Top Priority
The investigation of the Glen Burnie, Maryland, sighting was requested by Col. Cook for General Ackerman and was to be given top priority. (See March 29)
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May 11, 1952; George AFB, Calif. (BBU)
Grendilund. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
May 12, 1952; 40 mi. west of Roswell, NM
9:45 PM UST. Restricted document shows an unidentified flying object was sighted at 2145 hours UST. The object was blue-green in color and its estimated altitude above the terrain was 30,000 to 40,000 feet. The object traveled three times over approximately the same triangular course. Rate of speed could not be precisely estimated but was faster than that of jet aircraft. Intensity of color brightness varied with the objects altitude. (AF Form 112, Fran Ridge)
May 13, 1952; El Centro Naval Air Station, California (BB)
At 3:15 a.m. PST, an F9F pilot taking off from El Centro NAS saw what appeared to be a shooting star diving at an angle of 60 degrees. At around the same time there was a report from the El Centro Sheriff's Office of five "Flying Saucers" as large as B-36's with a light underneath. They disappeared to the southwest at terrific speed. All told there were four separate reports of unidentified aerial object in the El Centro area on this date. (Blue Book docs, Dan Wilson)
May 13, 1952; George AFB, California (BB)
At 2:25 p.m. PDST, a pilot and an observer in an T-6G aircraft flying at 10,500 feet altitude observed a white or silver round object at an estimated altitude of 45,000 feet. The passenger stated that he was looking at the object almost directly overhead when it disappeared very fast, almost like a light being turned off. The object was observed for approximately 30 minutes. (BB files, Dan Wilson)
May 13, 1952; National City, California
8:55 p.m. PDT. A meteor-like object was seen descending over the San Diego Bay area flying in a curving path to the northwest. Later the same or similar object was seen flying nearly the opposite course over the Bay Area.
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1952: VC-35 and the "Bomb", the Aircraft Carriers, and the UFOs - Dan Wilson
May 13, 1952; Greenville, So. Carolina (BBU) Chop Clearance List Item # 15.
10:33 p.m. (EST). Richardson and 3 other amateur astronomers set up telescopes at dark area of Furman University when they saw a diamond formation of 4 oval reddish-yellow or reddish-brown luminous objects nearly overhead and disappeared after 3 secs motion through 12° arc [or at 12° elevation?]. Apparent size of half dollar at arms length, 1/4 turned and wobbling in flight. (BB Status Rpt; FUFOR Index) (Incorrectly listed on Chop Clearance as May 18, 1952).
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May 14, 1952; George AFB, Calif. (BBU)
1:05 p.m. (PST). [Same as May 13?] (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
May 14, 1952; Mayaquez, Puerto Rico (BBU 1213)
7 p.m. Attorney and ex-USAF pilot Mr. Stipes and Sr. Garcia*Mendez saw 2 shining orange spheres: one was stationary, while the other darted away and back for 30 mins. (Berliner)
May 15, 1952; S of Changsong-ni and N of Nangnim Mountain, North Korea (BBU)
11 a.m. USAF Lt. McCarthy and another pilot flying two F-86E jets, 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, 25th FI Sq, at 30,000 ft, airspeed 500 knots, on 280° heading. Sighted a silvery oval*shaped object larger than a MiG jet airplane at 9 o'clock position below, to the S, at estimated altitude of 8,000-10,000 ft, about 1,200-1,500 mph, and about 20 miles away. Object on S to N straight flight path in a "rolling maneuver," disappeared at about 3 o'clock position to N. (Jan Aldrich)
May 15, 1952; S of Changsong-ni and N of Nangnim Mountain, North Korea (BBU)
6:35 p.m. USAF F-51 fighter pilot of 18th Fighter Bomber Group flying F-51 at 9,000 ft on 180° heading at 240 mph sighted 50 ft diameter silver object at 1 o'clock position moving to 3 o'clock at 1,000 mph at about the same altitude, which then started a steep climb, but at the top of the loop the object resumed a horizontal course (heading 360° or N) wavered momentarily, descended and disappeared into the haze which reached an altitude of about 7,000-8,000 feet. (Jan Aldrich)
May 15, 1952; Georgetown, Washington, D.C (BBU)
10:25 p.m. (EST) [9:35? 9:50? p.m. EDT?] USN Lt. H. W. Taylor and Lt. P. G. R. and two girls saw soft golden glowing oval object on straight level path heading S moved through 70° arc. (McDonald files; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index)
AVCAT is a special project being conducted by NICAP, with the help and cooperation of the original compiler of AIRCAT, Dr. Richard Haines, and other sources, to create a comprehensive listing of sightings from aircraft with detailed documentation from these sources, including Projects SIGN, GRUDGE & BLUE BOOK.
UFOs 'Escort' Mexican Aircraft / Radar Confirmed
May 3, 1975
Near Mexico City, Mexico
Richard Hall:
May 3, 1975: Near Mexico City, Mexico;
quote;
"1:34 p.m. local. Carlos Antonio de los Santos Montiel, 23, was flying a Piper PA-24 from Zihuatenejo to Mexico City at about 15,000 feet (4.5 km). While passing over Lake Tequesquitengo, he felt a strange vibration in the plane. Then he saw to the right, pacing alongside, a 10-to 12-foot (3 meters) in diameter disc with a dome on top.
Another appeared to the left of the plane, and a third disc appreached head-on, dropping beneath the plane. Carlos felt a jolt as if the object had collided with his plane. He pulled the landing gear lever, but it failed to operate. The plane felt as if it were being pulled or lifted, and the controls refused to re*spond. Although badly shaken, Carlos notified Mexico City by radio, describing what was happening. At the same time air control radar was showing unexplained objects near his plane that were capable of sharp turns, unlike normal aircraft.
Finally their blips merged on the radar screen and sped away toward Mt. Popocatepetl. After the objects left, Montiel was able to lower his landing gear manually and to land safely. Aviation personnel who know him testified to his sobriety and trustworthiness. (Page 134, The UFO Evidence, Volume II, Hall) (Fran Ridge: Internet source gave wrong date of May 2, 1974! A whole year off.)
Below is the actual transmission/ Recording of the Mexican pilot Carlos Antonio de los Santos Montiel’s Mayday call to Mexico City Benito Juárez International Airport, Mexico City, Mexico
RADAR REPORT;
May 3, 1975. 43 miles from Mexico City Airport. (3)
Airport Terminal Radar Controller, Julio Intrian Diaz, registered the blip of Carlos's plane on radar, the UFO executing a 270-degree turn in a radius of three or four miles at a speed of 450-500 nautical m.p.h..
Finally the interview below with the pilot who witnessed these objects following his plane that where confirmed by the airport radar returns;
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Mexico: An Interview With Carlos de los Santos Montiel
Inexplicata
The Journal of Hispanic Ufology
May 28, 2010
quote;
[Perhaps one of the most shattering UFO events of the year 1975 involved the near-abduction of pilot Carlos de los Santos Montiel as he flew his small aircraft over Central Mexico. The case received worldwide attention and Mr. de los Santos told his story to a number of major researchers and at several UFO conferences. Thirty-five years after the event, Ana Luisa Cid reopens the case – SC]
Mexico: An Interview With Carlos de los Santos Montiel
By Prof. Ana Luisa Cid
I had the opportunity to chat with Captain Carlos Antonio de los Santos on May 17th. He very kindly invited me to breakfast in the company of his wife Carmen and my son Alan. We discussed a variety of subjects, but particularly the experience he underwent in 1975 when three UFOs seized control of the private plane he flew at the time. Without the constraints of a formal interview, very interesting aspects began to emerge.
First and foremost, Captain de los Santos sticks by his original account, which is a good sign for ufologists who have supported him. Then we have the human aspect: Carlos Antonio still shakes when he recalls the events; although he is saddened by the memory of the mockery he was subjected to. With his characteristic kindness, he replied to questions posed by this interviewer regarding the case. For example:
ALC: Did the UFOs cause you any physical harm?
Carlos Antonio: No, considering that they were only 2 meters distant from me, suspended over the small plane’s wings for 18 minutes.
ALC: Were you punished for going public with your experience?
Carlos Antonio: No. When someone said on TV that my pilot’s license had been revoked and that I’d vanished, it was all a lie.
ALC: Why did you fly to Zihuatanejo? The likeliest course of action would have been to stay at Lazaro Cardenas, your original location, before returning to Mexico City.
Carlos Antonio: Because I didn’t like that town and the nearest one (by private plane) was Zihuatanejo, Guerrero.
ALC: Have you been approached again by the so-called Men in Black?
Carlos Antonio: Never again. It only happened on two occasions. The first, when I was going to an interview with Mr. Pedro Ferriz, and the second on the stairway of a hotel, when I was about to meet with the late Dr. J. Allen Hynek.
ALC: Have you had further sightings?
Carlos Antonio: Yes, but not during flight. I even took some photos (they didn’t come out well, he adds). It was a large, luminous object, like a boiled egg split in half.
ALC: What are your thoughts about the incident, 35 years later?
Carlos Antonio: Well, it was something I experienced and it was real. An incident that I am still at a loss to explain. I don’t know where they [the objects] came from, or what their intentions were. Sometimes I think they were curious and that they approached us for this reason, although it could also be that they saved me from some unpleasant situation. The small plane looked good, but it was very old, from 1958. So who knows? Maybe it was about to stall in mid-air, or I was about to lose a wing or the tail section. Or have some other accident...I don’t know.
ALC: Did the objects remove you from your route?
Carlos Antonio: No. I remained within the air corridor. What they did was lift me higher, which is dangerous, since my cabin wasn’t pressurized.
ALC: What do you say to those who claim you suffered from hypoxia and that you “imagined” all of this?
Carlos: Well, they don’t know what they’re talking about. When you experience hypoxia you feel sick, naturally. You’re dizzy and your visual field shuts down, but you don’t hallucinate.
ALC: Furthermore, radar can’t suffer from hypoxia. The objects were detected.
Carlos Antonio: Just so. Two different air traffic controllers detected three unidentified echoes on their screens. Both the route controller and the approach controller.
ALC: In some illustrations of sketches that you allegedly made, I see that the 1975 UFOs had an antenna on their upper part. Is this correct?
Carlos Antonio: This is not correct. They had no antennae. They had opaque grey fuselages and a sort of windshield, but without rivets and completely smooth. I’m going to draw them for you (makes drawing). And don’t think that it’s the only incorrect item of evidence circulating around there. I’ve also seen the date set down incorrectly.
Some put May 2nd and other May 13. Not at all – it was May 3rd, 1975. What I would like to make clear is that my personal and professional reputation is safe thanks to the testimony of air traffic controllers. They had the three objects on their screens, making 270-degree turns in a very tight radius of action.
ALC: Aside from UFOs, have you had other strange experiences?
Carlos Antonio: Yes (the discussion turns to paranormal phenomena and the encounters he had with a very short person, having human features but possibly of alien origin. Unlike the Men in Black, this being behaved courteously)
ALC: Is it true that you’re writing a book?
Carlos Antonio: How did you hear about it? It’s among my plans. We’re working on it.
(Translation (c) 2010, S.Corrales, IHU. Special thanks to Ana Luisa Cid)
One last word on this fascinating case the points below are very important if one was nit picking on the reality of this case as being 100% mystery with witnesses and supported by ground radar;
What we have here is a case where almost all of the aspects of the UFO problem are involved.
1;This is a UFO observation report by a pilot.
2;This is a UFO close encounter.
3;This is a daylight UFO observation.
4;This is case were the reported UFOs are observed at close sight and are solid objet of obvious artificial construction.
4;This is a report of a near air collision between an aircraft and UFOs.
5;This is a report of UFO that have a behaviour which is suggesting intelligent control.
6;This is a case of physical effects on an aircraft.
7;This is a radar/visual case, where a visual sighting is confirmed by independant people detecting the presence of the objects on a detection device.
8;This is a case where the UFOs fly away in direction of Mount Popocatepetl, obviously a hotbed of UFO reports and allegedly some sort of hideout for extraterrestrial aircraft.
9;This is a case where a pilot reports his encounter publicly.
10This is a case where the witness has been medically checked and interviewed. If Hynek could not speak to Los Santos Montiel, at least Jerome Clark and other could.
11;This is a case where the witness stood firm with his account over time.
This is a case where the witness reports that he has been repeatedly intimidated by unidentified people probably from a foreign country (UFO folklore call them "Men in Black").
What more should be said?
12;That I have found no word about this case in the skeptics litterature.(in essence the ridiculer's and debunkers avoid these kind of cases like the plague, their transparency of avoidance is transparent
in their silence;
Here is a selection of radar returns involving UFOs, some of these radar return cases have independent witnesses to back up the radar returns of some of these objects;Again for a more in-depth look at specific cases go to link source and click on individual case link;
UFO Radar Reports
February 24/25, 1942. Southern California
That evening a large number of flares and blinking lights were reported from the vicinity of defense plants. Radars picked up an unidentified target 120 miles west of Los Angeles. Photograph appeared in the LA Times.
|Armament|Blinking|
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Summer and Autumn, 1946. Sweden (1)
Mysterious fireballs and cigar-shaped UFOs. In October 1946. Swedish defense ministry issued a communique that radar had detected about two hundred objects "which cannot be the phenomena referred to as Swedish airplanes."
|Cigar|Fireball|
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Early 1947. (2)
English 'ghost airplanes' that had been picked up on radar...
May 15, 1947. White Sands Proving Ground (WSPG), New Mexico (13/p.55-56)
On 15 May 1947, 'peculiar phenomena' were blamed by Lieutenant Colonel Harlod R. Turner, commanding officer at White Sands Proving Ground (WSPG), New Mexico, for the erratic test flight of a V-2 (A-4) rocket. As the rocket climbed to an intermediate altitude of 40 miles, Kisser learned that radar technicians assigned to US Army Ordnance watched in amazement as another target instantaneously appeared right next to the missle. The V-2 veered off course and crashed to earth minutes later, 40 degrees off the normal flight path. Pending a formal report from the ground search crew, Turner said there were no clues of the missle's behaviour.
|Aerospace|
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May 29, 1947. White Sands Proving Ground (WSPG), New Mexico (13/p.57)
At 19:15, at least one surface-to-air missile with a 674-pound high-explosive warhead was fired at one or more radar targets hovering to the south-west of WSPG Launch Row.
June 21, 1952. Oak Ridge Laboratory, Tennessee.
Source: UFOs Continue To Visit Nuclear Energy Sites By George D. Fawcett
Source: UFOs: A History(April-July, 1950)Loren E. Gross, "News Service Teletype Z134P4/19"
The UFO was observer by Ground Observer Corps volunteers and also detected by radar.
Late June 1952. Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland (2)
Jet fighters had been scrambled almost nightly for a week. On three occasions radar equipped F-94s had locked on aerial targets only to have the lock-on broken by the apparent violent maneuvers of the target.
July 19, 1952. Washington National Airport (2)
Radar sites in three different locations [Air Routing and Traffic Control Center (ARTC), Andrews Air Force Base, Washington National Airport] spotted the objects. F-94s fighters had their onboard radar lock on the targets.
July 20, 1952. Washington and Martinsburg, West Virginia (2)
Captain Casey Pierman on Capital Airlines flight 807. He and the rest of his crew saw seven objects flash across the sky. "Like falling stars without trails." Travelling at tremendous speed. National Airport radar picked up the object.
Late July 1952. (2)
Flight controllers (Air Defense Command) directed pilot Lieutenant William Petterson to five or six unknowns on radar. Suddenly pilot sees brilliant blue-white lights. Closes in for better look and reported they were all around him. Radar room watched intercept on radar scope. They could see what the pilot was telling them on radar.
November 23, 1953. Lake Superior (2)
UFOs being watched on military radar. Traux Air Force Base, Wisconson picked up an unidentified return over the Soo Locks area and restricted air space. A [F-89c] fighter was scrambled from Kinross Field, Michigan to participate in an Active Air Defense Mission. Return from the F-89 disappeared from the CGI station's radarscope after merging (two blips) with UFO. Air Force claim it was another airplane Royal Canadian Air Force Dakota (C-47) later changed to a RCAF jet after deniels by the Canadian government.
July 1, 1954. Walesville, New York (1)
Unidentified radar target tracket over New York State. Scrambled F-94 Starfire jet, Spotted a gleaming, disk-shaped apparatus. Unbearable, suffocating heat pilot bailed out.
March 5, 1957. Rouen, France
Flying to intercept a mysterious radar reflection, an unknown French Air Force pilot photographed this craft in March 1954 (1957?) over Rouen with his gun-sight camera.
May 20, 1957. Britain
Source: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle4974540.ece
Milton Torres. As soon as he scrambled his Sabre jet from RAF Manston in Kent and headed eastwards, he saw the blip on his radar, indicating the presence of an aircraft the size of a B52 about 15 miles away, and he prepared to close in for the kill with a salvo of rockets. But the “aircraftâ€, judged to be hostile and probably Russian, simply vanished. The blip on the radar disappeared.
April 1, 1959. McChord Air Base, Tacoma, Washington (7)
After the crash, a report began circulating that radar at the Air Force base had detected several objects accompanying the cargo plane immediately before and the aircraft was lost.
May 3, 1975. 43 miles from Mexico City Airport. (3)
Airport Terminal Radar Controller, Julio Intrian Diaz, registered the blip of Carlos's plane on radar, the UFO executing a 270-degree turn in a radius of three or four miles at a speed of 450-500 nautical m.p.h..
|Disc|Aeronautics|MIBs|Speed|
************************************************** *************
November 22, 1975. Savannah, Georgia.
Source: UFOs Continue To Visit Nuclear Energy Sites By George D. Fawcett
Source: Clear Intent (The Government Coverup of the UFO Experience), Prentice-Hall, Inc.(1984) (Lawernce Fawcett & Barry Greenwood)
Pilot Frank Auman, Jr. and UFO investigator Arlan Keith Andrews were flying in a private plane near the Savannah, Georgia Nuclear Plant. They saw a bright white UFO maneuvering in the area for four or five minutes. It made a "slight wobble" and then a hard turn, before it flew away. Jacksonville Control Center personnel at Jacksonville, Florida confirmed three UFO sightings(either radar or visuals) by pilots at the site.
December 6, 1977. Between Tokyo and Hawaii
Large triangular craft that paces his F4-11 Phantom for approximately a half-hour. Target pasted solidly on planes radar.
December 27, 1980. Bentwaters AFB, England (2)
Indications one of the nearby British radar facilities had tracked something at about the time a light was seen dropping into the woods at Rendlesham Forest.
July 1993. Lazio to Abruzzo, Italy
In July 1993 from a Radar of Rome (Practica di Mare) and a Radar in the Marche (Falconara marittima) the Italian Air force destroyed a UFO flying from Lazio to Abruzzo with two airt-to-air missles (AAMs).
1994. France
Duboc reported the sighting to Air Traffic Control and Air Defense Operations (CODA); simultaneously CODA recorded an unidentified object on radar crossing the track of the plane. The object seemed to disappear from the radar scope at the same instant as it did from the view of the crew. CODA investigations ruled out a weather balloon or any other aircraft.
"...but there is existing more than 50 such measurements; the wireless sets (radar) of the American Air Force and Navy, which are used in all fighters, cannot be so inaccurate that the information obtained with them can be doubted completely." -- Hermann Oberth.
|Hermann Oberth|
The term "Fast Walker."
Reportedly, foo fighters observed over Korea and Vietnam were sometimes tracked by radar.
Below are some UFO cases direct from the British "CAA" or Civil Aviation Authority";The letter below from the CAA authority seems a bit of a white lie after one reads the UFO encounters listed in the following individual order of their year date from their data base concerning UFO encounters with different aircraft, these reports come directly from the civil aviations authorities data bases as requested by the freedom of information act or FOIA;In short these are official UFO cases involving commercial aircraft and its astonishing that such cases filled on the civil aviation data bases and the legit of them are not in public viewing;
Civil Aviation Authority Finance and Corporate Services Information Management Civil Aviation Authority;
Aviation House GW Gatwick Airport South Crawley West Sussex England RH6 0YR www.caa.co.uk
Telephone 01293 768512 [email protected]
27 January 2010
FOIA reference: F0000921
(Letter from CAA in response to civilian inquiry of UFO incident below
Dear XXXX
I am writing in respect of your recent application of 8 January 2010, for the release of information held by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
You requested all information held relating to an incident on 20 June 2008 where you say a Police helicopter in the vicinity of St Athans RAF base reported seeing an UFO.
You also say that this incident was reported to the CAA and that we had previously denied knowledge of this.You enclosed a letter from South Wales Police confirming that the pilot of the aircraft submitted a report to the CAA. Before I respond to your request of 8 January, I should point out that your previous request, made under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, dated 21 June 2008, referred to this incident as having taken place on 8 June.
Therefore, our search results, and response to you, dated 25 June 2008, related to this date and not the 20 June. In assessing your new request in line with the provisions of the FOI Act 2000, we are able to provide the information below.
The CAA's Mandatory Occurrence Reporting Scheme is intended to record reportable occurrences which endangered or which, if not corrected, would have eendangered or which, if not corrected, would have endangered an
aircraft, its occupants or any other person.
The reporting scheme is not intended to capture information on unidentified flying objects (UFO), but any such sightings are recorded on the database if reported to the CAA by pilots or air traffic controllers. All sightings reported by members of the public are usually forwarded to the Ministry of Defence and so will not usually appear in the CAA's records.
To reiterate, you have requested details on a specific event on the 20 June 2008, which you say involved a police helicopter in the vicinity of St Athans RAF base sighting an alleged UFO.
We have checked our records and we can confirm that:
• We have not received any UFO report on 20 June 2008, from any source.
• We have not received a report from the South Wales Police regarding any
type of occurrence on 20 June 2008.
• We do not have any cancelled database records for 20 June 2008 pertaining to any UFO event or South Wales Police.
source;
Civil Aviation Authority;
Aviation House GW Gatwick Airport South Crawley West Sussex England RH6 0YR www.caa.co.uk
Telephone 01293 768512 [email protected]
• We do not have any record on our 'mail received' database of ever receiving a report from South Wales Police pertaining to an UFO on 20 June 2008.
• We do not have any record of having passed any such report on to the Ministry of Defence.
In summary, we confirm that the CAA has no record of ever receiving a report regarding an UFO on 20 June 2008 from the South Wales Police. However, we are able to provide a summary of all reports of UFOs that have been recorded by the CAA, from 01 January 1976 to 22 January 2010 inclusive, in case this is useful. If you are unhappy with how we have dealt with your request in the first instance you may approach the Freedom of Information Case Manager in writing at:-
Rick Chatfield
FOIA & EIR Case Manager
Civil Aviation Authority
Aviation House
Gatwick Airport South
West Sussex
RH6 0YR [email protected]
The CAA has a formal internal reviewreview process for dealing with appeals or complaints in connection with Freedom of Information requests. The key steps in this process are set in the attachment.
Should you remain dissatisfied with the outcome you have a right under
Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act to appeal against the decision by contacting the Information Commissioner at:- Information Commissioner’s Office FOI/EIR Complaints Resolution
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF www.ico.gov.uk/complaints.aspx
ƒThe original case to which the appeal or complaint relates is identified and the case file is made available; The appeal or complaint is allocated to an Appeal Manager, the appeal is acknowledged and the details of the Appeal Manager are provided to the applicant;
The Appeal Manager reviews the case to understand the nature of the appeal or complaint, reviews the actions and decisions taken in connection with the original case and takes account of any new information that may have been received.This will typically require contact with those persons involved in the original case and consultation with the CAA Legal Department;
ƒThe Appeal Manager concludes the review and, after consultation with those involved with the case, and with the CAA Legal Department, agrees on the course of action to be taken; ƒThe Appeal Manager prepares the necessary response and collates any information to be provided to the applicant; ƒThe response and any necessary information is sent to the applicant, together with information about further rights of appeal to the Information Commissioners Office, including full contact details.
Should you wish to make further Freedom of Information requests, please use the e-form at http://www.caa.co.uk/foi.
Yours sincerely Rick Chatfield
FoIA & EIR Case Manager;
PubRel
Date Printed : 27 January 2010
Safety Regulation Group;
Safety Investigation & Data Department
Aviation House Direct Dial 01293 573220 Switchboard 01293 567171
Gatwick Airport South Direct Fax 01293 573972 Fax 01293 573999
West Sussex E-mail [email protected]
RH6 0YR;
These records were retrieved from the UK CAA Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) system by a member of Safety Data
The MOR system records include information reported to the CAA, information obtained from CAA investigations, and deductions by CAA staff based on the available information.
The authenticity of the contents or the absence of errors and omissions cannot be guaranteed. Records in this system commenced on 1 January 1976 coincident with the introduction of Mandatory Occurrence Reporting in the UK, but occurrences reported voluntarily are also included, and no distinction is made between them. Note: Any data provided from these records are made available on the understanding that they are only to be used for purposes of flight safety and must not be used for other purposes.
SUBJECT: All Mandatory Occurrence Reports received that involve UFO events.
PERIOD : 1 January 1976 - 22 January 2010;
Note: Any data provided from these records are made available on the understanding that they are only to be used for purposes of flight safety and must not be used for other purposes.
************************************************** *************
UFO CASES BELOW;
27/01/2010;
A/C Type : B737 Occurrence Number : 197802646
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 05 Jul 1978
Classification : Occurrences Location : NR LEEDS
Events : Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Occurrence : UNIDENTIFIED BRIGHT LIGHT SEEN 11 O'CLOCK ABOVE
************************************************** *************
Precis :
A/C Type : B727 Occurrence Number : 197904369
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 19 Sep 1979
Classification : Occurrences Location : VICENZA
Events : Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Occurrence : UFO OBSERVED PASSING 200FT BELOW A C
Precis :
MILAN CONTROL REPORTED "NO TRAFFIC.
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : B727 Occurrence Number : 198003311
Flight Phase : Descent Occurrence Date : 11 Jun 1980
Classification : Occurrences Location : VICENZA
Events : Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Occurrence : UFO PASSED CLOSE TO SUBJECT AIRCRAFT
Precis :
OBJECT APPEARED TO BE LIKE A FIGHTER AIRCRAFT DROP TANK;
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : B727 Occurrence Number : 198100542
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 13 Feb 1981
Classification : Occurrences Location : Lyon
Events : Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Occurrence : UNIDENTIFIED FOREIGN OBJECT SEEN ON A C RADAR
Precis :
A SIZEABLE OVAL SHAPED TARGET APPEARED ON RADAR CENTRE-LINE AT LIMIT OF RANGE TRACKING TOWARDS A/C AT VERY HIGH SPEED.NO VISUAL SIGHTING MADE.
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : B727 Occurrence Number : 198201614
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 12 Jun 1982
Classification : Occurrences Location : DINKELSBUHL
Events : Other Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Other Occurrence : LARGE TRANSLUCENT OBJECT, APPROX 500FT LONG, OBSERVED AT 41000FT.
Precis :
ATCC REQUESTED SUBJECT A/C TO INVESTIGATE THIS OBJECT WHICH WAS FOUND TO HAVE THE FORM OF A DOUBLE RECTANGLE SURMOUNTED BY A GLOBE (EGG SHAPE) CROWNED BY A SILVER CONE. OBJECT OBSERVED BY ALL ON BOARD;
A/C Type : B737 Occurrence Number : 198201671
Flight Phase : Descent Occurrence Date : 21 Jun 1982
Classification : Occurrences Location : BRINDISI
Events : Other Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Other Occurrence : UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT SIGHTED BY PILOTS.
Precis :
OBJECT PASSED DOWN LEFT HAND SIDE AT SAME HEIGHT AS A/C (FL230) APPROX 2 MILES AWAY. BLACK SHINY DOUGHNUT SHAPE ABOUT THE SIZE OF A CAR. OBJECT WAS TUMBLING & JUDGED TO BE STATIONARY.
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : BAC 111 Occurrence Number : 198302525
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 18 Aug 1983
Classification : Occurrences Location : FLORENCE
Events : Other Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Other Occurrence : UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT SEEN BY CREW;
LARGE BLACK OBJECT, BALLOON SHAPED WITH LARGE WHITE SPOT ON IT, OBSERVED 10NM SE OF FIRENZA. NO ATTACHMENTS TO OBJECT. SUPP INFO: ITALIAN CAA REPLIED NO MET BALLOON COULD POSSIBLY HAVE BEEN PRESENT AT THE INDICATED PLACE OR TIME.
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : B737 Occurrence Number : 198402477
Flight Phase : Climb Occurrence Date : 09 Aug 1984
Classification : Occurrences Location : Amboise (AMB)
Events : Other Occurrence Location Info :
Pretitle :
Other Occurrence : GREEN FLARE SEEN DESCENDING LEFT TO RIGHT STRAIGHT AHEAD AT FL300.
************************************************** *************
A/C Type : BN2a Trislander Occurrence Number : 198402680
Flight Phase : Cruise Occurrence Date : 24 Aug 1984
Classification : UK Reportable Accident Location : IPSWICH
Events : UK Reportable Accident Location Info :
Pretitle :
UK Reportable Accident : A/C STRUCK OBJECT IN CRUISE. PROPELLER, FUSELAGE,
COWLING & CONTROL RUNS DAMAGED.
Precis :
THE A/C WAS FLYING IN SLIGHT TURBULENCE WHEN A BUMP WAS FELT. JUST BEFORE DESCENT THE RIGHT ENGINE CONTROL WAS FOUND TO BE SEIZED SO AN ASYMMETRIC APPROACH & LANDING WAS EXECUTED. ON INSPECTION IT WAS APPARENT THAT THE LEFT PROPELLER HAD STRUCK AN UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT, PROPELLING IT THROUGH THE CABIN ROOF, WITH A PIECE EXITING THROUGH A WINDOW.
THERE WERE SEVERAL HOLES IN THE FUSELAGE & DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE, AILERON & RUDDER TRIM CABLES. THREE PIECES OF FOREIGN METALLIC OBJECT WERE FOUND, INCLUDING A SMALL CYLINDRICAL MAGNET. THE UFO HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED. (AIB BULLETIN 10/84). SEE DIGEST 84/D/43.CAA CLOSURE: NO INFORMATION RECEIVED CONCERNING NATURE OR ORIGIN OF UFO.
Sovereignty and the UFO Situation/Perceptions;
This article by Alexander Wendt of the Ohio State University and Raymond Duvall of the University of Minnesota is bang on the money who different areas of the modern world perceive and view the UFO situation;They go on in detail as to the main prejudices and ridicule emanating from religious, scientific and political institutions and how Sovereignty and the UFO enigma are really important to world religious and political influences.Well worth a read for those interested in these kind of statements from academical sources and backgrounds giving this subject much needed academical credibility.
Sovereignty and the UFO
Alexander Wendt The Ohio State University
Raymond Duvall University of Minnesota;
http://ptx.sagepub.com/content/36/4/607
The online version of this article can be found at:
DOI: 10.1177/0090591708317902
Political Theory 2008 36: 607 originally published online 11 June 2008
Alexander Wendt and Raymond Duvall
What is This?
OnlineFirst Version of Record - Jun 11, 2008
>> Version of Record - Jul 25, 2008
Downloaded from ptx.sagepub.com by guest on February 18, 2012Pol
quote;
"Modern sovereignty is anthropocentric, constituted and organized by reference to human beings alone. Although a metaphysical assumption, anthropocentrism is of immense practical import, enabling modern states to command loyalty and resources from their subjects in pursuit of political projects. It has limits,however, which are brought clearly into view by the authoritative taboo on taking UFOs seriously. UFOs have never been systematically investigated by science or the state, because it is assumed to be known that none are extraterrestrial.
Yet in fact this is not known, which makes the UFO taboo puzzling given the ET possibility. Drawing on the work of Giorgio Agamben, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida, the puzzle is explained by the functional imperatives of anthropocentric sovereignty, which cannot decide a UFO exception to anthropocentrism while preserving the ability to make such a decision.The UFO can be “known” only by not asking what it is.Keywords: sovereignty; UFOs; state of exception; undecidability; epistemology of ignorance; AgambenAn Anthropocentric Sovereignty Few ideas today are as contested as sovereignty, in theory or in practice.
In sovereignty theory scholars disagree about almost everything—what sovereignty is and where it resides, how it relates to law, whether it is divisible, how its subjects and objects are constituted, and whether it is being transformed in late modernity. These debates are mirrored in contemporary practice, where struggles for self-determination and territorial revisionism have generated among the bitterest conflicts in modern times.
Throughout this contestation, however, one thing is taken for granted:
sovereignty is the province of humans alone. Animals and Nature are
assumed to lack the cognitive capacity and/or subjectivity to be sovereign;
and while God might have ultimate sovereignty, even most religious fundamentalists grant that it is not exercised directly in the temporal world.
When Downloaded from ptx.sagepub.com by guest on February 18, 2012608 Political Theory over eignty is contested today, therefore, it is always and only among humans, horizontally so to speak, rather than vertically with Nature or God.In this way modern sovereignty is anthropocentric, or constituted and organized by reference to human beings alone.
************************************************** *************
1;
Humans live within physical constraints, but are solely responsible for deciding their norms and practices under those constraints. Despite the wide variety of institutional forms taken by sovereignty today, they are homologous in this fundamental respect.Anthropocentric sovereignty might seem necessary; after all, who else,besides humans, might rule? Nevertheless, historically sovereignty was less anthropocentric. For millennia Nature and the gods were thought to have causal powers and subjectivities that enabled them to share sovereignty with humans, if not exercise dominion outright.
2;
Authoritative belief in non-human sovereignties was given up only after long and bitter struggle about the “borders of the social world,” in which who/what could be sovereign depends on who/what should be included in society.
3;
In modernity God and Nature are excluded, although in this exclusion they are also reincluded as the domesticated Other. Thus, while no longer temporally sovereign, God is included today through people who are seen to speak on Her behalf. And while Nature has been disenchanted, stripped of its subjectivity, it is re-included as object in the human world. These inclusive exclusions, however, reinforce the assumption that humans alone can be sovereign.
In this light anthropocentric sovereignty must be seen as a contingent historical achievement, not just a requirement of common sense.Indeed, it is a metaphysical achievement, since it is in anthropocentric Authors’ Note: We are grateful to an unusually large number of people for written comments that improved this article significantly: Hayward Alker,
Thierry Balzacq, Tarak Barkawi,
Michael Barkun, Jens Bartelson, Andreas Behnke, Janice Bially Mattern, Corneliu Bjola,Aldous Cheung, Arjun Chowdhury, Pam Cuce, Jodi Dean, Kevin Duska, Nancy Ettlinger, EricGrynaviski, Ayten Gündogˇdu, Todd Hall, Eugene Holland, Bonnie Honig, Peter Katzenstein,Sean Kay, Tahseen Kazi, Oded Lowenheim, Ramzy Mardini, Jennifer Mitzen, Nuno Monteiro,
Homeira Moshirzadeh, John Mowitt, Daniel Nexon, Irfan Nooruddin, Dorothy Noyes,Jonathan Obert, Fabio Petito, Trevor Pinch, Sergei Prozorov, Mark Rodeghier, Diego Rossello,Keven Ruby, Jacob Schiff, Allan Silverman, Frank Stengel, Michael Swords, Alexander Thompson, Srdjan Vucetic, Ole Waever, Jutta Weldes, Hans Wendt,
Rafi Youatt, and twoanonymous reviewers.The article also benefited from presentations at the University ofChicago, Northwestern University, the Ohio State University, Ohio-Wesleyan University,Princeton University, and the 2007 annual convention of the International Studies Association in Chicago. The research assistance of Dane Imerman and Lorenzo Zambernardi is also acknowledged. The article was inspired by a video of John Mack.
terms that humans today understand their place in the physical world. Thus
operates what Giorgio Agamben calls the “anthropological machine.”
4;
In some areas this metaphysics admittedly is contested. Suggestions of
animal consciousness fuel calls for animal rights, for example, and advocates of “Intelligent Design” think God is necessary to explain Nature’s
complexity. Yet, such challenges do not threaten the principle that
sovereignty, the capacity to decide the norm and exception to it, must necessarily be human. Animals or Nature might deserve rights, but humans
will decide that; and even Intelligent Designers do not claim that God exercises temporal sovereignty. With respect to sovereignty, at least, anthropocentrism is taken to be common sense, even in political theory, where it is rarely problematic.
5;
This “common sense” is nevertheless of immense practical significance
in the mobilization of power and violence for political projects. Modern
systems of rule are able to command exceptional loyalty and resources
from their subjects on the shared assumption that the only potential sovereigns are human. Imagine a counterfactual world in which God visibly
materialized (as in the Christians’ “Second Coming,” for example): to
whom would people give their loyalty, and could states in their present form survive were such a question politically salient?
Anything that challenged anthropocentric sovereignty, it seems, would challenge the foundations of modern rule.In this article we develop this point and explore its implications for political theory.
Specifically, our intent is to highlight and engage critically the limits of anthropocentric sovereignty. In doing so, we seek to contribute to an eclectic line of critical theory of modern rule—if not sovereign typer se—which problematizes its anthropocentrism, a line that connects(however awkwardly and indirectly) Spinozan studies (including Donna Haraway and Gilles Deleuze) to Michel Foucault, Giorgio Agamben, Jane Bennett, and others.
7;
the authoritative disregard for which brings clearly into view the limits of anthropocentric metaphysics.We proceed in four sections. In the first, we describe an animating puzzle—the “UFO taboo”—in order to set the empirical basis for our theoretical intervention. In the next we make this taboo puzzling through an immanent critique of the authoritative claim that UFOs are not extraterrestrial(ET). Then, in the third section, we solve the puzzle through a theoretical analysis of the metaphysical threat that the UFO poses to anthropocentric sovereignty.We conclude with some implications for theory and practice.
The Ohio State University
Raymond Duvall
University of Minnesota
Abstract
Modern sovereignty is anthropocentric, constituted and organized by reference to human beings alone. Although a metaphysical assumption, anthropocentrism is of immense practical import, enabling modern states to command loyalty and resources from their subjects in pursuit of political projects. It has limits, however, which are brought clearly into view by the authoritative taboo on taking UFOs seriously. UFOs have never been systematically investigated by science or the state, because it is assumed to be known that none are extraterrestrial.
Yet in fact this is not known, which makes the UFO taboo puzzling given the ET possibility. Drawing on the work of Giorgio Agamben, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida, the puzzle is explained by the functional imperatives of anthropocentric sovereignty, which cannot decide a UFO exception to anthropocentrism while preserving the ability to make such a decision. The UFO can be “known” only by not asking what it is.
Probably one of the most famous UFO cases in the USA in recent times and that is the "UFOs over Phoenix" that occurred on night and witnessed by hundreds of people; Below is a video showing actual witness video evidence and text looking a bit deeper to this remarkable case;
UFOs Over Phoenix: The V-Shaped Object
A mysterious "V" shaped object passed over Phoenix in the early evening. It was seen by thousands of people.
Editor's Note-March 13th was the anniversary of one of the most significant UFO events in history; The UFO Chronicles will underscore the event with various articles both past & present, throughout the month-FW
quote;
In the May issue of the MUFON UFO Journal, there appeared a very misleading article by Bill Hamilton on the Phoenix Lights of March 13, 1997. That article represented a biased judgment of events and incorrect facts. Now, with these facts in mind, I am presenting the true information of the still ongoing investigation.
At about 8:30 p.m. Thursday, the 13th of March, Peter Davenport at the UFO Reporting Center in Seattle, WA, started receiving calls, first from the northwest part of Arizona, of a formation of lights moving south toward Prescott, AZ. These lights formed a basic triangle with as many as six or seven lights per side with two red lights trailing.
The real time line for this event is somewhere around 8:00 p.m. MST. As the calls kept flowing in, the description changed as to how many lights were involved. Some even said there were no lights at all, but they could see a black mass blocking out the stars as it passed between the viewer and the sky. The general description was of a "V," but it also resembled a crown with lights that formed an upward triangle. These lights were not like aircraft landing lights but more like stars. This description would change as the objects moved into the Phoenix area.
The only consistent properties of the object(s) would be that there were no sound and very slow movement. However, if there was only one object, it could not have covered that distance in such a short time. This is a real "Catch-22," but may be the key to the solution. I know of three V formations that night and there may be more.
As the readers may know, all of this was broadcast worldwide at 11:00 PST on Art Bell's Coast-to-Coast talk radio program. I knew it would be a very busy day for me the next morning, so I retired. I was involved with the videos of this event even before it happened. I received a call from Tom Taylor, our state director for MUFON, that a person in Paradise Valley had been taping lights west of the TV towers on South Mountain for over two years, suggesting that I make contact with her to view the footage. I did so and set the next Wednesday, the 12th at 9:00 a.m., for her to come to my home to view the tapes.
Due to the death of Mr. Taylor's mother, I changed the meeting date to the 14th, Friday, the day after the events of the 13th. While talking to her on the phone, I discussed the idea that she might be seeing flares from the Gila Bend Gunnery Range. She felt this was not the case, so we met Friday around 10:15 a.m.
Even before her arrival, the news media were at my house getting my reaction to the events of the night before. I had only seen one video, the formation shot by Chuck Rairden from Apache Junction. I told them that in a few minutes I would have a second video for all of us to see, because this lady had caught the event, too. The news programs broke the story with their 4:30 p.m. edition. From that time on, the phones never stopped ringing and the news people kept coming.
I started to collect all the videos I could find and interviewed other witnesses. The first videos I obtained were of lights that appeared to be over the city of Phoenix and it was those videos that made the news programs. It would be some days later before I could obtain the only video of five lights flying to the south taken at 56th Street and Carefree Highway.
I have been involved in the collection of data, returning calls, and doing the interviews, which now number over seventy witnesses, of which I found 53 to be credible. The real investigating doesn't start until the last reports come in. One of the best investigation tools was a two-hour talk show I did with Bill Strauss on KTAR radio. Mr. Strauss is a very fair talk show host and allows the callers to tell their stories.
It was during that show that I realized that the people who saw the V formations flying overhead out-numbered the people who saw the lights near the Estrella Mountains by a very high ratio. The V formation lights looked like stars with the brightness of Sirius, whereas the lights over the Estrella Mountains appeared as super bright landing lights. This was very puzzling, because I had the video of the flying V formation where the lights are barely noticeable. So, why did 98% of the sightings pertain to the V formation? Four things are responsible for this:
1. People were outside looking to the northwest to see the Hale-Bopp Comet.
2. The best time to view Hale-Bopp was between 8:00 and 8:30 p.m. MST.
3. It was in motion flying toward them.
4. The altitude didn't matter as long as you were outside. You had to be at a higher elevation and have a clear view to the southwest to see the lights above and behind the Estrellas.
We will come back to the V formation again. Now we needed to find out why we had seven videos of the Estrella lights, but only a few witnesses.
At this point, all of the TV stations were running the same video clips. People were being confused and thought the videos showed the V formation, which they didn't, but instead showed the lights to be over the city of Phoenix and that is what I mistakenly thought, too.
I don't know how many times I looked at those tapes and couldn't find the common thread. I received a call from a family far to the west of Phoenix where they, too, had taped the lights the night of the 13th and many other times. I made the long drive out to 222nd Avenue and Jackrabbit Blvd to view the tape. The tape did not impress me but the people did. They said that the lights appear between 8:00 and 10:00 pm were always in the same place and would drift laterally.
They also said that a lot of helicopter and fighter aircraft traffic was observed at times when these lights appeared. The highest activity was in the mid-part of the month and the most common days were Monday through Thursday.
The other key item was that a large area of Bureau of Land Management land had been cordoned off in the direction of the lights. The woman's future son-in-law could see the land below the lights being illuminated like daylight. This was one of the keys, but I couldn't see how it would fit into the puzzle at that time.
The next key was the person who taped both the Estrella lights and the V formation. He had some airline pilots, "off the record," mark on the map the location and estimated elevation of the Estrella lights. Since I could not talk to them directly, I simply noted this on my map.
The final key to the solution was also the biggest mystery. Why did all videos of 3-13-97 at 10:00 p.m. have a different number of lights, different order of starting and decay, and shapes?
It was really dependent upon the observation point of the witness in the Phoenix area and, most important, how high their viewing point was. It turned out that the lights were not over Phoenix, but near the Estrella Mountains to the southwest. This determination was made after viewing all the video tapes and going to all but one of the sites and shooting 35mm film in daylight. Using the point marked by the pilot, I drew a line from each of the sites where the Estrella lights were taped.
On the Rairden tape there are nine lights, but only eight lights on the Moon Valley footage. I re-ran the Moon Valley footage and just in the early part you see a light form briefly which then goes out, but did it really? No, something must have blocked it out, but it was still there in the Rairden footage. As the lights drifted downward, some lights were blocked out by the many small peaks making up the Estrella range.
In the videos that I acquired, there were two people who had been recording these Estrella lights for months. What I wanted to find was footage where a tripod was used and the zoom lens was left in one spot. To my surprise there were several clips that met these specifications.
What I did next was to mark at the end of each segment the ground position on a monitor and the ending position of each light. When I ran the editor video deck in reverse, I could see each light rise in altitude and drift to the right or to the left. In all the video clips the results were the same. Just before each light went out, there was an increase in the descent of each light.
So what did this prove? Going back to the first newscasts, they ended by saying the Army National Guard said that just before 10:00 p.m. on March 13, 1997, they shot off target flares for training. We had dismissed this at first because the witnesses felt certain these lights were in front of South Mountain and over the city. This caused the early confusion of the V formation with these lights. The flares are very bright even at a distance of 50 miles and will overload a camcorder chip.
They also have a parachute attached to them. As the flare is positioned and ignites, the heat from the flare heats the air above, which is trapped in its parachute, causing it to slow down its descent. Toward its final phase, before extinguishing, the heat output decreases and the flare will start to fall faster. It will also have a lateral motion due to its delivery system, either hindered by the prevailing winds or accelerated.
All the videos that I tested for that night or other nights showed this feature. Even the control tower people at Sky Harbor Airport said they saw smoke emanating from the flares. Let's quickly review the evidence for the case for flares behind the Estrellas:
1. These events have been going on for some time, three months or more.
2. The color is bright amber.
3. Smoke was seen by some.
4. The on to off time of each light is very consistent.
5. The general time lines and dates are repeated (for that night they occurred at 8:30, 9:25, and 10:00 pm)
6. Mostly week nights.7. The Gila Bend Gunnery Range hours match the time line.
8. All drop vertically and move in a lateral direction consistent with flares.
9. All video tapes that have the complete cycle, that is, from start to finish, show this.
10. Two videos, shot at close range, seem to show smoke flowing around them.
11. On one of the tapes, the person asks if they are flares.
12. The Army National Guard said they shot-off these flares.
13. Six news programs announced that the military said they were flares and two reports were from military pilots who located them at the Gila Bend Gunnery Range behind the Estrella Mountains.
Due to the multitude of events that night and the confusion of these lights with the V formation, I didn't concentrate on this event. In fact, if these nine flares hadn't been fired off that night, the real big story—the one that needs to be solved—would not have made the TV news. The reason is that there is only one video, so far, that has been brought forward, and even though it was shot with a Sony Hi 8, the lights can barely be seen. I had to stretch the light scale in Adobe Premier for it to be used on the first Strange Universe show.
Flares, then, appear to be the answer for the lights near the Estrella Mountains. Journal readers may have seen these videos on the national TV news coverage. However, they cannot be the answer for the V formation.
What was this V formation seen by so many across the state of Arizona the evening of the 13th? If you use the 42 second video clip to make a judgment, you will see the last light on the western side move to the rear and maintain its alignment. If you drew lines through the points to make a five-point V, the sides appear to be slightly bowed to the outside. You hear no sound but only the person taking the video and his comments. The night was hazy at that location so no stars appear in this video clip.
Luke AFB floated four stories about the V formation:
1. It was a flight of Blue Angels coming from Nellis AFB in Nevada. (Linda M. Howe said that a formation of five was also seen over Las Vegas heading southwest. The Blue Angels were not due for another day.)
2. It was a squadron of A 10s on a night training mission heading back to Tucson.
3. None of ours!
4. A private plane with a skilled pilot flying between restricted air corridors with a string of lights a mile long. I like that one myself — yeah, right!
The question is why did Luke AFB change their stories? The Army National Guard didn't.
Even though the V formation may or may not prove to be a real UFO after a thorough investigation, the other so-called "sightings of the decade" may well fade into history.
As Paul Harvey says, "Now you know the rest of the story." In the meantime, the real investigation is still going on ...
Please see the map which shows the directions in which the witnesses were observing the flares beyond the Estrella Mountains. Thomas R. Taylor, State Director for Arizona, supports this investigation and preliminary report.
* Special Thanks To Clifford Clift, MUFON International Director, and especially to Richard Motzer for his excellent field work and report.
4 Steps to Becoming a MUFON Field Investigator
See Also:
Phoenix Lights:
Vintage Interview with Tim Ley, Mike Fortson, Frances Barwood and Richard Motzer
The Phoenix Lights:
After 12 Years, Original Photographic Expert, Jim Dilettoso Reverses Position - Says Famed Video 'Could Be Flares!'
The Phoenix Lights:
Flares or Huge Craft? Mike Fortson, Frances Emma Barwood & Dr Bruce Maccabee Set The Record Straight on The Joiner Report
The Massive UFO Flyover of Arizona, March 13, 1997 (AKA The Phoenix Lights): For Those of You Who Did Not Come Forward;
quote;
This is being written for those in mind who may have witnessed something “unusual at the very least” and or “life-changing” at the top of the WOW! meter, on Thursday, March 13, 1997. (This could have been anytime from about 5:00 pm March 13, 1997 through 4 am., March 14, 1997). This is for you if you saw something and decided to keep it to yourself.
I have always preferred “The Massive UFO Flyover of Arizona, March 13, 1997,” over the term, “The Phoenix Lights” as the former is by far the most descriptive title regarding the true events state-wide, not just lights at or near the city. The term, “Phoenix Lights” is simply not accurate.
The name came into being as 2 of the 5, “10 pm videos” (Rairdon & Kitei) of "mysterious lights" that slowly appeared and then disappeared, were aired on local news stations beginning the following day (Friday March 14th) and were erroneously depicted as being over Phoenix proper. These night-time video’s were shot by residents living in mountain-side homes; the respective cameras were
pointed in a southwest direction with the Phoenix metro area in the foreground and the Estrella Mountain Range as the backdrop. The lights recorded were later proven to be flares dropped at (unusually) high altitude some 45-60 miles away by the Maryland Air National Guard. Thus, the name “Phoenix Lights” was born and by the same token confusion (which still exists today) between the flare drop footage and the “real, remarkable UFO events” which occurred on that date.
Speaking as a witness, it’s safe to say that those of you who were privileged to have observed the massive UFO—did tell someone! If not, how did you do it?! How did you vent the emotion? How could you keep it to yourself?! Having gone through the experience (myself) . . . seeing something that does not compute; that goes against the grain of how one was raised, and or what falls outside of that which society dictates is normal—the natural desire is to share the experience with folks, or seek out others who experienced the same phenomenon.
After 15 years we now know, given the area the UFO(s) traversed; the weather conditions, as well as the fact that people were sky-watching for the Hale Bopp comet that evening—only a fraction of the actual witnesses went public. So what did you do? Did you write about your sighting in a log, or sketch what you saw on paper and keep it private? Do you still see it in your memories? Do you still think about it and what it possibly was or where it was from? Did you take a snapshot or record a video? If you did, would you share it now? Would you be willing to tell your story now? It’s been 15 years . . . isn’t it time to talk?
If you still don’t want to do this, I do understand.
I really don’t pass blame on anyone who failed to come forward. All too many of you have said over and over, “I don’t like the way the media is treating witnesses”—and you are right! The media did their best to simplify the sighting and belittle the witnesses. I don’t blame you for not coming forward.
It still occurs today! That is when a witness is recounting seeing the massive craft in the 8 o’clock hour; they (the media) will show the 10 pm flare videos in the background, thus confusing everyone. This is done intentionally, not just because of the lack of videos in the 8 o’clock hour.
The media and the “medium” they employ to present the news is forever evolving; however, the emphasis then (in ’97) as it is today is centered on the “visual”; seemingly, news organizations feel obligated to show “something” that is illustrative (if “actual” images aren’t in hand) along with their respective topics even if it’s detrimental to the facts of the matter—the reporting of the “so-called” Phoenix Lights is the prime example of this confusing practice.
I Chose To Talk.
Our sighting (my wife and I) was at 8:30 pm Thursday evening, March 13, 1997 from our home in Chandler, AZ. It was intense to say the least. Total sighting in duration was approximately 2-3 minutes. We were looking to our northwest horizon from the western edge of our patio. The lights from the Phoenix-metro area gave us a grey background looking low to the northwest sky. And in that grey background light was a solid black chevron shaped craft of unbelievable length.
We watched this massive craft pass by in front of us. It was incredibly low to the surface and it made no noise. From nose to the end of the left wing was over 30” at arm’s length. I’ve always said, “that-son-of-a-bitch is a mile long!”
I also remember telling myself not to blink. We wondered then, if anyone else had seen this massive, silent V-shaped craft as it passed through the area. (The term chevron, V-shaped or boomerang would all be accurate as to the shape of the craft). We never considered fetching a camera or yelling for a neighbor; we were truly “frozen” in our tracks! We were doing our best to take it all in. It was as if we knew immediately that this was indeed a very special event that was slowly passing in front of us.
Please keep in mind this was in 1997. There were very few cell phones and none with a camera feature. Very few video cameras worked in the dark night sky. Sony was the only one with a "0 LUX" feature. So, please give witnesses a break for not running to get a camera. I think it would be fair to say that most, if not all who did not film their sighting are satisfied by staying with the sighting and not leaving the once-in-a-lifetime-experience to get said camera.
I’ve been involved now for almost 15 years. Not as an investigator, but as a very active witness. I still enjoy meeting or reading reports from new witnesses coming forward to tell their story. I know there are still hundreds and maybe even thousands more who have yet to tell their respective stories. There has to be!
What If
Just think how much the “Phoenix Lights” case would have been better investigated if former Governor Fife Symington had come forward on March 14th, and told publicly what he had seen on March 13, 1997, instead of coming out of the closet some 10 years after the fact. As Governor, he had contacts with civilian and military leaders. He could have made a difference; however, I understand why he waited—it’s called political suicide!
There were at least two other Arizona politicians involved that also chose not to speak up; both were state legislators. Each saw the massive craft in the 8 o’clock hour, and sadly decided not to speak openly and publicly about their respective experiences.
The only politician to do anything about the mass sightings was Frances Emma Barwood. She was not a witness to the mass sighting, but an active Phoenix city councilwoman who had the common sense to ask during a city council meeting, “why aren’t we investigating reported violations in our protected airspace (Sky Harbor International Airport)?” She was immediately attacked by the media. She lost her next election. Now, here’s some good news about this wonderful lady. Because she did come forward . . . hundreds of witnesses called her office to report their sighting on March 13—thank you Frances for your valuable contribution!
Then we have the police and firefighters who were practicing search and rescue drills in the north valley near Cave Creek. They witnessed the massive V shaped craft as it passed over their location. They chose to remain silent as well. One very interesting fact was that—there was also a helicopter and pilot present. The pilot refused to go up and get a better look.
What a difference that would have been if he had chosen to approach the craft and film it from his helicopter! I understand why they did not come forward. They all knew reporting something of this nature would have negative results on their careers. For this fact . . . I do understand.
Consider what might have transpired to the investigation if the above groups and or individuals would have come forward and revealed their sightings. The governor of Arizona, two state legislators and a group of mountain rescue police and firefighters, with an operational helicopter! What a difference this would have added to the investigation had they chosen to step up and take action! Yet, they all chose not to do so. Admittedly, I do understand why . . . it’s the media, and the powers-that-be controlling the media.
Since coming forward, I have encountered many types of media coverage. Live talk radio is by far the best: uninterrupted, uncut, and unedited; live discussion is the unbeatable way to communicate. Cable network documentaries have yet to get it right; they (also) deem it necessary to use “visual aids” (i.e., flare footage) in their videos; acting as if it’s a possible UFO, already knowing it’s flares.
Because of the actions or inactions of the media, the true story of what happened on the evening of March 13, 1997, throughout the great state of Arizona, will not be told . . . not completely.
There are still too many missing pieces to this grand puzzle. These pieces are those of you who failed to report your sighting. It is still very important. Where were you? What time was it? What direction were you looking? How long did it last? Did you feel threatened by the experience? Did you feel the craft you were observing was not of this Earth?
It’s still not too late to open up and tell your story. But, if you chose not to…it’s ok. I truly do understand.
See Also:
PHOENIX LIGHTS: Project SNOWBIRD and the Flare Drop
An Interview By Kenny Young
Phoenix Lights:
The Massive UFO Flyover of Arizona-March 13, 1997
12th Years of Retrospect
Phoenix Lights: Vintage Interview with Tim Ley, Mike Fortson, Frances Barwood and Richard Motzer
Remarkable UFO sighting in Northern Chile;1971;
Here we have a case from Chile and yet again containing high strangeness, also we have credible police witnesses and their testimony
Remarkable UFO sighting in Northern Chile
Antonio Huneeus | Nov 03, 2010;
The world’s attention focused on Chile recently due to the extraordinary rescue of the 33 miners trapped in the copper mine of San José near Copiapó, which was broadcast live by all major news networks and received unprecedented international attention.
There is no UFO angle to this story as far as I know, but it was a good excuse to look for interesting cases from northern Chile. The Atacama Desert region, where most of Chile’s copper mines are located, is the driest area in the world. Most of the population live in coastal cities and in a few mining towns. This region is also famous for its clear skies and it has become probably the world’s largest astronomical area.
The U.S. and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) have built over the years a number of sophisticated observatories, including the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, and ESO’s Observatories in La Silla and a new one called Paranal, which ESO calls “the world’s most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory.” There is also a place in Atacama called Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon), where not a single drop of rain has fallen in hundreds of years. It is in this alien-looking terrain where NASA tested its Mars probes.
With all this celestial lore and incredible clear skies, it’s not surprising that Chile’s northern Atacama region is also rich in UFO sightings. I have many interesting cases in my files, including a couple of fighter jet scramble cases out of the Cerro Moreno Air Force Base in Antofagasta in the late 1970s, but for now I want to discuss a dramatic Close Encounter of the First Kind (CE-I), which occurred near the port of Tocopilla in the Antofagasta region on the night of September 23-24, 1971.
Map of northern Chile showing Tocopilla (in the upper darker area) and Copiapó, where the miners were rescued (lower yellow area). (image credit: chile-travel.com)
A POLICE CE-I
This case is well documented, as it was reported to and investigated by the Chilean police (Carabineros) and seen by dozens of witnesses. It is virtually unknown in the English UFO literature—the only source in English that I know of was an outline of the case I wrote for the paper, “A Historical Survey of UFO Cases in Chile,” published in the MUFON 1987 International UFO Symposium Proceedings.
Besides press accounts, I obtained long ago—courtesy of investigator Luis Riquelme of the Chilean UFO group Orion—a copy of a May 12, 1979 handwritten report signed by a retired police colonel, who was in active service at the time of the incident in 1971. Beginning around 10 p.m. on the night of September 23, a stationary light over the ocean was seen by numerous witnesses in Tocopilla. One of them, who saw the object with binoculars, described it as artificially constructed, with intermittent lights and round windows like a ship’s porthole.
One of the witnesses quoted in the press at the time was the reporter Daniel Cavieres from the Tocopilla newspaper La Prensa. In an interview with the Santiago newspaper Las Ultimas Noticias, Cavieres said that, “around 22 hours [10 p.m.] on Thursday, I was surprised to see off the coast of Tocopilla something that seemed to be a stationary ship with lots of lights. Normally, when ships navigate on the high seas they only use the officially required lights, which are not many. But in this case there was an abundance of lights, which triggered my curiosity. Moreover, I noticed green and red lights which blinked intermittently.”
The reporter looked at the object with binoculars and noticed what seemed like portholes and a cabin. Although puzzled, he assumed it was just a ship, not a UFO. Other witnesses, however, thought otherwise. Patricia Miranda, a 15-year old student, immediately alerted her family, yelling when she first saw the object in the sea near Tocopilla, “Look! A flying saucer!”
That was just the beginning. At 1:30 a.m. on September 24, two different truck drivers traveling from Antofagasta to Tocopilla came across a brightly lit object hovering on the coast. The truck drivers rushed to the nearest police station in Tocopilla. Though skeptical at first, a police van with a sergeant and two corporals was dispatched to “KM 33,” the site where the trucks had stopped to look at the UFO.
The carabineros confirmed the UFO immediately and kept it under constant watch until 5:30 a.m.; they reported by radio its maneuvers to the Tocopilla “comisería” (police station). A report of the event was filed later with the Carabineros Northern Headquarters in Antofagasta and a copy of it was obtained by Las Ultimas Noticias. The police report informed:
“It was possible to confirm that at more or less 2 km. [1.24 miles] from the coast, such artifact remained totally lit, changing places at great speed…later on it came close to the beach of Caleta Buena…. At a distance of 150 meters [492 feet], it could be seen that the object had an approximate diameter of 20 meters [66 feet], with a helicopter-like cabin totally lit and with sections like windows. It was approximately 30 meters [98 feet] above the sea level, being impossible to identify its origin.”
Tocopilla Bay (image credit: tripadvisor.com)
Sept. 25, 1971 article from Las Ultimas Noticias, “The UFO with ‘Birth Certificate’ in the North.”
The colonel’s handwritten report to Orion, dated May 12, 1979, goes into still further details. The colonel reveals, for instance, that the sergeant walked towards the cliff armed with a rifle. “When he arrived to the place where he couldn’t advance further (the edge of the cliff), the sergeant yelled toward the sea; not obtaining a response he made a series of shots towards the luminous object,” states this second police report. “Suddenly, this object moved extremely fast in the direction of the rocky cliff, arriving at a distance no more than 50 meters [164 feet] from the place where the police were.”
At that point, continues the report, “the whole area became illuminated like at daytime.” The document quoted also the description of one of the corporals, according to which the UFO was “a sort of rectangular building with many windows that could be seen clearly but with no one inside….” The UFO then passed over the van and continued towards the mountains, where it “remained suspended in the air, throwing a light beam once in a while which would illuminate the area.”
First page of the May 12, 1979 handwritten report by retired police colonel to the UFO group Orion. (image credit: Huneeus Collection/Orion)
Eventually, the UFO returned to the sea where, around 6:10 a.m., it was seen and reported by radio by Manuel Malatesta, captain of the fishing vessel “Martín Pescador.” The ship was some 20 miles from the coast between Antofagasta and Iquique, when “a red ball” flew around it for several minutes. The ship’s owners, Guanaye Fishing Co., even issued a press release about the sighting. After the evolutions over the ship, stated the communiqué, “the unidentified body sank in the sea at a distance of more or less three miles from the ship. The phenomenon was observed by the entire crew.”
Two Chilean carabineros next to a police van.
This CE-1 is undoubtedly one of the best UFO sightings from Chile. The object was observed continuously by many geographically-independent witnesses for a period of about 8 hours. The closest observations were made by three policemen. The colonel added also in his report to Orion that neither of the policemen had consumed a drop of alcohol. The case remained unsolved and it was appropriately titled by the Santiago newspaper Las Ultimas Noticias,
“The OVNI [UFO] with a ‘Birth Certificate’ in the North,” because it was officially confirmed by the police. While most of the observations pointed to the object flying or hovering in the air, the final description by the fishermen indicates that the object went into the ocean, thus becoming a true USO.
Here is another case from the USA .In one of these Flora UFO cases it involved a UFO case from Flora, Mississippi in the USA IN 1977 this UFO was witnessed by two policemen who reported a strange object hovering over their patrol car;
Flora UFO Sightings Remain Unexplained;
Witness Describes 1977 Experience;
FLORA, Miss. -- One of the most famous UFO sightings in the world happened in Mississippi.
On Feb. 10, 1977, nearly two dozen law enforcement officers witnessed a giant floating object above the tree line in a cotton field off a rural Madison County road near Flora.
A former deputy who said he saw the UFO told his story to WAPT's Darren Dedo. The deputy wanted his identity to be protected, so for the story, Dedo called him Joe.
"I'll tell you what though, most of them around here, you don't realize how many people have had a close encounter with what this is," Joe said. "It was approximately 15 to 18 feet off the ground, blue in color, kind of metallic blue, portholes around the center of it, shaped like an old spinning top kids use to use."
Madison County sheriff's Deputy Kenny Creel was also there that night. His description of what happened made the Flora incident world-famous. Three decades later, his cousin, Michael Creel, said the deputy is tight lipped about it.
"He didn't really talk about it anymore. He said if he knew it was going to cause such a ruckus, he would have never said anything about it," Michael Creel said.
Dedo spoke with Kenny Creel about the UFO he supposedly saw some 34 years ago. He didn't want to go on camera, but he did tell Dedo by phone that he actually made the whole thing up -- that it was some kind of a joke. But, others aren't so sure about that.
Joe believes Kenny Creel clammed up after the "feds" put the heat on him.
"The CIA told him that he didn't need to talk about it no more," Joe said. "They didn't want it out. I'm not sure what kind of threats were made."
Local UFO researcher Patrick Frascogna has launched a new investigation of the 1977 Flora sightings.
"The initial sighting was Kenny Creel's and James Ray Luke," Frascogna said. "These are credible witnesses in law enforcement."
Joe said people are still seeing UFOs around Flora. In January, he took a picture of something in the sky. He said the sightings are a town secret.
"It's one of those things folks just don't like to talk about," Joe said.
Last edited by Fatal Guillotine; 02-25-2012 at 03:26 PM.
HILLSDALE, MICHIGAN, 1966, THE INFAMOUS "SWAMP GAS" CASEas it swamp gas;
This is the case that convinced the then absolutely skeptic J. Allen Hynek, employed by the US Army to find natural explanation to UFO sightings, that he must now publicly admit that there is something real in the UFO reports that the military minimized.
This reality from Hynek who was a senior and credible astronomer employed by the USAF and who sat on the official USAF investigation on UFOs committee namely "PROJECT BLUE BOOK" is nothing short of astounding given the fact that we had a man of his calibre openly admitting that there is scientific grounds and evidence from his investigation of this case that some UFOs defy logical explanations and can be termed or labelled possible ET in origin;
These are the kind of men and cases they are involved in and their conclusions that the media and ridiculer's avoid like like the plague and never acknowledge or bring up when the case for an ET possibility for some UFOs is up for debate or in the public arena
QUOTE FROM COUNTY DEPUTIES BUSHROE AND FOSTER;
"This is the strangest thing that [we] have ever witnessed. We would have not believed this story if we hadn't seen it with our own eyes. These objects could move at fantastic speeds, and make very sharp turns, dive and climb, and hover with great maneuverability. We have no idea what these objects were, or where they could have come from."
-Washtenaw County deputies Bushroe and Foster
quote;
"Ufologists sometimes say skeptics are people who haven't had a "close encounter." Josef Allen Hynek, who coined the phrase "close encounter," might agree. As with the Bentwaters site, higher radiation levels were also found at the Hillsdale site."
Hynek was a University of Chicago-trained astrophysicist and confirmed skeptic who served as the scientific consultant to the Air Force Project Blue Book UFO investigation. And then he changed sides. The case that prompted his conversion occurred in Hillsdale County, Michigan, on March 21, 1966, and involves the photo shown here.
At about 10:30 pm a resident of the women's dormitory at Hillsdale College reported a strange object in the sky. County Civil Defense director William E. Van Horn responded and confirmed that a bright glowing object was indeed bouncing across a nearby hollow and then became airborne. Hynek, who died in 1986, dismissed the Hillsdale sighting as "swamp gas." Within two weeks, however, he changed not only his opinion about the sighting, but also sides in the UFO debate.
Perhaps it was the contents of Van Horn's report that sparked the conversion. More likely it was the unbearable situation of this honest man forced to maintain in public that UFOs are nonsense just to continue to have access to the Air Force UFO files. Soil analysis showed that on the very spot where the "swamp gas" had touched down, radiation levels were higher than in the surrounding terrain. More significant still was the finding that the ground was also contaminated with boron, the element used to slow nuclear chain reactions.
THE VAN HORN REPORT:
New additional information about the famed 1966 Swamp Gas case in Michigan surfaced in 1984 shedding new light on this incident.
The material consists of a news release issued at the time by William E. Van Horn, the Civil Defense Director for Hillsdale County, Michigan. It contains a hitherto unknown laboratory report covering the scientific analysis of soil, water and animal life in the area of the reported landing. Here are excerpts from a statement made at the time by Mr. Van Horn:
On the evening of March 21, 1966 at 10:32 p.m., a call was received from the New Woman's Dormitory at Hillsdale College by the Office Of Civil Defense... from a student reporting that some type of craft had descended from the Northeast, flashed by their dormitory and disappeared to the South. At this time, the girl described as well as later, the observing of red, green and white pulsating lights. There were 17 of the college students that made this observation.
At approximately 11 p.m., a second call was made by the girl to the Civil Defense Office informing them that the object had reappeared and had settled close to the ground approximately one half mile from the dormitory. Van Horn at once called for help from the Police Department and three cars plus himself were sent in a two mile area from the dormitory to the East. Van Horn checked the area at the half mile point and after he was unable to locate anything. He at once returned to the dormitory.
Upon arriving at the dormitory, he was escorted to the second floor and taken to a room facing the east, from where he made the following observation. He observed that there was an object which was at an approximate distance of 1,500 to 1,700 feet away from them... settled into a hollow and was apparently either near or on the ground. The two lights upon his first observation were what he would describe as a dim orange on the right and a dirty white on the left.
After observing this for a period of about 10 minutes the lights began to grow in brilliance, the dim orange became red and true in color and the white became a true white. As the lights became more brilliant, the object or vehicle began to rise.
It would rise to a height of approximately 100 to 150 feet, stop momentarily and began to descend. This occurred several times. At one time upon descending, a glow from the side opposite them came from somewhere and he was able to see a convexed surface.
The vehicle was also observed to move right to left, and left to right, and did so in a very smooth manner. The ascent and descent were at an estimated rate of 25 to 30 feet per minute (*). At no time were any of the witnesses able to detect any type of sound or noise.
At approximately 4:30 a.m., those still observing the scene noticed the lights disappear and this was the last that was seen of it.
The area that this was observed in was by no means a swamp but rather an area which is cultivated by Hillsdale College as a park.
(*) This was estimated from Van Horns' experience as a commercial pilot.
THE LAB RESULTS OF 1966 "SWAMP GAS" CASE:
NOTE:
The Report gave the detailed results of tests done on the soil, plants, water, and animals in the vicinity of the UFO landing site. This is only the conclusion reached by the Laboratory. For the full report enquire at CUFON (Computer UFO Network), P.O.Box 832, Mercer Island, WA 98040, USA.
CONCLUSIONS :
SOIL: The soil had above normal radiation and also had abnormal content of Boron.
PLANT: The plants had above normal radiation. Blue pigments did not show up in the tests and were presumed to be destroyed, but this did not seem to effect the life junctions of the plants.
POND LIFE: Crustacean and Amphibian radiation was higher than normal but the highest radiation was recorded in the Amphibian. Also the Amphibian was affected noticeably where the Crustacean was not.
MINERAL: Sedimentary rocks were slightly higher in radiation than either igneous or metamorphic rocks. There was no other change either chemical or structural.
WATER: All microscopic plants and animals were dead. The water had above normal radiation and abnormally contained Boron.
ENVIRONMENT: The environment had above normal radiation and it contained a small amount of Boron which is foreign to this soil.
MAIN CONCLUSION:
The area contained an abnormally high amount of radiation from some unknown source. The area also strangely contained Boron which was found in both water and soil. These two facts are the only ones which would substantiate the presence of a UFO. In our opinion, we're not saying that there was a UFO, but we also do not know how to account for these two facts.
However, we believe it could not be swamp gas because of the high winds on the night of the sighting. With these high winds the gas would not have formed a mass and remained stationary. We also do not believe it was pranksters because we searched the area thoroughly for any sign of evidence to explain the phenomenon.
NOTE: Radioactive decay took place at 0.6 milliroentgens per hour over a period of three hours.
IN THE NEWSPAPERS:
"More saucers are sighted", sheriff deputies also report UFOs in several counties. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 17, 1966.
"Flying saucers reported in area", more sightings with multiple witnesses. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 19, 1966.
"'UFO' mystery has another episode", more sightings with multiple witnesses, the Hillsdale university sighting and Ann Harbour sightings by police officers. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 21, 1966.
"Police, others sight UFOs near Ann Arbor", the sighting by the Mannors and the police in Dexter. Daily Tribune of Royal Oak, March 21, 1966.
"AF calls in expert in UFO sightings", and advertising seachlights taken for saucers at Royal Oak. Daily Tribune of Royal Oak, March 22, 1966.
"Congressman Will Request Investigation of 'Saucers'", close sightings in Dexter with multiple policemen witnesses, congressman want enquiry, Sheriff cannot get in touch with the Defence. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 22, 1966.
"40 in Michigan report mysterious flying objects", close sightings in Dexter with multiple policemen witnesses in the national Press, Air Force knows nothing. The New York Times, March 22, 1966.
"87 coeds saw a flying object near a dormitory in Michigan", the sighting of the Hillsdale University. The New York Times, March 23, 1966.
"AF expert filters UFO information", Hynek investigates, Selfridge AFB tells nothing, other observations. Daily Tribune of Royal Oak, March 23, 1966.
"Reports indicate 'Objects' returned", more sightings with multiple witnesses, the Hillsdale university sighting, hypothesis of marsh gaz by a local professor, Ann Harbour sightings, arrival of J. Allen Hynek, Blue Book's Quintanilla says insufficient information but no space visitors. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 23, 1966.
"More 'Saucers' spotted in area", more sightings, and pranks, and confusions, in Hillsdale, the Hillsdale university sighting, hypothesis of marsh gaz by a local professor, Ann Harbour sightings, arrival of J. Allen Hynek, Blue Book's Quintanilla says insufficient information but no space visitors. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 24, 1966.
"Washtenaw Deputy 'Snaps' Flying Object - Captures UFO On Photograph", more sightings, and photograph by policemen. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 25, 1966.
"Expert says gaz marsh caused UFO 'sightings'", Hynek's gaz marsh explanation, and testimonies by policemen that Selfridge AFB lied and detected UFOs on their radar equipment. Daily Tribune of Royal Oak, March 25, 1966.
"Expert says UFO merely marsh gaz ", Hynek's gaz marsh explanation, local official questions objectivity of scientist. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 26, 1966.
"Flying objects are called gaz - Air Force expert points to Michigan sightings being made above swamps", Gerald Ford asks for congresionnal enquiry. New York Times, March 26, 1966.
Bad Axe, observation of blue luminous UFO by three policemen of Bad Axes after calls. Huron Daily Tribune, March 27, 1966.
"Saucer sightings vex Capitol Hill - Investigating flying objects might cause public alarm". New York Times, March 27, 1966.
"New flying objects sighted in Michigan". New York Times, March 28, 1966.
"UFOs reported in Ohio and Wisconsin over weekend", more sightings. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 28, 1966.
"Sighting of UFOs continues throughout state and nation", more sightings, and scientists opinions. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 29, 1966.
"Air Force claims open mind about UFOs, denies hush up efforts", Air Force claims openness, which is proved not that obvious since. The Hillsdale Daily News, March 30, 1966.
"Experts Say Blinking Only Twinkling Star", latest reports, droll reply, colors of stars. Daily Tribune of Royal Oak, March 31, 1966.
"CD Chief firm in stand on UFOs", the debate between Van Horn and Allen Hynek. The Hillsdale News, April 3, 1966.
"Local UFO case still open Air Force consultant says", J. Allen Hynek gives UFO lecture in Hillsdale in front of this case's witnesses and admits that the case is not really closed. The Hillsdale News, April 3, 1967.
"Disagreement with conclusions by Air Force gives spectacular publicity to UFO sighting", the article by Clifford D. Simak, December 12, 1966.
"Are flying saucers real?", Dr. J. Allen Hynek, Air Force's UFO consultant astronomer, finally publicly states UFOs are more than march gaz. The
Saturday Evening News, December 17, 1966.
Here below we have also NICAPS investigation,reports and conclusions that add even more weight to this case that a genuine unknown object was involved here;
Directory;
The Michigan Sightings
Dexter-Hillsdale, Michigan
March 14-20, 1966
The Report:
The Great Michigan UFO Chase -Vivian M. Baulch / The Detroit News
Dozens saw domed disc on ground;
quote;
"March 14, 1966: Dexter, MI, 3:50 A.M. Flurry of sightings for two and a half hours. Sheriffs reported disc-shaped objects moving at fantastic speeds and making sharp turns, diving and climbing, hovering. Four UFOs in straight-line formation observed at one point. Seifridge AFB confirmed tracking UFOs over Lake Erie at 4:56 A.M. Following is the log of "Complaint No.00967" signed by Cpl. Broderick and Deputy Patterson of the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Department:
3:50 A.M. Received calls from Deputies Bushroe and Foster, car 19, stating that they saw some suspicious objects in the sky, disc, star-like colors, red and green, moving very fast, making sharp turns, having left to right movements, going in a Northwest direction.
4:04 A.M. Livingston County [sheriff's department] called and stated that they also saw the objects, and were sending car to the location.
4:05 A.M. Ypsilanti Police Dept. also called stated that the object was seen at the location of US-12 and I-94 [intersection of a U.S. and an interstate highway].
4:10. A.M. Monroe County [sheriff's department] called and stated that they also saw the objects.
4:20 A.M. Car 19 stated that they just saw four more in the same location moving at a high rate of speed.
4:30 A.M. Colonel Miller [county civil defense director] was called; he stated just to keep an eye on the objects that he did not know what to do, and also check with Willow Run Airport.
4:54 A.M. Car 19 called and stated that two more were spotted coming from the Southeast, over Monroe County. Also that they were side by side.
4:56 A.M. Monroe County [sheriff's department] stated that they just spotted the object, and also that they are having calls from citizens. Called Selfridgc Air Base and they stated that they also had some objects [presumably on radar] over Lake Erie and were unable to get any ID from the objects. The Air Base called Detroit Operations and were to call this Dept. back as to the disposition.
5:30 A.M. Dep. Patterson and I [Cpl. Broderick] looked out of the office and saw a bright light that appeared to be over the Ypsilanti area. It looked like a star but was moving from North to East.
6:15 A.M. As of this time we have had no confirmation from the Air Base.
Appended to the report is a statement from Washtenaw County deputies B. Bushroe and J. Foster: "This is the strangest thing that [we] have ever witnessed. We would have not believed this story if we hadn't seen it with our own eyes.
These objects could move at fantastic speeds, and make very sharp turns, dive and climb, and hover with great maneuverability. We have no idea what these objects were, or where they could have come from. At 4:20 A.M. there were four of these objects flying in a line formation, in a north westerly direction, at 5:30 these objects went out of view, and were not seen again."
Deputy Bushroe told the press: "It would swing back and forth like a pendulum, then shoot upward at tremendous speed, hover and then come down just as fast." Dexter police and Livingston County sheriffs, contacted by Bushroe and Foster, "reported that they saw the same objects engaging in the same maneuvers.
March 17, 1966: Milan, MI, 4:25 A.M. Sgt. Niel Schneider and Deputy David Fitzpatrick saw top-shaped objects making sharp maneuvers. They alternately hovered, rose and fell quickly, darted around at jet like speed, their light dimming and brightening periodically. In a report to NICAP the officers stated that two objects were operating together, circling and flying in formation, while a third object hovered at a lower altitude.
March 20, 1966: Dexter, MI. About 8:30 PM. Frank Mannor and family and dozens of other witnesses, reported that a domed oval object with "quilted" or "waffled" surface and lights in the center and on each end had landed in a swampy field. Deputies David Fitzpatrick and Stanley McFadden parked car #34 adjacent to the area and began a search with Frank Mannor.
"While in the woods area," their report states, "a brilliant light was observed from the far edge of the woods, and upon [our] approaching, the light dimmed in brilliance. . . . The brilliant light [then] again appeared, and then disappeared. A continued search of the area was conducted, through swamp and high grass, with negative results. Upon returning to the patrol vehicle, the undersigned officers were informed that one of the objects had been hovering directly over the area where our flashlight beams had been seen, and then [it] departed in a west direction of flight, at high rate of speed."
As he and other officers were rushing to the scene, Officer Robert Hartwcll of the Dexter Police Department saw a luminous object buzz his car. Robert Taylor, Dexter police chief, said he watched an object in the field from Frank Mannor's home on a knoll overlooking the area. It appeared as a pulsating red, glowing object. Through binoculars he saw "a light on each end of the thing."
There were additional sightings on March 21 at Hillsdale College, with Civil Defense Director William Van Horn as one of dozens of witnesses, and March 24 in Ypsilanti, MI.
UFO tracked by Navy men at electronic range/1978;
Fascinating case involving radar tracking of UFO;
PACIFIC STARS AND STRIPES/FRIDAY, MAY 19, 1978
UFO tracked by Navy men at electronic range in Fla
OCALA, Fla. (AP) —
"I've never seen anything like it," says Timothy Collins, a Navy radar technician who tracked an unidentified object over the Florida sky. "And I don't want to see anything like it again." Collins was among at least a dozen workers at the Navy's Pinecastle Electronic Warfare Range who said they spotted brightly lit objects."The computer wouldn't handle it," said Lt. Cmdr. John Sullivan, commander of the range, used by the Navy to train its combat pilots in tactics for avoiding enemy weapons.
Robert J. Clark, of Detroit, duty officer Sunday night, said curious civilians began calling, including one man who said he and seven others on State Road 19 near Silver Glen Springs had seen an object 50 or 60 feet- in diameter with flashing lights. The naval air station at Jacksonville said no Navy planes were in the area. "So we got out the binoculars and went up on the tower," Clark said. "We located an object due north, approximately 1,500 feet above the trees. We watched it for 15 or 20 minutes and it looked like it was pretty stationary."
Then, he said, the object came up on Pinecastle's radar. "We locked in on it and then all of a sudden it was gone," Clark said. "First it was heading south and then it was heading north. All in the split of a second . . . planes just don't have a turning radius like that, "Collins said.They said a preliminary digital readout showed the object at that time to be moving at about 3 knots, meaning it was virtually motionless.
Then it moved, turning abruptly so that the computer couldn't track it, they said. Carol Snyder said she and a dozen other base personnel went to the top of a control tower with binoculars. "We saw three very blurry lights — red, white and green," she said, "We watched them for about 30 minutes."
QUOTE;
"Pinecastle Electronic Warfare Range Tracking Station, a restricted facility operated by the U.S. Navy 32 miles east-southeast of Ocala, Florida (in the north central part of the state) was the site of a puzzling, still-unexplained UFO incident late on the evening of Sunday, May 14, 1978.
The incident began with a phone call from a civilian. At about 10:05 PM, she called from nearby Silver Glen Springs to ask if the installation was shooting off flares. She had just seen something that looked like a flare. The duty officer, SK-1 Robert Clark, assured her no such operation was going on at that moment. A second call came a few minutes later.
A man, later identified as Rocky Morgan, said that he and seven other persons traveling on Highway 19 near Silver Glen Springs had just seen an oblong-shaped flying object, some 50 to 60 feet in diameter and "almost the color of the moon," pass over the top of his car. It had a flashing light which was intensely bright at its center.
Clark checked with the Jacksonville Air Route Traffic Control Center, which told him no aircraft were in the area. He and the base air controller, Gary Collison, climbed up an observation tower next to a van containing the base's radar equipment.
Clark contacted external security and directed them to contact TD-2 Timothy Collins, a radar technician. Collins rushed to the tower. The personnel already there were watching a cluster of glowing lights off to the west-northwest.
They were at eye-level and seemed to be just above an old Civil Defense tower three miles away. Even though it was a clear, quiet night, the witnesses heard no noise emanating from the lights, which apparently were attached to a single object.
After watching them through binoculars, Collins went down to warm up the track radar, which took five minutes, and the acquisition radar, which took 20 minutes. As he waited, he looked for the object with a periscope on the van and saw it again.
At around 11:20 radar locked on to the target.
The object was located at 0.2 degrees elevation, or just a hundred or so feet off the ground, at the assumed distance: "treetop level," Collins would say. Its image on radar was "as strong [as] or stronger than" the image of the tower. The object seemed to be the size of a jetliner.
Ten to 15 minutes later it abruptly vanished from both sight and radar. But at around 11:40, the same or a similar object appeared 15 degrees to the north. Collins located it visually, but the second, computer-assisted radar did not track it for some reason.
He also saw it through the periscope. A few minutes later it disappeared suddenly from both instrumented and visual observation.
Around midnight it, or another object, was seen three miles to the northwest. For five seconds it moved at more than 500 knots on a course, then accelerated for two seconds, and executed a hairpin turn in one second.
When it made that turn, it was 15 miles south of the base, which meant it had covered 15 miles in seven seconds; most of that distance was covered in the last two seconds (a speed of 7,700 mph is required to cover this distance in that time).
The turn was a radical reversal of direction; now the UFO was shooting northward and toward the observers at the base. Its speed had slowed almost instantaneously to a mere two knots. It was at this point that Collins' radar locked on to it. After a little more than a minute, the object vanished. The sighting was over.
A dozen or so personnel had seen the object or objects. One of them, TD-AA Carol Snyder, told a newspaper reporter, "We saw three very blurry lights: red, white, and green. We watched them for about 30 minutes. We couldn't see how fast they were traveling. We were holding the binoculars, and the lights appeared to be bouncing,"
The Navy conducted an investigation out of the Jacksonville center but came to no conclusions. Allan Hendry of the Center for UFO Studies interviewed several of the witnesses and gathered radar, meteorological, and astronomical data. He considered, then rejected, various prosaic alternatives before declaring this a CUFOS case of "high merit."
This account has been adopted from the book The UFO Encyclopedia: The Phenomenon from the Beginning, by Jerome Clark (1998), Omnigraphics. Further details can be found in the articles by Allan Hendry "Navy Radar-Visual in Florida," International UFO Reporter 3 (6), June 1978: 4-5 and "A Second Look at the Ocala Sighting," Second Look 1 (7), May 1979: 29-31.
Case Updated by Watch Tower Guard/Eyewitness to UFO
On January 5, 2009, the UFO Casebook was contacted by Mr. Falkenhagen with the following details.
I just wanted to thank you for the article posted about this UFO sighting. I was the watch tower guard that night, and there are some facts that were not mentioned. Such as that Jacksonville NAS launched 2 aircraft to intercept. Once they were on our radar, the UFO vanished.
They had it locked into their radar as well. Our radar locked onto one of the UFOs. I have never seen a radar act so crazy. Spinning around and around, up and down.
I just wanted to add my 2 cents worth due to the fact that I saw the UFO first from the tower. I and airman K.C. woke the Petty Officer of the day, and drug him up the tower to see what we saw. (before any calls were received).
That night we were told not to talk to anyone about this by the commanding officer. I have told this story to many of my friends and they all thought I was crazy! I am sure you can check Navy records to confirm I truly was there!
More on this radar visual case this time from NICAP
RADCAT Case Directory
Category 9, RADAR;
"RADCAT is a revitalized special project now being conducted jointly by NICAP & Project 1947 with the help and cooperation of the original compiler of RADCAT, Martin Shough, to create a comprehensive listing of radar cases with detailed documentation from all previous catalogues, including UFOCAT and original RADCAT."
Dan Wilson:
May 14, 1978; Pinecastle Electronic Warfare Range, Florida
At 10:00 and 10:10 p.m. local time, the Pinecastle Duty Officer at the U.S. Navy Pinecastle Electronic Warfare Range received two calls from unidentified civilians reporting a UFO with red, green and white lights. The control tower was notified and the watchstander observed stationary lights at an estimated altitude of 1600 feet in the area reported by the callers. Orders went out to activate the MSQ-102 Radar. After a 20 minute warm up the radar detected a unidentified blip "fluttering" over the CD Tower. The tracking computer was put on the unidentified target which was showing very little movement.
The target was observed for approximately one hour when it began to move at about 400-500 knots. The radar operator said he tried to "train" the radar on the object but it accelerated rapidly, evading his efforts to lock and track it on the computer. When he caught up with the object, it reversed direction and started back toward Pinecastle. The radar operator finally locked on the object after it had practically stopped moving. Shortly after the target broke radar lock. Collins, the radar operator had been operating radar for most of his eight years of service. A total of eight Naval personnel visually observed red, green and white lights of the object from the control tower for over an hour.
A catalogue of australian ufo reports;part one;
From the 18th century to the present day, UFO reports from Australia;
A CATALOGUE OF THE MORE INTERESTING AUSTRALIAN UFO REPORTS
Keith Basterfield;
As at 5 February 2012;
Introduction;
This catalogue has been prepared from a variety of sources; but mainly from the files, Newsletters and Journals of the many civilian Australian UFO organisations which have existed during that time. Entries have also been sourced from a number of books written by Australian authors. In addition, Australian government UFO files, as located in the National Archives of Australia, and via the Freedom of Information Act have been valuable sources of cases.
It is a subjective listing, selected by the author, and does not constitute a comprehensive listing of cases which are held, being merely a sampling of the Australian data. There are no doubt other cases which deserve to be in this listing, of which the author is unaware. On the other hand some of the events may have conventional explanations of which the author is not aware. The author welcomes corrections and additions to the catalogue and may be contacted via: [email protected]
Abstract;
Each case abstract is in the following format (where details are known):
Location of the event
Type of event
DD = a daylight disk observation
NL = a nocturnal light sighting
CE = a close encounter of various types
CE1 = a close encounter where there was no interaction with the UFO
CE2 = a close encounter where there was physical evidence left
CE3 = a close encounter where entities were reported
CE4 = an abduction;
Time of event;
Name of reporter, where the name is in the public domain
Wherever known, I have provided the latitude (south) and the longitude (east) of the reporter’s location.
Text
Source
Where the RAAF allocated an explanations this is given in [ ] brackets.
Trace cases;
I have broken these into a number of categories for comparison purposes:
R = doughnut shaped ring marking
FSA = a flattened, swirled area
FA = a simple flattened area
“nests” = bird nest shaped
BEC = bare earth circle
SL = slime on lawn
WV = withered vegetation
BS = burnt circle
Additional sources are:
ACUFOS-Australian Centre for UFO Studies (ceased.)
APRO-Aerial Phenomena Research Organisation (USA-ceased.)
CUFOS-Center for UFO Studies (now the J Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies-still active.)
NICAP-National Investigation Committee on Aerial Phenomena (USA-ceased.)
PUFORG-Perth UFO Research Group (ceased.)
UFORWA UFO Research WA (ceased.)
Note:
Most UFO groups still in existence, have long runs of their own publications, which may be available through that group.
The Cases;
12 April 1793 New South Wales
“An extraordinary appearance in the sky was obferved by feveral people between five and six o'clock in the evening of Friday 12th of the month. It was noticed in the north-weft, and appeared as if a ray of forked lightning had been ftationary in that quarter of the sky for about fifteen minutes, which was the time it was vifible. It was not to be difcerned, however, after the fun had quitted the horizon.”
Source: Collins, David. 1798. “An account of the English Colony in New South Wales: with remarks on the Disposition, customs, manners, &c of the Native Inhabitants of that Country.” T. Cadell, Jun. & W. Davies. London. Page 285.
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1828 Mount Wingen, New South Wales
“About six kilometers north of Wingen, an underground coal seam has been burning for possibly 5,000 years...Kisha, who wrote a psychic column for the Australasian Post, recorded a bizarre story of a strange flying object landing at Burning Mountain (or Mount Wingen.) She attributed the following text to a man called Ted.
“Grandad used to say that it was cigar shaped and had a funny silver colour. When it landed it set fire to all the vegetation and killed the cattle. The noise was dreadful and there was a series of loud bangs. Grandad also spoke of tall strangers appearing in town. They never said anything but always pointed to the things they wanted. Quite often people just disappeared and dogs and domesticated animals disappeared too.
“We always thought that grandad's stories were good but he knew they were true and never made light of them. Kisha did not indicate a date for the events in Ted's grandad's tale, but presumably its vintage would have to be at least contemporary with the first settlers of the Burning Mountain back in 1828.”
Source: Chalker, Bill. http://www.theozfiles.com/history_au...o_history.html.
Originally retrieved 27 November 2010, citing a “Psychic column” written by “Kisha” in the Australasian Post magazine dated 17 June 1989 citing a man called Ted.
Notes: Original article offline, but can be accessed via mirror page on web.archive.org
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25 July 1868 Parramatta, Sydney, New South Wales
Birmingham had what he described as a “...wonderful dream, a vision...” during which he saw a number of things in the sky, including the head of the Lord Bishop of Sydney and an “Ark.” A voice from an unknown source told him “That's a machine to go through the air.”
The ‘machine’ approached and landed on the grass. There was a ‘spirit’ following the ‘ark,’ described as ‘like the neutral tint shade and the shape of a man in his usual frock dress.’ Birmingham was invited to enter the ‘ark’ which he did. Inside he found a room with a table. The ‘spirit’ showed him some papers containing figures and formulas. Looking down and then back up he found the ‘spirit’ had gone. “So I fell, I suppose into my usual sleeping state, and waking next morning deeply impressed with that vision of the night.”
Source: Chalker, Bill 1996. The Oz files, Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. pp23-27. Citing a 15 page document titled “Copy from the Memorandum Book of Fred Wm Birmingham, the Engineer to the Council of Parramatta. A Machine to go through the air. A.D. 1873” located by Chalker in 1975. Its history was traced back through UFO researcher, T.V. Homan; a Mrs N. de Launt (early 1940's) to the family of a Wallace Haywood. Chalker confirmed that a Frederick William Birmingham did live in Parramatta between 1868 and 1873.
March 1878 Goulburn, New South Wales
“Lately there has been much excitement amongst the superstitious, numbers of whom go off in parties, with guns, to the range above Stewart's Garden, where there is an unfinished stone house.
Here an apparition is said to make its appearance in the form of a light, and to travel, sometimes very slowly, and frequently very quickly, from the river bank just below, up to, and around the house, then varying the performance by a run among the trees. This is said to be kept up from an early hour in the evening until about three in the morning; all endeavors to get near the light are said to prove futile.”
Source: Chalker, Bill The Oz files. Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. 1996. p.27. Citing the Goulburn Herald 16 March 1878. Cited in Wyatt, Ransome. The History of Goulburn. Sydney. Lansdowne Press. 1972. p75.
A check of the book The History of Goulburn by Ransome T Wyatt, published by Lansdowne Press (NSW). Sydney. 1972. (First published in 1941 by The Municipality of Goulburn.) p.75 states:
Goulburn has not many claims to ghosts. One, in 1878, is said to have appeared in the range above Stewart's garden, where there is an unfinished house (? Leigh's Folly.) It used to appear early in the evening and flit about until three o'clock in the morning. Grunsell claimed to have disposed of it with a shot gun. Another mysterious appearance which was seen in the late afternoon and on one occasion was photographed was that of a ghostly apparition which manifested itself in the Bishop's Throne in St Saviour's Cathedral.
(References cited are Goulburn Herald 13/3/1876; 16/3/1878 and reminiscences of Mrs R Caspers.)
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(Pre 5) June 1879 Western Australia
In 1879 Mr S Worsley Clifton, Collector of Customs, at Fremantle Western Australia, forwarded the following account of a 'remarkable meteor' to R J Elleig of the Melbourne Observatory. Elleig in turn passed it on to the science journal Nature, which published the following account of the apparition:
A small black cloud on a clear day appeared in the east, traveling not very swiftly towards the north-west. It burst into a ball of fire with an apparent disc the size of a full moon, blood red in colour. It left a train of black or dark-coloured vapour across the heavens which was visible for three-quarters of an hour. No sound was heard, sky perfectly clear, and the thermometer 100 degrees fahrenheit, in the shade.
Source: Chalker, Bill The Oz Files. Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. 1996. p.27. Citing “A remarkable meteor” Nature Volume 20. 121, 5 June 1879. Also cited in Fort, Charles, “The Complete books of Charles Fort.” New York. Dover. 1974. p 235.
1893 Central New South Wales CE3
An anecdote handed down within a farming family told of an extraordinary UFO story that was alleged to have happened in 1893 in Central New South Wales. A farmer claimed that a saucer-shaped object landed in a paddock on his property. As he approached the object, a man in strange clothing emerged from it. The farmer walked towards the being. The stranger shone some kind of beam at him, whereby the farmer was thrown to the ground, stunned. His hand where the beam had hit him was paralysed for life.
Source: 1. UFO Investigation Centre-Sydney (UFOIC).
2. Australian 14-16 May 1969.
Notes: Details similar to the 1919 Central NSW case and the 1913 Nuriootpa, SA case.
20 November 1902 Adelaide, South Australia
Sir Charles Todd stated that on Thursday morning, at 9.27 o’clock, a remarkable phenomenon was witnessed in the heavens by Messrs Griffiths (the Assistant Astronomer), Chettle and Dodwell of the Adelaide Observatory. The two last named were taking weather observations when they noticed a brilliant globular light having a planetary disc. It appeared in the south-south-east at an altitude of about 45 deg. It moved slowly northwards, passing within 15 or 20 degrees of the sun, and was brightly visible till 9.31 - four minutes in all.
Mr Griffiths, who observed it for a minute, says it moved over about 20 deg. of an arc in that time. The object appeared like Venus does when it is at its greatest brilliancy, soon after sunset.
Mr Griffiths lost sight of the meteoric object at an altitude of 45 deg. above the horizon. It therefore traveled at least 90 deg. and was lost sight of in the great glare of the sky.
Messrs Chettle and Dodwell state that when it was near to the prime vertical it became elongated, and took an elliptical form, the long axis lying south to north.
Source: The Register (Adelaide, SA:1901-1929), Friday 21 November 1902. Page 4.
5 August 1909 Goulburn, New South Wales
The first Australian reports of 1909 apparently came from Goulburn, New South Wales, on 5 August when three or four residents of north Goulburn reported seeing a bright, moving blue light in the sky...The reports at Goulburn continued for the next five nights. The mystery light was described as big as 'a motor car lamp.'
On 7 August four young men at the brick kilns near the north Goulburn railway station saw the light. 'It was pale blue in colour. The brightness of the light attracted the youths' attention. Only the light was seen, there being nothing to show the presence of a supporting body.' On 8 August 'the light made its appearance from the south traveling once again towards Governor's hill, inclining towards the east and returning back to the south.
Source: Chalker, Bill The Oz Files. Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. 1996. p.30-31 citing Sydney Morning Herald 10 Aug 1909. Daily Telegraph 11 Aug 1909. Also cited in Bill Chalker, “The Wave of 1909” in Clark, Jerome “The Emergence of a Phenomenon.” The UFO Encyclopedia Volume 2. Detroit, MI. Omnigraphics. 1992. pp333-336.
13 August 1909 Glen Innes, New South Wales
Several responsible residents described an object like a balloon moving in a northerly direction. A night glass was obtained and the object was found to be shaped like an inverted top. The lower portion was lighted, and as the body revolved a light like a small flashlight kept turning on the land beneath. The upper portion was in darkness and the object kept drifting in a northerly direction.
Source: Chalker, Bill The Oz Files. Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. 1996. p.31.
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August 1910 Adelaide, South Australia
Captain Nelson of the coastal steamer Wookata, the second Engineer M Arnold and Helmsman G Rudd are at a complete loss to explain the meaning of curious lights which they witnessed when the vessel was passing Althorpe Island on her way to Port Adelaide early the other morning. 'Bright lights as distinct as masthead lights of a steamer but high up in the air,' were observed by the trio, and a strange thing was that they circled around the Wookata in a tantilising way.
“It was about 8 o'clock,” says Captain Nelson today, “that the man at the wheel remarked, “Do you see these lights flying about?” I replied, “Yes there are a great many more lights about than I have ever seen here.” Just then I saw a mysterious light off Cape Spencer, which disappeared as suddenly as it came into view.
Presently the helmsman said “It is strange, but I have never seen lights on the port bow, then right ahead, then on the starboard side.”
“I stepped inside the wheelhouse, and on coming out again saw two lights just over the starboard side bow no distance away, but high up. They seemed to pass us. They were as bright as our masthead lights, and as far as I could judge they were from 200 to 300 yards distant. The lights appeared to be 10 yards apart, one a little above the other. I could not make it out. I said to the man at the wheel:
“Did you see them?” He answered, “Yes they are like a German airship flying about.” I did not know what to think. I feel sure I saw something unusual -something which in my 45 years experience of the sea I have never observed before.” The second Engineer Arnold also declared that he the saw strange lights
Source: Clarence and Richmond Examiner (Grafton, NSW: 1889-1915) Tue 9 Aug 1910 page 7.
25 October 1910 Minderoo Station, near Onslow, Western Australia
“At 5.30pm on October 25, when at the Minderoo homestead, my attention was directed by a native to a big object in the air several miles away. The object was traveling from us in an easterly direction. It looked compact like a dirigible balloon, but appeared to be square, more like an aeroplane. The sun shone on it, and flashes came from it as though reflected from something revolving, or off metal work. The color of the object was dark brown or black. It was too far away to distinguish its exact nature and size, or whether any persons were in it.
There was no mirage at the time, and not on any account could such an object be taken for a bird. Mrs Roe stated that she is positive it was an airship of some kind...A couple of white men, station hands, and a civilized native, also saw the aerial object from the shearing shed, which is a mile from the homestead...“
Source: Barrier Miner (Broken Hill) newspaper, 7 December 1910 page 7.)
Note: Some sources cite the date as 1909 not 1910.
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1919 Central, New South Wales CE3
While traveling down a country road, a man came across an artifact resting near the roadside. He saw that a 'man' was apparently working on it, and went over to offer assistance. The stranger turned as if surprised and pointed something at the witness, who was knocked senseless. When he came to, the object and the man had gone. He found that his memory was never the same again.
Source: Bulletin of the Australian Co-Ordination Section for the Center for UFO Studies (ACOSB). No 9. p11.
1920 Bass Strait
The Navy submarine depot ship, the Platypus, was involved in the search for a missing schooner, the Amelia J., in Bass Strait. Mystery lights, thought at the time to be “evidently rockets,” were observed. Two aircraft left the flying training school and aircraft depot at Point Cook to join in the investigation. One was piloted by a Major Anderson and the other by Captain W. J. Stutt - an instructor for the NSW Government Aviation school at Richmond... Stutt and his mechanic, Seargent Dalzell,were last seen by Major Anderson flying into a large cloud. Their plane and the schooner were never found.
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Spring 1921 Prospect, Adelaide, South Australia
One evening, a man named Felix Jones saw a circular-like saucer. It was 12-15 feet across, and 3 feet deep. It was a lightish colour but reflecting green from within it. It had neither wings nor propeller, but did have rectangular windows. It was seen in the north-north-west, stationary from three minutes. It then moved off to the west, slowly, then quickly. When it moved it glowed at the back.
Source: Australian Saucer Record volume 2 number 4 1956 page 7. The item stated that the report was received 15 Oct 1956.
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1925 Moora, Western Australia CE2 Green (30:38, 116:00)
Two young men came across an object resting in a paddock. It was described as two saucers on edge, with oval shaped 'windows' and four 'legs.' The men beat a hasty retreat and didn't return for several days. When they did, they reportedly found the earth scuffed about.
Source: ACOSB. No 9. p12.
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1927 Fernvale, New South Wales BS (28:20, 153:20)
Two boys observed a large, brightly lit object pass over; turn slightly, apparently following the contours of the valley, and come to rest on a hill. Neighbours also witnessed the landing. The object glowed for some time on the ground. Eventually there was darkness. With daylight, investigations by the boys and the neighbours confirmed the presence of a complete circle of "scorched grass," about nine metres in diameter.
The site was apparent as a brown area amongst the green grass.
Source: Personal investigation by Bill Chalker. See his accounts in "The Terror Down Under", FATE, Sept 1988 and pp 337-338 in "UFOs in Australia and New Zealand through 1959," in The UFO Encyclopedia, Vol.2, "The Emergence of a Phenomenon: UFOs from the beginning through 1959" by Jerome Clark (1992.)
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1930 Warrnambool, Victoria Preliminary
In 1930, an Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) officer, Squadron Leader George Jones, was sent to Warnambool, Victoria to investigate reports of mystery aircraft flying over the coast. No explanation was found in this fisrt official RAAF UFO investigation. Further “mystery aircraft” reports were made in the near Pacific and Papua New Guinea in 1930, and in 1931 the RAAF was denying any of her planes were the explanation for “mystery planes” reported widely in Tasmania.
Source: Chalker, C. 1996. UFOs Sub Rosa Down Under: The Australian Military & Government role in the UFO controversy. Page 8. Retrieved 24 January 2011 from http://www.project1947.com/forum/bcoz1.htm#official
Ca. 1930 Mandurah WA CE3 (31:57, 115:51)
A sixty seven year old woman recounted how at age fifteen she had seen a sixty centimetre tall, pink creature. It had large ears, a slit mouth, big bulbous eyes and small hands. It was bald and shiny. She said her father wrapped the creature in a net and put it outside.
Source: Perth UFO Research Group (PUFORG).
1930's
In about 1989 John's father-in-law, an Aboriginal man, told him that when he was a young man in the 1930s, camping with his tribe before the white man took them off their land, they saw a green light spinning around in the sky. It landed behind trees. Lots of little men shining with green light came. They walked around the tribe, looking at them, and then walked back to the UFO, which took off.
Source: Chalker, Bill The Oz Files. Duffy & Snellgrove. Potts Point, NSW. 1996. p.22.
Notes: The John mentioned is researcher John Kernott.
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10 June 1931 Tasman Sea
Aviator Francis Chichester was undertaking the first solo flight between New Zealand and Australia when:
Suddenly, ahead and to the left, there were bright flashes in several places, like the dazzle of a heliograph. I saw a dull grey-white airship coming towards me. It seemed impossible, but I could have sworn it was an airship, nosing towards me like an oblong pearl. Except for a cloud or two there was nothing else in the sky.
I looked around, sometimes catching a flash or a glint, and turning again to look at the airship. I found it had disappeared. I screwed up my eyes, unable to believe what I was seeing, and twisted the seaplane this way and that, thinking that the airship must be hidden by a blind spot. Dazzling flashes continued in four or five different places, but I could not pick out any planes. Then, out of some clouds, I saw another or the same airship advancing.
I watched it intently, determined not to look away for a fraction of a second. I'd see what happened to this one, if I had to chase it. It drew steadily closer, until perhaps a mile away, when suddenly it vanished. Then it reappeared, close to where it had vanished. I watched with angry intentness. It drew closer, and I could see the dull gleam of light on its nose and back. It came on, but instead of increasing in size, it diminished as it approached. When quite near, it suddenly became its own ghost – one second I could see through it, and the next it had vanished. I decided it could only be a diminutive cloud perfectly shaped like an airship and then dissolving, but it was uncanny that it should exactly resume the same shape after it once vanished.
I turned towards the flashes, but those too had vanished. All of this was many years before anyone spoke of flying saucers. Whatever it was I saw, it seems to have been very much like what people have since claimed to be flying saucers.
Source: Chichester, Francis. 1967. The Lonely Sea and the Sky. London. Pan. p185.
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Ca. Mar/Apr 1932 or 33 Nambour QLD CE2 (26:38, 152:58)
A boy reported seeing a small UFO within a metre’s range, and afterwards that a whitish mist had appeared between him and the object. He felt a ‘tight feeling in the head’ and felt stunned. That night the boy developed large, white blisters on both hands and felt ‘out of sorts.’ The blisters burst during the night and the following day, secreting a clear watery fluid. The boy then felt better.
Source: Letter to "Contact" UFO Research Queensland (UFORQLD). No 53. Sep/Oct 1974.
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1933 Discovery Well, northern edge of the Great Sandy Desert,
Western Australia.
In Gilroy’s account, the Aboriginal woman claimed her tribe had been frightened off from Discovery Well when a ‘large shiny egg’ suddenly came down out of the sky. In broad daylight the strange object flew low over them. Several beings, described as strange, grey-skinned and man-like came out of the ‘egg.’ The woman said she was stunned by one of the beings and then carried aboard.
Government Documents That Take UFOs Seriously 2;
Following on from my last post regarding the 12 Governmental documents showing that the US authorities,CIA,FBI, MILITARY did and still do take the UFO situation seriously;
10. The 1981 Halt Memo
he Rendlesham Forest incident remains among the most important UFO cases ever. It involved a landing of an unknown craft near two Air Bases in Britain, was witnessed by many U.S. military personnel, and is supported by military documentation. In addition, the area held a large stock of nuclear weapons, a fact that was denied by authorities for years, then admitted to be true. The case remains controversial, however, because proponents have not agreed on certain key details, and other critics have claimed it has wholly prosaic explanations. Moreover, confusion has plagued the case in matters so simple as the exact dates when it occurred.
A major reason for this stems from the primary military document associated with the case, prepared by Deputy Base Commander Lt. Colonel Charles Halt. This was written from memory several weeks later, left a great deal out, and ascribed incorrect dates to the major events. Nevertheless, the incredible detail provided by so many witnesses, much of which is well corroborated, makes it clear that something extraordinary happened.
Early in the morning of December 26, 1980, two USAF security police patrolmen saw unusual lights outside the back gate at Britain’s RAF Woodbridge. Under the assumption that this was aircraft in trouble, three patrolmen were ordered to proceed on foot to investigate.
According to the report by Halt (which ascribed this sighting to the following evening), they reported seeing a glowing, triangular object in the forest, about 9 feet long and 6 feet high, emitting a powerful white light. It “had a pulsating red light on top with a bank(s) of blue lights underneath.” The object was either hovering or standing on short legs.
As the patrol approached, the strange object maneuvered slowly through the trees to a nearby farm, causing disturbance among the animals. It then quickly disappeared into the sky. About an hour later, the object was sighted in the sky. The following day, investigators saw three ground traces indicating possible landing leg depressions. Later that night, Halt and other men personally witnessed a “red sun-like light,” moving and pulsing. Here is his description:
“At one point it appeared to throw off glowing particles and then broke into five separate white objects and then disappeared. Immediately thereafter, three star-like objects were noticed in the sky, two objects to the north and one to the south, all of which were about 10 degrees off the horizon. The objects moved rapidly in sharp angular movements and displayed red, green and blue lights.... The object to the south was visible for two or three hours and beamed down a stream of light from time to time.”
There also exists 18 minutes of an extraordinary audio-tape recording (covering several hours), made while Halt and his team investigated during the second night. In addition, the main airmen involved have all been interviewed, and in essentials their stories hold together well.
One important fact that has surfaced is that as the object hovered above Halt and his men, one hovered motionless and began to shine laser-like beams of light down all over the forest and RAF Woodbridge.
In Halt’s words,
“It sort of danced about in the sky and it sent down beams of light.... falling different places on the base.... The people in the Weapons storage area and several other places on the base also reported the lights.... [The beam] stayed on for about 5-10 seconds and just as abruptly as it came, it disappeared...
Not only this, but in 1993 Halt told investigators privately that beams had penetrated the steel, earth, and concrete of the hardened bunkers containing the nuclear weapons secretly stored at the base. Given the history of UFOs and their proximity to nuclear weapons, it is certainly plausible. Ultimately, the beams reached the secured areas where the weapons were stored, “adversely affecting the ordinance,” in the words of Halt.
There is much more to this event, which has received several book-length treatments as well as detailed coverage in my book, UFOs and the National Security State: The Cover-Up Exposed, 1973-1991.
As the years go by, the stature of the Rendlesham Forest case has continued to grow, not merely as a bona fide UFO encounter, but as one of the most significant ever. The British Ministry of Defence, following its long-established policy of silence and disinformation regarding UFOs, stated curtly that the Rendlesham case was of "no defence significance."
The Perry Nuclear Power Plant: apparent site of interest of the Lake Erie UFO.
11. U.S. Coast Guard Encounter with a UFO, 1988
[Note from Richard Dolan: This is a direct excerpt from my book, UFOs and the National Security State: The Cover-Up Exposed, 1973-1991. Article citations are provided in the book.]
On the evening of March 4, 1988 near Eastland, Ohio, not far from the Pennsylvania border, Sheila Baker and her children were driving home along the shore of Lake Erie. At 6:30 p.m., their attention was drawn to a large, bright object apparently hovering over the lake. It seemed almost like a blimp. Bright lights appeared at each end of it, and the whole thing was rocking end to end like a seesaw. The brighter of the two lights was strobing. Once home, she persuaded her husband, Henry, to accompany her and the children to the beach.
There, standing on the shore of Lake Erie, they all saw the object. It was gun-metal grey and positively enormous – Henry later said it was “larger than a football held at arm’s length.” It made no sound that they could hear. Somehow, however, it caused the lake ice to rumble and crack, perhaps by application of heat. The object then began to circle slowly over part of the lake, coming nearly overhead at just 1/4 mile altitude.
Feeling nervous, they drove back and watched the object from their home. From there, they saw it descend; red and blue blinking lights were along its bottom edge. More interesting, however, were five or six bright yellow triangular lights that detached from its side. These lights hovered around the main object, then darted and zig-zagged in the night sky at high speeds. Henry believed these objects were smaller than a one-seat Cessna and “crossed 50 mile stretches low over the ice in the snap of a finger.” They approached the shore, made right-angle turns, and shot straight up. Several passes were toward the nearby Perry Nuclear Plant. One neighbor of the Bakers also saw this display, and tried (unsuccessfully) to photograph the object.
In response to several phone calls, two members of the Coast Guard, Seaman James Powers and Petty Officer John Knaub, drove to the beach. As they arrived, the triangular objects approached them, prompting them to turn off their vehicle’s headlights. The men continued to watch the triangles fly over the lake, one of which accelerated straight at them, then veered east, zoomed straight up, and came down beside the parent object. The Bakers were back at the beach now, and listened to the Coast Guard personnel communicate by two-way radio with their base in Detroit. What they overheard was:
“. . . be advised the object appears to be landing on the lake .... There are other objects moving around it. Be advised these smaller objects are going at high rates of speed. There are no engine noises and they are very, very low. Be advised these are not planets.
At the same time, 15 miles to the southeast, not far from the Perry Nuclear Plant, Cindy Hale was walking her dog. She saw a triangular light hovering above her, and her dog began to whine. The triangle flashed a sequence of multicolored lights, and she responded by flicking her cigarette lighter. This went on for 30 minutes, until the triangle accelerated and left without a sound.
Another local resident, Tim Keck, was watching the stars through his telescope when he saw a bright triangular object. Luckily, he had his camera with him – a cheap 110 Instamatic he had received as a Burger King promotion, but it worked. He took a picture of the object before it silently moved beyond the horizon, catching about half of it before it moved fully out of the frame. Because of the nature of the camera, part of the object appeared beyond the formal edge of the negative’s frame.
Meanwhile, back at the lake, the large ship was nearly directly on the ice. Henry Baker continued to listen to Powers and Knaub tell their base, “you should be advised that the object is now shining lights all over the lake and it’s turning different colors.” The ice made cracking noises so loud that Powers and Knaub had to yell in order to be heard. Suddenly the triangles were back, returning one by one into the large object. The ice boomed louder and louder, then all the lights went off, the ice stopped making noise, and everything became “dead silent.” After another 30 minutes, the object could not be seen. The witnesses could only assume it had gone below the surface.
On the morning of the 5th, unusually huge pieces of broken ice were seen where the object had been. That day, a Coast Guard representative told the Bakers that they had been instructed by the Army and NASA (whom Sheila had also phoned) not to investigate the matter further, nor to take their ice cutter out to the lake to examine the ice. The matter was “out of their league and out of their hands.” They said all information was being forwarded to Wright-Patterson AFB and a facility in Detroit. For its part, Wright-Patterson refused to confirm or deny any interest in the matter.
The Coast Guard created an Incident Report on March 5, 1988, describing the event in concise detail. The report stated that a large object had landed a quarter mile east of the nuclear power plant, and that it had ...
“... dispersed 3-5 smaller flying objects that were zipping around rather quickly. These objects had red, green, white, and yellow lights on them that strobed intermittently. They also had the ability to stop and hover in mid-flight.”
During the night of March 5, Sheila Baker saw what she thought was the same UFO, hovering over the lake, only at a higher altitude than the night before. The Coast Guard sent some men out who arrived too late and saw nothing. The Coast Guard then contacted the Lost Nation Airport in Willoughby, Ohio. The control tower operator told them that “the two bright lights” were Venus and Jupiter, which were in near-alignment. The flashing lights were “gases in the atmosphere.”
Never mind that Baker did not mention two bright lights, but a large object. The Coast Guard promptly wrote a follow-up report on the original encounter, laying the whole matter to rest. The entire series of events was then debunked in the Cleveland Plain Dealer and other newspapers.
Whatever the cause of the March 5 sighting, to attribute the events of March 4 to Venus and Jupiter goes well beyond the boundaries of credibility. MUFON, to its credit, continued to investigate the sighting, even placing a classified ad in the newspaper looking for witnesses.
The tactic worked; others did come forward, including Cindy Hale, Tim Keck, and others. All of these people described UFO activity from that night between 10 and 10:30 p.m., and all described triangles. Bruce Maccabee analyzed Keck’s photograph, determining that it was a legitimate image of an unexplained object. Years later, Shiela and Henry Baker remained adamant about what they saw.
Amazingly, according to Hudson Valley-based UFO researcher Philip Imbrogno, a number of triangular objects were seen by multiple witnesses near the Indian Point nuclear facility in New York State on March 4, 1988 – that is, the same night as the sightings in Ohio. Not much in the way of followup occurred, however, and little else is known of the incident.
Due to the caliber of the witnesses, the official documentary evidence, the photographic evidence, and the intrinsic nature of the event itself, the Lake Erie UFO incident must be considered one of the most compelling UFO events in modern history. All evidence points to the conclusion that an intelligently operated and enormous object came down over the Lake Erie ice; that this object released several bright triangles that flew beyond the ability of any known aircraft; that these triangles were interested in the nearby nuclear facility;
that they interacted with the witnesses who observed them; that the Coast Guard officials were convinced the event was something important; that the Coast Guard itself was prevented from pursuing this incident by higher agencies; and that the matter was successfully disabled by the national security apparatus and the media.
Photograph of a triangular craft over Belgium, taken during the spring of 1990, studied and deemed authentic by the Royal Belgian Air Force
Radar tracking of a UFO, from one of the Belgian F-16s during the night of March 30-31, 1990.
12. UFOs Over Belgium, 1989-1990
From late 1989 to the spring of 1990, hundreds of reports of lighted objects, often described as large triangular-shaped craft, were recorded in Belgium. The most spectacular sighting took place on the night of March 30, 1990. Thousands of witnesses saw one or more low-flying triangular UFOs with bright lights flashing in the center.
The Belgian Air Force sent two F-16s to intercept the UFOs, which were tracked by several NATO radar stations; the jet pilots also tracked the objects on radar, and even see them at times. But the F-16s – among the top jet interceptors in the world – were thoroughly outclassed by the triangular objects. Not only could these objects accelerate at incredible speeds, not only could they fly as slowly as 30 mph, but they could change altitude almost instantly.
At one point, for example, Belgian Air Force radar tracked a UFO as it descended approximately 4,000 feet in one second. That’s nearly a mile. Belgian Air Force Chief of Operations, Colonel Wilfried De Brouwer, added “there was a logic in the movements of the UFO.”
To whom did these triangles belong? Despite the fact that no perfectly triangular aircraft officially exists, many have suspected a secret American project. The Belgians certainly inquired, and received the reply that “no USAF stealth aircraft were operating” during the period in question. The statement appears carefully worded. It’s hard to know the truth here.
Major P. Lambrechts of the Belgian Air Force General Staff did not seem to think these were American craft. His “Report on the Observation of UFOs During the Night of March 30-31, 1990” includes a detailed chronology of events and dismisses several alternative hypotheses, including the aircraft thesis. According to Lambrechts:
“The speeds measured at that time and the altitude shifts exclude the hypothesis according to which planes could be mistaken for the observed UFOs. The slow moves during the other phases differ also from the moves of planes.... Though speeds greater than the sound barrier have been measured several times, not any bang has been noticed. Here also, no explanation can be given.”
If these triangles were American, the U.S. Air Force made no requests to the Belgian government for any such type of mission, as it would have been required to do. More fundamentally, however, it still remains a challenge to explain the performance characteristics of the Belgian UFOs.
5 pages of U.S. Defense Department documents describing UFO events in Belgium from 1989 to 1990.
And What of Today?
In the last few decades it has become difficult to obtain UFO reports through U.S. government agencies. This does not mean that the U.S. military no longer encounters UFOs, only that detailed documentation about them is not easily forthcoming.
For instance, we know of a UFO sighting that took place in 1996 at Griffis Air Force Base, in upstate New York. Researcher John Greenwald sent a FOIA request to the United States Space Command at Peterson Air Force Base, and received a slim “Summary of Unusual Sightings” report. The sightings only covered 1995 and 1996, all rendered in concise form. The entry for Griffis states:
“16 May 96 0800Z. Received call of UFO sighting at Griffis AFB NY. Four enlisted men observed circular orange light just above tree line ESE of their location. Five minutes total hovered and then disappeared. Reported via CONR/NEADS.”
The Griffis encounter is by no means spectacular. However, it does prove, as Greenwald pointed out, “that the Air Force [continues to take] an interest and still sees the UFO phenomenon.”
Much more interesting was the failed attempt by F-16 jets to intercept UFOs near Washington,
D.C.,http://www.shadowresearch.com/ufo/ufo_reports.htm during the night of July 25/26, 2002. Many witnesses phoned their local radio station about it, and the incident was briefly reported in The Washington Post. I spoke face-to-face with the first known witness, retired police officer Gary Dillman, who told me he saw four F-16s chasing several objects that easily outperformed them. They left the area, but later two F-16s reappeared, pursuing a single UFO. Later, other witnesses saw two F-16s chasing an unknown bluish object that easily outmaneuvered and outdistanced the F-16s.
An Air Force spokesperson even told The Washington Post that a UFO had been tracked on Air Force radar, but disappeared. Nevertheless, the Air Force blithely commented that here are any number of scenarios, but we don't know what it was." Surely, one might be curious!
No official documentation on this encounter is available, but it happened just the same. This encounter was not from the 1950s, but the post-9/11 era. An object of extraordinary capability eluded interceptors in the vicinity of the nation’s capital, with only the barest of whispers from the nation’s media.
Of course, it is not only the military of the U.S. that encounters UFOs. These types of events occur everywhere. My most recent book, UFOs and the National Security State: The Cover-Up Exposed, 1973-1991, details many of these.http://keyholepublishing.com/Volume%202%20Info.html
The foregoing should make it clear that UFOs have been a consistent and significant thread of our “hidden history.” They have attracted serious attention from the militaries of the world, in particular that of the United States. And yet, this powerful interest is equaled by an absolute refusal to acknowledge the phenomenon publicly.
It doesn’t take a political genius to recognize that there is a discrepancy here. Nor to begin the process of filling in the blanks: that there is reasonable cause to believe that a technology not belonging to any known terrestrial power has been operating in our civilization, and that at least a few people in positions of authority are well aware of this.
Richard M. Dolan
Author, UFOs and the National Security State [email protected]
Ufo sightings: On the record;1983;
Here we have one very interesting Colonel Prouty and his revelations on the UFO reality;This man had a very impressive back ground in the military and offers yet more insights from those source's that where in the know or privy to information that was or came from a ABOVE TOP SECRET source;
The Fletcher Prouty Commentary - Oct Unidentified Objects
UFO SIGHTINGS: ON THE RECORD From an article October 1983;
BELOW IS THE COLONELS WORDS;
quote;
"Something is out there! There have been so many sightings of unidentified flying objects (UFO's) by reputable witnesses, that the fact cannot be denied. And obviously, the Air Force agrees; Years ago, they established an office charged with the collection of data on UFOs.
Officials as well placed as Senator Barry Goldwater - a major general in the Air Force Reserve - have demanded this information and they've always been turned down. Today, although there is a growing awareness of valid sightings, information on UFOs is even more secretly hidden than ever before. Let's consider one undeniable case. An experienced Military Transport Service aircrew and many passengers on a long overwater flight from Hawaii to Tokyo, clearly saw a UFO. The year was 1954.
They had left Midway Island shortly after sundown, climbed to 8,000 feet, and set the aircraft on a course for Tokyo. It was a clear night. Even in the dark they could see low clouds hanging over the warm Pacific.
Sometime after midnight, the copilot noticed an object - or at least a source of light from some definitive form - on the right side of the plane, moving along with them at about the same altitude, a little faster than they were.
As he glanced outside again, he saw this large object, not quite as large as their aircraft, had moved closer and slightly ahead. The luminescence from this object resembled the light from a fluorescent lamp with some areas of intense light emanating from a dimmer, but clearly defined, main body.
Although this craft had moved a little closer, there were no other distinguishing features other than this pattern of light. The copilot called to the flight engineer and showed him what he had been watching. They pointed it out to the pilot, who had no trouble seeing it from his side of the plane.
All three watched for some time, and all agreed they were seeing the same pattern: a large airship and a source of light. They called other crew members to see it, and at about that same time, one of the flight stewards came forward to report that many passengers were watching this same thing, near them and "off the right wing."
This object had one distinct characteristic that set it off from any known aircraft and from normal flight: It would dart ahead of them, soar high above them very quickly, and then dive below them - effortlessly.
These nine or ten experienced aircrewmen were convinced, beyond any doubt, that what they were watching was a UFO. They made an initial report to their commanding officer; and later, after a night's rest, they returned to make out individual, formal statements. Their formal reports were then forwarded, to Air Force Headquarters, in Washington.
The reason I've chosen to cite this factual UFO case from 1954 is because I was that commanding officer. I have heard nothing more about that incident since that day. However, I have heard about UFOs flying along beside the world's fastest aircraft, the Spyplane (SR-71), and I have heard that the Air Force has two "bodies" or extraterrestrial objects in storage on one of its bases. Most UFO stories contain elements I cannot believe; this case has been my only direct contact with an actual responsible sighting. I knew my crewmen well and believed their individual stories. I have never doubted that.
Those men were too experienced to have mistaken other aircraft: weather phenomena: aurora borealis; St. Elmo's fire; shooting stars; and all other strange, but natural wonders of the world of the airman. That object over the Pacific that night in 1954 was a UFO.
Show #531
Original airdate: June 16, 2011
Guest: Fletcher Prouty / Jim DiEugenio
Play Part One - Fletcher Prouty
•Fletcher Prouty Jan 24th 1917- June 5th 2001
•Defense Dept and CIA ... Hiding weapons thru Reimbursement of funds
•The Secret Team - Al Haig, Richard Secord, Joe Califano, Frank Hand - at the White House level
•Background to the Vietnam MIA problem
•Discusses the change from War Dept. to Defense Dept.
•Mr President, please define 'It'... what is it, that we can do to win the war"?
•Malthus and genicide economic warfare - the battle for oil and then food.
•"The Arab Oil Embargo"
•More at The Col Prouty Reference Site www.prouty.org
Show #530
Original airdate: June 9, 2011
Guest: Archived Video/ Fletcher Prouty
Topics: RFK Assassination
•Investigative Reports researched the RFK Assassaination
•Show was only played once... then pulled.
•76 people in the pantry contradict the official story
•RFK's last interview states he will withdraw from Vietnam if elected.
•Witness testimony differs from LA police and District Attorney
•Sirhan always in front of RFK wounds from behind
•Balistics expert lied
Colonel Prouty is mentioned in Tim Goods book below ,Tim interview this Colonel how has a very impressive back ground in the USA Army;There is a free e-book link to Tims book included;Go to page 205/206;
Here we have below a CIA memorandum seemingly showing a twist in the nature of the beast of the official intelligence agencies attitude towards UFOs.This memo was concerning UFOs and was suggesting a whole new approach in regards to a serious attitude was starting
INTRODUCTION;
27-September-1998 - The CIA memorandum, the text of which is reproduced below, was located in the 1979 microfiche set of The Declassified Documents Catalog, published by Research Publications, Inc., Woodbridge CT, available at Federal Deposit Libraries. It is an interesting document for several reasons:
* It mentions interest in UFO at a very high level of the intelligence community, the Intelligence Advisory Committee (IAC)
* It mentions what is possibly electromagnetic interference with multiple radars coincident with detection of a UFO
* It mentions action by elements of the military and intelligence communities very quickly after a UFO report
COMMENT;
The memo, dated the 21st of September 1957, concerns the radar detection of a UFO over the state of New York the preceding day. An investigation by the Air Defense Command was begun, a briefing on the UFO was provided to members of the high level Intelligence Advisory Committee, and this memo was issued during the single day after the event. This very quick action is not only a testimonial to the efficiency of Cold War reporting systems, but also shows the amount of interest solid UFO detections generated at high levels of the military and intelligence community.
Obviously, the major interest in unidentified airborne objects shown by the memo was whether or not the unidentified radar tracks were possibly Soviet in origin, and therefore represented a major advance in aircraft or missile design. The conclusion: not Soviet.
We do have the results of the Air Defense Command investigation mentioned in the memo, but the statement, "... weather phenomena are increasingly likely explanations of the original reports..." probably indicate the conclusions of the ADC investigation. Interesting that the ADC, Air Force, CIA and (some members of) the IAC were excited about the radar detections of a UFO over the US, but accepted that the radar operators could be fooled by weather, the effects of which had been extensively studied.
In an article which appeared in the unclassified issue of The Central Intelligence Agency's publication, Studies in Intelligence, (Semiannual Edition, No. 1, 1997), Gerald K. Haines, a historian with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), titled A Die-Hard Issue: CIA's Role in the Study of UFOs, 1947-90,http://www.cia.gov/csi/studies/97unclass/ufo.html asserted that, "over half of all UFO reports from the late 1950s through the 1960s were accounted for by manned reconnaissance" utilizing U-2 and SR-71 aircraft. Could this detection have been one of these?
Even though the U-2 spy plane was operational in 1957, having made its first flight in August 1955, began operational service in 1956, and apparently could fly at the altitude given in the memo, we'd have to say no.
The Acting Director of the CIA certainly would be aware of the U-2 surveillance program. In the above mentioned article, Haines asserts that relatively low-level Air force Project Blue Book staff, "...by checking with the Agency's U-2 Project Staff in Washington, ...were able to attribute many UFO sightings to U-2 flights.
This implies coordination and disclosure of U-2 flight times and locations to the Air Force be the CIA, although Haines does not provide any examples of this coordination. Additionally, it seems reasonable that The IAC, or at lease some members of it, would have been aware of the U-2 program, functioning as it did at the National Security Council level, and being charged with coordination of intelligence among the member agencies.
Electromagnetic effects coincident with the presence of UFOs, even at such high altitudes has been a feature of many UFO reports ever since the "Foo-Fighter" reports of the Second World War. In this memo the interference encountered was widespread and characterized as "jamming," something which should have been of great concern to the military. In this case, an unidentified object is over the US, is detected by some radars and tracked, but cannot be identified, and several other radars which should have been able to provide more complete tracking were "jammed."
Note that the implication is that more than one radar set over a large geographical area was rendered ineffective simultaneously. Furthermore, the term "jamming" implies an action performed by choice: "To make the transmission of a radio unintelligible; to make a radio or radar set ineffective, either by use of countertransmissions or by the use of a confusion reflector." [1]
The memo does mention that SAC B-47 aircraft were conducting Electronic counter Measures training flights at the time. Is this to imply that the transmissions from these aircraft affected our own radars and rendered them ineffective? This seems beyond belief.
Incidently, this sighting does not appear in the list of Project Blue Book unidentified sightings. We do not have access to the full Blue Book files, so we cannot say whether or not this UFO incident was reported to Blue Book or not. A sighting of an oval, glowing object by military personnel did, however, occur on September 20, but over the Kadena Air Force Base, Okinawa; this sighting is one of the Blue book unidentified cases..
[1] The United States Air Force Dictionary, Woodford Agee Heflin, Editor, Research Studies Institute,
Air University Press, 1956.
************************************************** *************
THE DOCUMENT;
MEMORANDUM FOR: Acting Director, Central Intelligence
SUBJECT: Unidentified flying Object Reported on 20 September 1957
1. As reported by components of the US Air Defense Command, an unidentified flying object (UFO) was tracked by US radars on a relatively straight course from the eastern tip of Long Island to the vicinity of Buffalo. The object was reportedly moving westward at an altitude of 50,000 feet and speed of 2,000 kts. "Jamming" was reported by several radars in this vicinity and westward as far as Chicago.
In a subsequent briefing for representatives of the IAC, the US Air Force reported that the original reports had been degraded somewhat by information that: (a) there was an 11 minute break in the tracks; (b) weather conditions in the area were of the type which have in the past produced false radar pips and electronic interference;
(c) B-47's of SAC were in the area near Chicago on an ECM training flight. The ADC has not completed its investigation of this incident, but in any event it now seems clear that the phenomena reported west of Buffalo were not related to the UFO.
2. We have no intelligence on Soviet activities (e.g. long-range air, submarine, or merchant shipping operations) which can be related specifically to this reported event. We believe it unlikely that a Soviet aircraft could conduct a mission at this speed and altitude and return to Bloc territory. However, we credit the USSR with the capability to have a submarine-launched cruise-type missile of low subsonic [supersonic] performance and a range of about 500 n.m., but we have no specific evidence of the existence of such a missile.
3. We have examined possible Soviet motives for launching a one-way vehicle on an operation over the US, and consider that there would be little motivation at this time, except possibly a psychological or retaliatory motive, which we believe is marginal. One-way reconnaissance operations are largely ruled out by the likelihood that the results would be of small value, and the risk of compromise would be very great.
[- BLACKED -]
[- BLACKED -] [--- BLACKED -]
4. We conclude, therefore, that it is highly improbable that a Soviet operation is responsible for the UFO reports of 20 September.
5. Considering the fact that the ADC investigation is incomplete, and that weather phenomena are increasingly likely explanations of the original reports, we recommend that no IAC meeting be called on this subject at this time
/s/ HERBERT SCOVILLE, Jr.
HERBERT SCOVILLE, Jr.
Copies to IAC Agencies as follows:
AEC
ONI
FBI
JIG
ARMY
AIR FORCE
STATE
CIA
1
3
1
2
3
3
3
5
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as it swamp gas;
here are any number of scenarios, but we don't know what it was." Surely, one might be curious!
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