Category 03 Case Directory
  EMCAT = Electromagnetic Catalog
 
  Preliminary
Rating: 5  

                                   
     

Stokes Incident
Nov. 4, 1957
Orogrande, New Mexico


Brad Sparks:

Nov. 4, 1957.  About 8-10 [4?] miles SSW of Orogrande, New Mexico (BBU)
1:10 p.m. (MST).  James Stokes, electronics instrumentation technician, Rocketsonde Branch, High Altitude Test Division, AF Missile Development Center, Holloman AFB, NM, a Mr. Duncan of Las Cruces, NM, and Allan Baker of Holloman AFB.  Stokes was driving S down Hwy 54 when his radio faded and the car slowed [stopped?] as if the battery was failing then he noticed 6-12 cars ahead of him had stopped and drivers were out looking at the sky (looking behind him to the NE), including Duncan and Baker.  Stokes stopped and got out, saw pearl-white oval or egg-shaped object about 500 ft wide with slight purplish tinge heading S at high speed estimated 1500-2000 mph from the NE below elevation angle of Sacramento Mtns ridgeline, descending from about 5,000 ft above ground level in shallow dive to about 1,500-2,500 ft altitude as it swerved to the W to pass to the S of Stokes and the other stopped cars about 2 or 3-5 miles at closest, then circling around headed W and disappearing.   The same or another object appeared in the NE (as if the object had completely circled) and performed same rounded course but passing farther to the S of the parked cars [about 5 miles?] and disappeared in the W.  Duncan took 35 mm film of the object.  Stokes noticed a wave of heat from the object at closest approach, later that evening was sunburned, but it cleared up the next day.  (Sparks;  APRO;  BB files;  McDonald list;  Saunders/FUFOR Index;  etc,)

Detailed reports and documents
The James Stokes Story (Gross/Ridge/Aldrich/Hatch)
articles/571104orogrande_article.htm (Dan Wilson)
Feb 11, 1958 Letter to Keyhoe from McDonald - Re: Stokes
Nov 1957: Moore & Stokes (UFO Updates, 07 Sep 1997)
Incident near Orogrande, NM; 4 Nov 1957 - BB Microfilm (Dan Wilson & Fran Ridge)
PROJECT-1947, NICAP & Peer Review (Cohen, UFO Updates, 02 Apr 98)
June 1, 1959 cover letter from Terry Clarke to Ed Ruppelt [for item below] (Martin Shough)
The Day All Roads Lead To Alamogordo, Terry Clarke (Martin Shough)


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