 presents
1957 Sighting Wave Chronology
Close
Encounters and Nuclear Connections
 RB-47H
July 17
radar-emitting UFO/ELINT incident
This is an 18-page report on an on-going project involving a number of people. With the help of William Wise (Project Blue Book Archive), and Dan Wilson (archive case researcher), the task becomes much easier. But without Brad Sparks' updated list, the Comprehensive Catalog of Project Blue Book Unknowns, the entire project would have been impossible. And our thanks also go to Jean Waskiewicz (Global Sighting Information Database) that helped make it possible to link from the cases to the reports themselves. Incidents with designation "Cat." on line two (the beginning of the description line) are from specific sighting catalogs, such as Cat. 3 (E-M cases from Mark Rodeghier's "UFO Reports Involving Vehicle Interference (441 Cases).") and Cat. 4 (Joan Woodward's Animal Reaction Database). A major sighting wave year, 1957 is best-known
for the Levelland, Texas sightings which began on
Nov. 2. However, the key cases are the IFF
electronic signaling and radar-emitting UFO cases
such as RB-47 (July 17)
and several others within a week or two before and
after, the radioactivity case at Montville, Ohio (Nov. 6)
and the nuclear weapons storage area case at Kirtland AFB, New
Mexico (Nov 4), all cases of supreme
scientific value. Prior to the wave flap, the Sept
20, 1957 radar tracking caused a White House and top
intelligence alert. A very important year in
UFOlogical history..
The 1957 UFO Chronology 1957; Rouen, France (photo/hoax) First thought to have been taken in March of 1954, it is now certain that the clean, sharp, detailed version we have become accustomed to from the RAF Flying Review for the Rouen photo, is a doctored version of the Trent image. The question now becomes, who doctored it up and why?
Retired Rear Adm. Delmer S. Fahrney, once head of
the Navy's guided missile program, said that
reliable reports indicate that "there are objects
coming into our atmosphere at very high speeds." He
told a news conference that "no agency in this
country or Russia is able to duplicate at this time
the speeds and accelerations which radar and
observers indicate these flying objects are able to
achieve." Fahrney called the news conference
following an organizational meeting of a new private
group. the National Investigations Committee on
Aerial Phenomena, of which he is board chairman.
Jan. 16, 1957; Bet. Ft. Worth and
Lubbock, Texas (BBU)
8 p.m. USAF crews of 2 B-25's saw a round white object make rapid maneuvers, effects on radio and compass. (Weinstein) January
21, 1957
Army Intelligence report on "large shiny metal ball," disc, other UFOs over APO Army base. [IV] Jan. 24, 1957; Indiana
Commercial pilot and many others saw four brilliant white lights, in-line formation; trailing object larger, egg-shaped and pulsating. [NICAP UFOE, V] Feb. 7, 1957; Las Cruces, New Mexico (BBU) Bt. 3:53 a.m. and 5:32 a.m. The 685th AC&W Squadron at Lac Cruces AFS carried a total of 54 unidentified blips on their radar screen traveling from the north toward the station at speeds of 60 - 160 knots at altitudes of 6,000 to 14,000 feet. The targets disappeared approximately three miles out. The initial sighting consisted of 23 blips. At the same time the 686th AC&W Squadron at Roswell AFB, NM, had a number of blips, but with insufficient movement to establish track information. Four interceptor aircraft were scrambled out of the 15th FIS at Tuscon, Arizona and the 93rd FIS at Albuquerque, New Mexico. Two separate radar contacts were made by these aircraft including 13 targets at approximately 100 miles NE of El Paso, Texas. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) 1 hr 39 mins Feb. 13, 1957; Lincoln AFB, Nebraska (BBU) 2:30 a.m. USAF Director of Operations and 3 tower controllers at 2 radar sites, the GCA and NCOIC, tracked several targets flying behind an airliner at a distance of 5-6 miles traveling 2x as fast. No IFF response. Objects could hover and move at high speed, one split into 2 objects, another did 180° turn. Blips the size of a B47. (Hynek UFO Exp chg. 7, case RV-7) 3-5 mins [25 min]? Feb. 13, 1957; Tierra Amarilla AFS, New Mexico (BBU) 4:40 a.m. MST. Two objects the size of a pea with red, yellow, and green blinking lights were observed at high altitude. Two objects were picked up on AN/FPS-3 radar at 310 degrees, at 25NM, at 24,300 and 26,500 feet altitude One of the UFOB remained stationary and the second orbited the first. One of the objects escorted an interceptor plane for 25 NM on interceptor recovery prior to breaking off. The total length of observation was 2 hours. Feb. 13, 1957; Marrero, Louisiana (BBU) 8:00 p.m. CST. Several civilians reported seeing flying objects over Marrero. The objects appeared to be at high altitude. Moisant Airport radar detected nebulous targets in the area. At 9:40 p.m., observers reported that three flying objects were in a V-formation changing to a straight line, then disappearing upon the appearance of two aircraft in the area. At first the objects appeared to be hovering. then moved, gradually accelerating. The observers believed that the objects were not aircraft. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) 1 hr 40 mins Feb. 13, 1957; Marrero, Louisiana (BBU) 8 p.m. Martin. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) 1 hr 40 mins February 13, 1957; Burbank, California Police received many calls about oval-shaped objects over city. Officer Robert Wells, who went to investigate, confirmed sighting. [NICAP UFOE, XII] Feb. 14, 1957; Stead AFB, Nevada 1::05 a.m. PST. Control Tower operators observed to the northeast, an object, oval in shape and the size of a nickel held at arm's length. The object had a brilliant blue light with flashing red light and was at an elevation approximately 20 degrees at 45 degrees azimuth. The witnesses described the object as two saucers placed face to face. The total length of the observation was two hours. Just before the object disappeared, the UFOB remained stationary for about 8 minutes then rose very rapidly to the right of azimuth 45 degrees true, apparently away from this station since the brilliance of the object dimmed and the size diminished. Detachment Commander, Airman Dedrick, states he was informed by Reno Filter Center that Mater(?) Radar and another radar site, identity unknown, made radar contact with the UFOB. (Dan Wilson, BB files)
Maj. Byrne and Mr. Sanderson, held in 4E Conference
Room 1410 -1500. Subject: UFO Societies and
self-styled. "UFO Experts". Example; Mr.
Stringfield, UFO Director, constant barrage of
criticism, nuisance to UFO unit, etc.
Feb. 27, 1957; Castle AFB, Calif. (BBU) 9:45 p.m. PST. Nine "S" shaped objects giving a sharp return the size of B-52 on a CPN-18 radar scope. The targets came by singly, except for two, one closely following the other. All the targets were observed between 285 degrees and 290 degrees on a heading of 105 degrees across the radar scope to the center of the scope where they were lost in the ground clutter. The objects were traveling at approximately 6,000 mph for 24 seconds on a straight course. The targets were observed on three CPN-18 radar scopes. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) 24 secs March 6, 1957; Great Meadows-Hope, New Jersey (BBU) 2 p.m. Martins attention drawn by barking dogs looking up at white derby-hat-shaped object 50+ ft wide hovering low over a field about 450 ft away with a gentle rocking motion and streamers underneath like tinsel. Object suddenly took off almost vertically to the NE without sound disappearing into cloud bank. (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 151-4; FUFOR Index) 1 min + March 8, 1957; Between Mockville and Arrity, North Carolina (BB) 12:00 a.m. EST. A civilian observed an object 30 to 35 feet long with a round nose that was 10 to 12 feet in diameter. It was gray-white in color and the nose was a very bright green light. The object was at an altitude estimated at 500 to 2000 feet and traveled from the NW, circled then moved to the NE. The length of the observation was 2 minutes. (Blue Book, Dan Wilson) March 8, 1957; Nr. Houston, Texas
9:45 p.m. CST. UFO paced plane, moved up and down at high speed. [NICAP UFOE, V] March 9, 1957; Nr. San Juan, Puerto Rico
Pan American Airways pilot took evasive action as fiery round, greenish-white object passed plane. [NICAP UFOE, V] March 9, 1957; 15 nautical miles SSE of Columbia, South Carolina 1:40 a.m. EST. Captain Robert T. Belmont, pilot, and Major William H. Landis, co-pilot, were flying east in a C-47 from England AFB, La. to Shaw AFB, S.C., when a yellowish-green fiery ball with a brilliant tail with a length of approximately 15 to 20 times the diameter of the ball appeared off the right wing. The apparent size of the object was a basketball held at arm's length. The object appeared to to pass within 200 yards of the C-47. The object disappeared to the NE like a light bulb being turned off. The length of the observation was about 15-20 seconds. Two Air Force witnesses in an automobile at Shaw AFB apparently saw this same object at around 1:40 p.m. (BB files, Dan Wilson) March 9, 1957; 350 miles NE of Jacksonville, Florida (BB) At 4:33 a.m. AST, Captain Matthew Van Winkle piloting a Pan American World Airways DC-6A airliner at a point approximately 350 miles NE of Jacksonville, Florida, observed a "burning greenish white round object" to the right of the aircraft that appeared to be on a collision course. Van Winkle then pulled the plane upward in a climb to avoid the object. This sudden maneuver caused some of the passengers to be thrown out of their seats resulting in some injuries. Co-pilot Dion W. Taylor and flight engineer John Washuta had observed the object also. The object according to the flight engineer, was a high intensity light to the right of the aircraft which appeared to stand still for approximately four seconds until it was lost to sight during the evasive action. (BB files, Dan Wilson) March 9, 1957; Atlantic Ocean off the Carolinas (BB) 12:45 a.m. EST. Airline Flight 215-A was in the vicinity of Delta Oscar (a positional marker off the Carolinas) when they observed a greenish colored object smaller than the full moon streaking north or NNW. The object was due west of the aircraft. It moved in a horizontal trajectory and had a red tail-like projection which suddenly dropped off and fell like a flare. The main part of the object continued in a straight line. Several of the passengers also saw the object The object was observed for about 3 seconds. (Dan Wilson) /March 11, 1957; Glynco Naval Air Station, Georgia (BB) 8:00 p.m. EST. Two white round lights the apparent size of nickel held at arm's length were observed 25 degrees above horizon. First sighting SE of Glynco NAS and the second sighting at 35 degrees (NE) from Glynco NAS. The sightings were ground visual and air visual from Navy aircraft 98151. Both lights faded outwith out movement. Two Navy aircraft, Navy 98151 and Navy 834, attempted to investigate with negative results. (Dan Wilson, BB files) March 22, 1957; Long Beach-Los Angeles, CA (BBU) 11:55 p.m. Two objects then one were picked up on radar at Los Angeles International Airport. The targets were rectangular and the size of a conventional target. The speed of the objects was approximately 3600 mph. The objects were detected 10 miles to the northwest. The objects were on a 320 degree heading and then stopped at approx. 40 miles range. The objects then came back towards the station to approx. 10 miles and then stopped. The objects then proceeded on a 320 degree heading beyond the range of the radar. Two F-89 jet fighters were dispatched to the area from Oxnard. At twelve minutes past the beginning of the sighting, at 12:07 a.m., the radar station lost its high voltage and went off. (Wilson, Ridge, Waskiewicz, Shough, Sparks; this case downgraded) March 22, 1957; Point Mugu, Calif. (BBU)
12:10 p.m. (PST). (McDonald list) March 23 [22?], 1957; Oxnard AFB, Calif. (BBU) 11:15 p.m. (PST). Beaudoin and several independent witnesses saw maneuvering lights. (Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 53-54; FUFOR Index) 5 hrs 45 mins ? March 23, 1957; Long Beach, California Four UFOs tracked on CAA radar, widespread visual sightings. [UFOE, VIII] March 27, 1957; Roswell, New Mexico (BBU) 8:35 p.m. USAF pilot Lt. Sontheimer flying C-45 transport saw to the left 3 bright white circular objects in tight formation on collision course. He immediately flashed his taxi lights, one object shot straight up above him the other 2 continued on passing in front. When he flashed his taxi lights (again?) the objects instantly blinked out and disappeared. (Weinstein; NARCAP; FUFOR Index) 6 secs March 28, 1957; Reseda, California At 2235 hours, a cigar-shaped, golden in color, glowing object was observed at approximately 60 degrees above the horizon to the west of Reseda, California. The object had an elliptical glow surrounding the cigar-shaped core which was approximately five time brighter than the outer light. The object was observed for approximately 3 to 5 minutes. March 29, 1957; Off East Coast, Florida Pan American Airways pilot observed brilliant pulsating light, confirmed by radar. [UFOE, V] April 4, 1957; Wigtownshire, Scotland Three radar posts tracked a UFO which flashed across the sky at 60,000 feet, dove to 14,000 feet, circled and sped away. [UFOE, VIII] April 14, 1957; 1/2 mile E of Vins sur Caramy, France ( (BBU) 3 p.m. Mrs. Marie Garcin and Mrs. Julia Rami walking NE on Road D24 heard a loud deafening noise and saw about 300 ft ahead of them a 5 ft tall 3 ft wide metallic topshaped object covered with vibrating sharp spines landing near a road sign which started to vibrate loudly, then the object hopped over the road at a height of about 15-30 ft, the women cried out and another witness Mr. Jules Boglio about 1,000 ft away looked and with the women saw the object land (a 2nd time) in the next road, then jump over another road sign which then vibrated with loud noise. 2 other witnesses reportedly saw the object at a much greater distance. (Hynek UFO Exp ch. 9, case CEII 16; Mark Cashman) 1-2 mins April 19, 1957; Maiquetia, Venezula Cat. 3. Airliner en route to Maiquetia sighted UFO; strange radio signals received at Maiquetia airport at same time.
Letter signed by Donald Keyhoe confirms Admiral
Delmer Fahrney had to resign from position of
NICAP's Chairman of the Board because of his wife's
illness and heavy business pressures. Fahrney: "I
will continue on (as an) interested member of
the organization."
April 25, 1957; Ringgold, Louisiana (BBU) 2:30 a.m. (CST). Military witness Robertson. Case missing. (NARA; FUFOR Index) 25 mins April 29, 1957; English Channel Mysterious objects sighted over the English Channel allegedly turned out to be two of a large number of British Hunter jet fighters on a training exercise, the Air Secretary George Ward said. The objects aroused wide speculation at the time and Royal Air Force Javelin fighters went up to chase them. But they outstripped the Javelins. Questioned in the House of Commons today, Ward said that the Hunters' movements, as observed by radar, were somewhat unusual and aroused the suspicions of the Radar Defense. (Docs) April 29, 1957; Virginia, MN 10:15 p.m. Robert Lerdahl and Alex Ellison saw about 36 UFOs which passed overhead in groups of 6 and 8 during a forty minute period. The UFOs, giving off a greenish light, traveled from east to west at a steady speed, taking about 8 seconds to go from horizon to horizon. Through 16X50 binoculars, the objects appeared to be flattened or disc-like and they moved in crescent formation. (UFO INVESTIGATOR / JULY - AUG 1960, page 7) April or May, 1957; Moriah Center, New York "Television started to have all sorts of trouble"; witness called out-doors in time to see red disc pass overhead. May 2, 1957; Edwards AFB, Cal. 6:55-7:20 a.m. (PDT). James D. Bittick
and John R. Gettys, Jr., civilian phototheodolite
operators, were driving by truck to Askania Site
#4 when they sighted an object above them about
500 yards away. They radioed a report to
their supervisor Frank Baker who told them to set
up the camera and try to film the object, which
they did after about 10 mins. They
photographed what they described as a golden
luminous domed-saucer shaped object with holes or
ports around the dome about 100 ft in diameter
about 1 mile in the distance to the N headed E
(photos show multiple? objects). Available
phototheodolite frames 614, 620 and 651 (609 too
blurred, cutoff) show azimuth 10°28' elevation
2°24' shifting E to azimuth 40°30'
elevation 1°0'. Disappeared at about 5
miles. Possible jet fighter
interception. [Possible weather balloon with
slow leak, explanation denied by Edwards AFB
Colonel Klein (sp?) analyzing actual tracking of
balloon and wind direction.] (Tom
Tulien; Jan Aldrich; McDonald 1968 pp.
75, 85; Loren Gross Mar-May 1957 pp.
67-68; IUR Oct 2005) 25 mins 2 witnesses 8
Full Moons? photo-theodolite
May 4, 1957; Near Calif. coast ( (BBU) 2:25 a.m. (PDT) USAF copilot of radar patrol aircraft with 552nd AEW&C Wing saw a yellowish-red light at 10,000 ft pass in front of aircraft. (Weinstein; FUFOR Index) 30 secs May 5, 1957; 170 miles SW of Santa Rosa Island, Calif. (BB) 3:00 a.m. PST. Two round orange colored objects the apparent size of a basketball held at arm's length were observed by 2nd Lt. Leland M. Martin flying in an RC-121D aircraft. The RC-121 was at 9,000 feet on a heading of 80 degrees at 190 mph. One of the objects passed over the aircraft going E to W at 10,000 feet and the other passed under the aircraft at 8,000 feet going W to E. The length of the observation was 30 seconds. (BB files, Dan Wilson) May 12, 1957; Moab, Utah Round, blue-green UFO sped past below observer's altitude. [UFOE, IV] May 20, 1957; East Anglia, UK Night. This is a case reported by a former jet pilot in the United States Air Force, Milton John Torres, of Miami, Florida. On this date, the 25-year-old Torres was ordered on a mission to intercept and shoot down a large UFO that had been picked up by radar in the skies over East Anglia, United Kingdom. Torres, flying a North American F-86D Sabre jet approached the object and prepared to fire upon it. As he locked on his weapons, the UFO suddenly zoomed away at a high rate of speed. The details of this case were first made public in a release of UFO-related case files by the British government in October 2008. (UK files) May 29, 1957; Houma, Louisiana (BBU) 3:03 p.m. CST. A normal looking radar return was picked up on the AN/MPS-7 radar scope. The track was averaging 2250 knots and occasionally 3530(?) knots at an estimated altitude of 100,000 feet. The description of the flight path was, east southeast, and then southeast, and then east, and then northeast. The length of observation was 14 minutes before fading from the radar.(McDonald list) 14 mins May 30, 1957; Detroit, Mich. (BBU) At 10:01 a.m. EST, one object appeared as a well-defined blip about the size of two jet aircraft on an AN/TPS-1D radar. This was observed by the radar operator and the radar Sgt. On initial pickup the object was at approximately 70 nautical miles. The estimated speed of the object was 1200 knots. When last observed the object was on a 185 degree course and faded at 80 nautical miles. The length of the observation was 30 seconds. (McDonald list) 30 secs May 31, 1957; Kent, UK Cat.3. Airliner suffered radio failure during UFO sighting. Normal functions returned when UFO left. June 3, 1957; Shreveport to Converse, Louisiana (BBU) 8:30 [9:35?] -9:30? p.m. (CST). Shortly after takeoff from Shreveport Airport, heading for Lake Charles, La., and climbing, Capt. Lynn Kern and FO Abbey Zimmerman flying Trans-Texas Airlines Flight 103 were told by the control tower that a small light was visible nearby. They saw the star-like blue-green pulsating [?] object hovering (approaching?) at their 10 [2?] o'clock position at about 400 ft then climbing rapidly to 1,000 ft paralleling the airliner then at 110 knots speed (130 mph later 165 mph) but at higher altitude and 1/2 mile away. Kern flashed landing lights and object responded with a beam [?] of light. 2nd blue-green pulsating object joined the first on the opposite side of the airliner (then at 9,000 ft), air crew confirmed from tower that it had both objects on radar and visually through binoculars, objects headed S at 170° climbing to about 10,000 ft and followed airliner to Converse, La., (about 45 miles S of Shreveport) where pilot queried ADC radar site, England AFS, Alexandria, La., which confirmed the 2 targets in the airliner's vicinity at 9,700 ft. Objects disappeared from sight in a cloud deck to the SW. (Hynek UFO Exp ch. 7, case RV-6; NARCAP) 1 hr ? June 7, 1957; New Jersey and Atlantic Coast Cat. 9, ground radar. June 12, 1957; Milan, Italy (BBU 4760) 7:30 p.m. G. U. Donadio, translator for export-import firm, saw an object "big as a hen's egg" [at arm's length?] fly very fast, zigzag, hover and revolve, then shoot up. (Berliner) 17 mins June 14, 1957; McChord AFB, Washington (BBU) 1:14 p.m. PST. One normal radar target was picked up at a 25 miles range at 355(0?) degrees and descending straight down at 2,000 FPM. One T-33 aircraft was diverted from McChord AFB, no sighting was made. The length of observation was 33 minutes. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) June 15, 1957; Lancashire, England
Saturn-like UFO with "portholes" observed through telescope in bright daylight. [UFOE, XII] June 18, 1957; Jackson, Mississippi
Physics professor sighted UFO with "a halo of light around it and what appeared to be three portholes." [UFOE, VI] June 18, 1957; Pacific Ocean, 150 miles off San
Francisco
Captain and crew of freighter Hawaiian Fisherman saw three brightly lighted objects "like small moons." [UFOE, II] June 25, 1957; Baltimore, Maryland Cat. 3. Car radio stopped playing and street lights went out as a formation of seven white discs with red rims passed overhead. June 30, 1957; Belo Horizonte, Brazil Disc-like object paced, maneuvered around airliner. [UFOE, X] July 1957; Azusa, California
"Disc with amber lights around edge made wobbling vertical descent. [UFOE, XII] July 1, 1957; Avon, Mass. Cigar-shaped UFO with green lights like windows. [UFOE, XII] July 4, 1957; Nr. Campos, Brazil
Disc with dome and portholes paced airliner. [UFOE, X] July 9, 1957; Hamilton, Ont., Canada Attorney saw speeding, white elliptical UFO. [UFOE, X] July 16, 1957; Las Vegas, Nevada/N. Arizona (BBU) 1:56-1:58 p.m. (MST). USAF ADC radar station
865th ACWRON, Las Vegas AFS, Angel Peak, Nevada,
Senior Director 1st Lt. Clifford E. Pocock, scope
operator A/2c Walter Lyons, and control technician
A/1c Armand Therrien, using the FPS-3A L-band search
radar tracked an inbound target at average speed of
about 6,200 mph for 48 secs [?] when it "stopped
abruptly" and "remained stationary" for 12 secs to
the ENE at 75° azimuth 85 miles range, N of
Grand Canyon, then target headed outbound at about
7,000 mph on 85° heading over the last 72 secs
before disappearing at the radar's maximum range at
81° azimuth 224 miles range (near Marble Canyon,
Ariz.). Target responded to encrypted military IFF
transponder signals and transmitted encrypted
responses. Similar occurrence 2 days earlier noted
by night crew but none others in years. (Jan
Aldrich)
July
17, 1957; Mississippi, through Louisiana and Texas
and into Oaklahoma (BBU)
10:46-11:20 p.m. (MST). USAF ADC radar station 684th
ACWRON, Mt. Lemmon AFS, Senior Director Capt.
Claiborne F. Bickham and crew using both MPS-7 L-band
search and MPS-14 S-band height-finder radars tracked
a stationary target at 42,000 ft to the NW at 308°
azimuth 82 miles range (S of Chandler, Ariz.). Target
responded to encrypted military IFF Mode 3 transponder
signals, transmitted encrypted responses resulting in
"normal Mode 3 paint" on radar scopes, and "a very
slight strobe came from object appearing like ECM
jamming." (Jan Aldrich) 34 mins4:30-6:40 a.m. (CDT). Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) RB-47 jet on training mission repeatedly encountered maneuvering radar-transmitting UFO which correlated with visual of brilliant white-red light tracked at 10 nautical miles from RB-47 by Dallas/Duncanville AFS 647th ACWRON air defense FPS-10 radar (32°38.8' N, 96°54.3' W), with same motions outpacing jet, simultaneous blink outs on Duncanville radar, ELINT monitors, visually and on airborne navigation radar. (Sparks in The UFO Encyclopedia, 2nd ed. 1998, vol. 2) 2 hrs 10 mins July 18, 1957; Mt. Lemmon, Ariz. (BBU) July 29, 1957; Cleveland, Ohio (BBU4847) 11:31 p.m. EST (0431Z). Capital Airline pilots of Flight 841 observed a large round yellowish-white object at approximately 20,000 feet altitude. The object came from the north and passed in front of the aircraft. It appeared brilliant, then went to dim and back to brilliant. The object hovered over Cleveland and then moved northwest. During this incident the airliner chased the object but it sped ahead of them and over the horizon. The object was extremely fast and was in sight for 8 minutes. Both pilots sure object was not a star. (Dan Wilson, BB files). Aug. 3, 1957; About 175 SW of San Francisco, California (BBU) 7:45-8:24 a.m. (PDT). USAF 965th Aircraft Early Warning & Control Sq (552nd AEW&C Wing), pilot 1st Lt. Robert J. Springer, Jr., Tech. Sgt. Herman L. Giles, and 16 other air crewmen, while on routine Airborne Operations Center radar early warning patrol over the Pacific aboard RC-121D aircraft (s/n 53-3400) detected a target on IFF Mode 2 transponder only. At 7:56 the IFF target became a direct radar "skinpaint," at 8:02 the IFF equipment APX-6/APX-7 was turned off but target was still tracked on airborne radar. At 8:15 target was at 2 o'clock position 10 miles range when aircraft started a right turn to reverse course putting target at dead ahead and target "suddenly" took off to the NW at "very high" speed, disappearing at 58 miles range (within 1-2 mins? at 1,800-3,600 mph?). Regained radar contact at 8:18 at 1 o'clock position 22 miles range moving right to left, crossed in front of aircraft again, closing distance to 8 miles at 11 o'clock position at 8:20 when target turned to head on parallel path. Lost contact at 8:24 at 7 o'clock position behind the plane at 15 miles, IFF remaining off, no visuals. (Jan Aldrich) 37-39 mins Sept. 20, 1957; Nr. Buffalo, New York Several CIA documents confirm that an unidentified flying object (UFO) was tracked by US radars. It was flying 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 knots. "Jamming" was reported by several radars in this vicinity and westward as far as Chicago. (CUFON, Ridge files, foia.cia.gov site) Sept. 20, 1957; Montauk, New York - Benton, Penna, (BBU) 4 p.m. High speed 2,300 mph radar target on E-W path at 50,000 ft altitude tracked by multiple radars, including 1-min track by FPS-3 at Montauk Point and 9 mins by CPS-6B at Benton, from E Long Island to Buffalo, New York (with alleged 11 min gap in between??), triggering a White House alert, high level CIA, USAF Intelligence, IAC Watch Committee meetings. Speed varied from 1,500 to 4,500 mph. (FOIA; Sparks, FBI/CIA docs - Ridge) 20+ mins ? The incident resulted in an immediate alert by both SAC and ADC. F-102's were scrambled from Kinross AFB, Michigan, and Truax AFB, Wisconsin. (Dan Wilson) July 24, 1957; Nemuro Strait, Japan (BBU) 10 a.m. 2 USAF pilots flying F-86 jet fighters scrambled to intercept disc-shaped object, tracked by ground radar and seen by ground witnesses. (Weinstein; BB files??) July 25, 1957; Niagara Falls, New York (BBU) 12:25 a.m. (EST). USAF pilot 1st Lt. Robert S.
Hipkins and alert center operator S/Sgt Raymond C.
Henry, both 47th Fighter Interceptor Sq on the
ground, saw a circular brilliant white object with
smaller 6 pale green lights on its perimeter move
slowly at constant altitude at 8 mins first then
make fast pivoting turns, maneuvering radically SE
to NE (from azimuth 150° elevation 45° to
azimuth 75° elevation 65°), disappearing in
a rapid steep climb. Radar tracked for 3 mins by
CPS6 ground ADC site. Dan Wilson, (McDonald
list; Jan Aldrich)
July 27 or 29, 1957; Longmont, Colo. (BBU 4841)
Early morning. J. L. Siverly saw a thick disc,
ice blue, with a top like honeycomb (interconnected
hexagons), hover and rock below the hill tops.
Middle band was scalloped, bottom had four
kidney-shaped forms. (Berliner) 10 mins
July 29, 1957; Oldsmar, Florida (BBU 4848)
11:45 a.m. E. E. Henkins saw a pale yellow fireball
glide into the water and exploded. (Berliner) 1 minJuly 29, 1957; Cleveland, Ohio (BBU4847)
10:31 p.m. Capital Airlines Capt. R. L. Stimley
and First Officer F. J. Downing saw a large, round,
yellow-white object cross the bow of the airliner,
which then gave chase but was unable to catch it.
(Berliner) 8 mins
July 30, 1957;
Galt, Ontario, Canada
Walking along the edge of a field, a young man and his dog encountered a domed object and saw it land in a gully. The witness was frightened and his dog was described as snarling and barking. [The reaction of the dog sounds defensively fearful—jw] The object was reported to make a humming sound like a ball being swung on an elastic band. July 31, 1957; Calistoga, California Businessman watched two erratically maneuvering brilliant white objects. [VII] August 1, 1957; Toronto, Ontario, Canada Large glowing object hovered 20 minutes, sped away. [UFOE, VII] Aug. 3, 1957; About 175 miles SW of San Francisco, Calif. ( (BBU) 7:45-8:24 a.m. (PDT). USAF 965th Aircraft Early Warning & Control Sq (552nd AEW&C Wing), pilot 1st Lt. Robert J. Springer, Jr., Tech. Sgt. Herman L. Giles, and 16 other air crewmen, while on routine Airborne Operations Center radar early warning patrol over the Pacific aboard RC-121D aircraft (s/n 53-3400) detected a target on IFF Mode 2 transponder only. At 7:56 the IFF target became a direct radar "skinpaint," at 8:02 the IFF equipment APX-6/APX-7 was turned off but target was still tracked on airborne radar. At 8:15 target was at 2 o'clock position 10 miles range when aircraft started a right turn to reverse course putting target at dead ahead and target "suddenly" took off to the NW at "very high" speed, disappearing at 58 miles range (within 1-2 mins? at 1,800-3,600 mph?). Regained radar contact at 8:18 at 1 o'clock position 22 miles range moving right to left, crossed in front of aircraft again, closing distance to 8 miles at 11 o'clock position at 8:20 when target turned to head on parallel path. Lost contact at 8:24 at 7 o'clock position behind the plane at 15 miles, IFF remaining off, no visuals. (Jan Aldrich) 37-39 mins Aug. 7, 1957; Ohio-Central Indiana (BB) 1:51 a.m. (radar) Starting at around midnight strange objects with colored lights were sighted by troopers, local police and local citizens over Alexandria, Yorktown, Portland, Pendleton, Greenwood, Elwood, Tipton, and Kokomo, all in Indiana. The sightings lasted until nearly 2 a.m. It was at 1:51 a.m., Portland reported object still sighted northeast and that District 5 (Piqua area?) in Ohio picked up an object on radar at between 6,000 and 8,000 feet but was unable to identify. Bunker Hill AFB was alerted of the sightings by State Police and the 319th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron made a sweep of the local area with their radar installation but there were no contacts. (Reference: Logansport Pharos-Tribune, August 7, 1957, page 1) The speed of the objects was given as from a stand still to high speed.The Project Blue Book report for Bunker Hill AFB for August 7, 1957 is listed on the Master Index as (CASE MISSING). There is a Project 10073 Record Card. (Dan Wilson) August 14, 1957; Nr. Joinville, Brazil Varig Airlines pilot observed domed disc, which affected aircraft engines. [UFOE, X] August 15, 1957; Woodland Hills, California Retired Navy pilot watched disc wobble, climb away. [UFOE, IV] August 20, 1957; Fujisawa City, Japan
Cylindrical UFO observed above beach, photographed. [UFOE, VIII] Aug. 22, 1957; Cecil NAS, Florida (BBU)
3:40 p.m. Sheetz and another civilian in a car chased a 50 ft black, bell shaped object bearing two bright, white lights at the top until the engine stalled when object hovered 10 ft away. Underside resembled a disk with fins. When a jet took off from the airfield, the object went out of sight almost instantly. Car battery was found completely dead. Noise from the object compared to helicopter though no helicopter in the area. (Vallée Magonia 399; FUFOR Index) Aug. 22-23, 1957; Cambria AFS,
Calif (BBU)
7:35 p.m. local time. Two or three round, red and orange objects the size of a pea at arm's length were observed in a stack formation one above the other to the southwest at 15 degrees elevation. The objects were observed through binoculars. FPS-6 radar HRI was detecting objects in the same direction. Two F2H Navy fighter aircraft out of Moffet Field were sent to the area and made visual contact. When the fighters got within 50 miles of the objects both fighter's IFF disappeared from PPI of FPS-3 radar. The fighter aircraft IFF did not reappear until the fighters were approximately 70 miles from the objects. Total length of observation was approx. 1 hour and 30 minutes. (Dan Wilson, Brad Sparks, McDonald List, FUFOR Index) Aug. 27, 1957; Dry Tortugas, Florida (BBU) 4:45 p.m. (EDT?). Crew of military aircraft saw an object with bright red to reddish-yellow pulsating light. The speed of the object was approximately 950 knots at an estimated altitude of 20,000 feet. The object was also picked up on an aircraft APG-51A radar as large blip at 20 miles range. An intercept was attempted and was discontinued because of the speed of the object. Pilot visually followed the object as it faded from sight. (Dan Wilson, Brad sparks, Project 1947) Aug. 29, 1957; Paso Robles, Calif. (BBU)
Sept. 17, 1957; Ft. Devens, Mass.Daytime? Taylor and Bunting saw silver circular object flying N to W. (Hynek UFO Rpt p. 44; FUFOR Index) 4 mins Aug. 30, 1957; Chesapeake Bay, nr. Norfolk, Virginia Night. A Capital Airlines pilot with 17 years & 3,000,000 miles logged was flying a Viscount at 12,000' approaching Norfolk, Va., with a Northeast Airlines DC-6 "directly above" on the same heading at 20,000. The Viscount pilot saw a "brilliant" object which "flew fast and then abruptly halted 20 mi. in front of us at 60,000 ft. altitude." The Northeast pilot tried to acquire the object on radar: with the antenna at 0 degrees elevation nothing was detected, but with the antenna elevated to 15 degrees he acquired "an excellent blip right where I told him to look for the object." According to the Viscount pilot, the object "dissolved right in front of my eyes, and the crew above lost it from the scope at the same time. They said it just faded away." The entire incident lasted "several minutes". (NARCAP Report item # 14) Early Sept.; Ubatuba, Brazil This is the only one of the crash-retrieval incidents supported by physical evidence that also has the pieces of the reported craft to study to go with it, and a number of people have taken part in the analyses. Although still surrounded in controversy the case is worthy of inclusion in the NICAP files. The latest addition to this case file is the complete 33-page analysis report by Dr. Peter Sturrock. Our thanks to Dr. Sturrock and all the other participants who made this report available on the NICAP site. Sept. 4, 1957; Portugal Evening. Portugeuse Air Force jets encounter UFO for forty minutes. (Clear Intent, pg. 147; Ferreira, Captain Jose Lemos, FSR, Vol. 4, No.3, 1958, pp.2-3) Sept. 12, 1957; Tulsa, Oaklahoma (BBU) 5:00 p.m. CST. The witness, an electronics
technician, was conducting a ground check of the
APS-64, which is a component of the MA-7 bombing
system of a B-47 jet bomber, when he noticed a
radar return at approximately 60 miles range
traveling at an estimated 24,000 mph from north to
south. The length of the observation was 9
seconds.(McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Army report on eight round, orange UFOs which flew over base, one oscillating up and down. [UFOE, IV] Sept. 19, 1957; Point Pleasant, New Jersey (BBU) 6:40 p.m. Connell saw a boomerang-shaped object bigger than a house land. Grass flattened. (Vallée Magonia 403; FUFOR Index) Sept. 20, 1957; Kadena AFB, Okinawa (BBU 4959)
8 p.m. S/Sgt. H. T. O'Connor and S/Sgt. H. D.
Bridgeman saw an object, shaped like a coke bottle
without the neck, translucent and fluorescent, make
four 5-10 second passes from N to S, with 4-5 mins
between passes. (Berliner) 4 x 5-10 secs ?
Sept. 20, 1957; Montauk, New York - Benton, Penna. (BBU) 4 p.m. High speed 2,300 mph radar target on E-W path at 50,000 ft altitude tracked by multiple radars, including 1-min track by FPS-3 at Montauk Point and 9 mins by CPS-6B at Benton, from E Long Island to Buffalo, New York (with alleged 11 min gap in between??), triggering a White House alert, high level CIA, USAF Intelligence, IAC Watch Committee meetings. Speed varied from 1,500 to 4,500 mph. (FOIA; Sparks, FBI/CIA docs - Ridge) 20+ mins ? Sept. 26, 1957; Paris, France Confidential report, from U.S. Embassy officer and wife, of bright elliptical UFO. [UFOE, X] October 1, 1957; Shippingport, Pennsylvania From the direction of the nearby town of Ohioville something strange approached at an altitude of 2,000 feet. The two men spotted it and were astonished. The thing was a big luminous torpedo they estimated was 200 feet long. The top half was green-colored and the bottom half was reddish-orange. It was the witness' opinion the mystery ship made a U-turn over the nuclear facility. This suggestion was taken seriously by the Air Force and the FBI." (The Beaver County Times, Beaver, Pennsylvania, 8 November 1957.) The nuclear global
threat increases. SAC begins ground alert
operations, whereby it would maintain
approximately one-third of its aircraft on ground
alert, with weapons loaded and crews standing by
for immediate take-off.
Oct.
4, 1957
Soviet Union
launches the world's first satellite, Sputnik 1,
at 2:28:34 p.m. (EST).
October 7, 1957; Cape Canaveral, Fla. White oval object seen near Cape for second consecutive night. [UFOE, XII] October 8, 1957; Bua Province, Fiji Islands Natives in small boat saw UFO descend vertically, hover about 20 feet above sea. October 8, 1957; Nr. Boston, Mass. Pan American Airways pilot saw a brilliant object flying at high speed in daylight. [UFOE, V] Oct. 8, 1957; Seattle, Wash. (BBU 5003) 9:17 a.m. 2 U.S. Army sergeants saw 2 flat, round, white objects fly in trail formation along an irregular path, frequently banking. (Berliner) 25-30 secs Oct.12, 1957; near Martha's Vineyard, MA 3:20 p.m. Three members of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Ronald A. Veeder, Capt. Scott Bray, and Capt. Eugene Mysona, with these three men were two fliers from Charleston, South Carolina, one a Air Force jet pilot. All five men where aboard Veeder's boat, the Sports Fisherman. At 3:20 p.m., a strange round object bearing southeast approached the boat at high speed. As seen by Veeder and the others, through binoculars, the UFO appeared to be a sphere with sensing elements or spikes protruding from it. The tips of the "spikes" were red. The object hovered for about two minutes then took off to the southwest at a speed greater than any object the witnesses had ever seen. The sighting was reported to Otis AFB, Mass. (UFO Investigator / JULY - AUG 1960, page 6) October 15, 1957; Covington, Indiana
Farmer reported silver disc which hovered over his combine as he worked in field; combine engine failed when UFO rose. [UFOE, VIII] October 15, 1957; Minas Gerais State, Brazil
Villas Boas abduction, sexual encounter case (UFOE, section XIII). October 16, 1957; Australia
Round UFO sighted by former Commander-in-Chief of Royal Australian Air Force. [UFOE, X] Oct. 19, 1957; Mildenhall, England, UK (BBU) 5:40 p.m., local. A/2C Pringle and A/2C Warsewich on duty in the control tower at Mildenhall RAF Station, observed a circular disc-shaped object, yellow to orange in color to the SW of the station. The object appeared as large as a dime held at arm's length. The object when first sighted was approx. 5 degrees above the horizon and appeared to be stationary. At 5:55 p.m., the weather observer working in the tower was notified. The wx observer said he could not identify the object , but it definitely was not a star or other celestial body. At 6:03 P.M., Lakenheath RAPCON was advised of the UFO. The UFO was obscured from the tower's vision at Mildenhall at 6:09 p.m. by clouds. At 7:28 p.m., Lakenheath RAPCON advised Mildenhall tower they could see an object to the SW of Mildenhall. At 7:30 p.m., Lakenheath advised Mildenhall they had 3 targets on their radar. Two of the targets were NW of Mildenhall at approx. 11 miles. The two targets were also stationary. The 3rd target was north and moving slowly towards the station. Also the targets NW were visible from Lakenheath. Mildenhall GCA was notified and also picked up the targets which coordinated with Lakenheath. At 8:40 p.m., Sculthorpe WX station picked up the unidentified targets on their radar. The positions coincided with those of Lakenheath Control and Mildenhall GCA had reported. The UFO report's preparing officer, 1st Lt. David A. Zillmer, wrote in his report on this incident. After investigating possible confusion with some known object the sighting was considered to definitely involve an unidentified object. (Dan Wilson, Brad Sparks, McDonald list) Oct. 21, 1957; RAF Gaydon, Warwickshire, England (BBU) 9:18 p.m. RAF pilot flying Meteor fighter had near collision with object near atomic base, 6 lights emerged when fighter approached, object disappeared suddenly, ground radar tracking confirmed sighting. (Project 1947; FUFOR Index; Mary Castner/CUFOS) Oct. 22, 1957; Wiesbaden, West Germany (BBU) 2:00 p.m. local time. A target was picked up on an AN/TPS-1D radar at 286.5 degrees azimuth at 160 miles range. The blip was 2 to 3 times larger than any blip seen on radar set. The shape of the target was that of a normal aircraft target as seen on a PPI scope. The speed of the target was estimated at 6240 nmph. The target closed to a range of about 45-50 nm, reversed direction and went outbound on same azimuth without turning around or changing speed until disappearing at a range of 160 nm (at the rim of the PPI scope). After a few seconds the "blip" reappeared and followed path as mentioned above. This happened again for a third time and then the blip disappeared from view. The total length of the observation was 5-6 minutes. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) October 22, 1957; Pittsburgh, Pa.
Family saw six UFOs in two separate groups, changing position in formation. [UFOE, II] October 23, 1957; Kent, England
Disc traveling on edge. [UFOE, XII] October 30, 1957; Casper, Wyoming Cat. 3. Car motor kept stalling as motorist tried to turn around to avoid UFO sitting on road. October 31, 1957; Lumberton, N. Carolina Cat. 3. Car motor failed as UFO observed. November 1957 "Flap"
Nov. 2, 1957
Soviet Union launches the second earth satellite,
Sputnik 2, at 9:30:42 p.m. (EST), this time with a
dog on boardNov. 2, 1957; 3 miles W of Canadian, Texas (BBU) 3:30 a.m. Calvin and other military/civilian witnesses saw a submarine-shaped object, red and white, 2-3x car length (40-60 ft) and about 10 ft high, at ground level. A figure was seen near the object, compared to a white flag [?]. When a car stopped nearby, a flash of light from the object coincided with the sudden failure of the headlights. (Vallée Magonia 418; FUFOR Index) Nov. 2, 1957; Levelland, Texas (BBU1140, 1141) From shortly before 11:00 p.m. to about 1:30 a.m., citizens in and around the city repeatedly saw reddish or bluish-green oval or elliptical objects sitting on roadways, then taking off. Vehicles in the vicinity of the UFOs experienced electromagnetic failures, typically the headlights and engine. In one probably significant report at 12:45 a.m., Ronald Martin saw the glowing red UFO land ahead of his truck, then turn to bluish- green. The truck's electrical system failed. When the UFO took off, it turned reddish again. Among the witnesses during the evening was Sheriff Weir Clem, who was searching the roads as a result of earlier reports and saw a reddish oval cross the road, illuminating the pavement. Nov. 2, 1957; 4 miles W of Levelland, Texas (BBU)
10:50 p.m. Pedro Saucedo and Jose Salaz driving W saw a flash of light to the right of the road then a large 200 ft long 6 ft wide blue torpedo-shaped object, with yellow flame and white smoke emitted from the rear, rose up out of the field, headed straight toward their truck, passed directly overhead at about 200 ft with a loud thundering roar, a rush of wind and great heat, causing the truck engine to die and headlights to go out, then disappeared in the E towards Levelland, and the lights came back on spontaneously and the engine was able to be restarted. (Hynek UFO Exp ch. 9; Tony Rullán; Vallée Magonia 419) 2-3 mins Nov. 3, 1957; 9 miles E of Levelland, 1 mile W of Smyer, Texas (BBU) 12:05 a.m. Texas Tech college student Newell H. Wright was driving W when the ammeter on his car dashboard started fluctuating widely, car motor gradually went out then headlights and radio died. He got out to check and saw a white or aluminum-colored oval-shaped object flat on the bottom like a loaf of bread, with a greenish tint, about 75-125 ft long. After a few mins object suddenly rise up from the road ahead and ascend almost vertically at great speed, slightly to the N, disappearing in secs. Afterward car was able to be restarted. (Hynek UFO Exp ch. 9; Tony Rullán; Vallée Magonia 419) 4 mins Nov. 3, 1957; White
Sands, New Mexico (BBU)
3 a.m. [1 p.m. MST ?] Army patrol at Stallion Site in a jeep saw an orange, "apparently controlled," luminous object on the ground near the site of the first Abomb explosion [Trinity Site] first seen as a sun-like source 150 ft above ground, descending to ground level after 3 mins, landing a few miles away at the N end of the test grounds. (Vallée Magonia 420; FUFOR Index) 3 mins + Nov. 3, 1957; Ararangua, Brazil Cat. 3,11. Airliner direction finder and transmitter-receiver burnt during UFO sighting. Nov. 3, 1957; Sao Vicente, Brazil Cat. 3. Itaipu Fort electrical system failed, sentries received burns as UFO approached and hovered. Nov. 3, 1957; Calgary, Alta. (near) Cat. 3. Car motor missed, headlights flickered as UFO arced overhead. Nov. 4, 1957; Orogrande, New Mexico (BBU) A 1:10 p. m. local time, near Orogrande, NM, James W. Stokes, a high altitude research engineer, saw an elliptical UFO sweep across the highway twice. The car radio and the engine failed. Stokes claimed that other drivers were also on the road, and their engines had also failed. Stokes felt a wave of heat, and later his face appeared "sunburned." Nov. 4, 1957; 3 miles SE of El Paso Airport, Texas
(BBU)
7:30 p.m. Border Patrol inspector Burton saw eggshaped object with bluish glow approaching from the SW at 30° elevation with whirring sound like artillery shell after car stalled and headlights dimmed and blacked out. Object passed over car at 100 ft height headed W, changing altitude at irregular intervals, rose vertically at Franklin Mtns. (Hynek UFO Rpt p. 181; FUFOR Index) Nov. 4, 1957; Kodak, Alaska Cat. 3. A "steady dit-dit-dit" interference on police radio during UFO sighting. Nov. 4, 1957; Toronto, Canada Cat. 3. TV interference (audio); viewers called out by neighbors to see UFO. Nov. 4, 1957; Kirtland AFB, Albuquerque, New Mexico (BBU) 10:45 p.m. (MST). CAA air traffic controllers R. M. Kaser and E. G. Brink saw a highly maneuverable 15-20 ft egg-shaped object with a white light at its base circle over the W [E?] end of the base at 150-200 mph and come down in a steep 30° dive as if landing on Runway 26, to the N or NW of the tower at about 1500 ft. Radar tracked part of this maneuver. Object then crossed flight line, runways and taxiways heading towards the tower at about 50 mph and 20-30 ft above ground, observed through 7x binoculars till it reached about 3,000 ft to the ENE near the NE corner of the floodlit restricted nuclear Weapons Storage Area / Area D/Drumhead Area, and a B-58 bomber service site, where it hovered for 20 secs-1 min then headed E again, at about 200-300 ft height, then suddenly shot up at a steep climb at about 45,000 [4,500?] ft/min. Controllers contacted RAPCON which tracked object on CPN-18 radar traveling E then turning S, circling the Albuquerque Low Frequency Range Station then headed N [disappearing at 10 miles and reappearing 20 mins later to circle around ?] to follow 1/2 mile behind a USAF C-46 that had just taken off to the S for 14 miles until both went off scope. Hovering radar target then appeared to the N over outer marker for 1-1/2 mins before fading. (McDonald 1968, 1972; Hynek UFO Exp ch. 7, case RV-3) 25 mins Nov. 4, 1957; Elmwood Park, Illinois Reddish elongated object at low level pursued by police in squad car. Nov. 5, 1957; Long Beach Airport, Calif.(BBU) Air Force Major (Zibello), others at Municipal Airport saw 6 shiny circular UFOs "changing course instantaneously without loss of speed like planes in a dogfight." (UFOE; McDonald list; FUFOR Index) Nov. 5, 1957; Eglin AFB, Florida (BBU) (McDonald list) Nov.
5, 1957; About 200 [350?] miles S of Mobile and near
Selma, Alabama (BBU)
5:16-5:23? a.m. US Coast Guard cutter Sebago heading NNE at 23° azimuth tracked radar target to the S at 188° azimuth range 22 miles traveling at 650 mph disappearing at 190° azimuth at 55 miles range. Visual object like a brilliant planet was seen at 5:21 for 5 secs traveling left to right from W to NW from 270° to 310° azimuth at about 31° elevation. A radar target seemingly stationary for 1 min at 5:20-21 to the N at 350° azimuth range 7 miles moved slowly towards the NE then accelerated rapidly off the scope at 15° azimuth (about NNE) at 175 miles. 3 USAF pilots at Selma saw a bright object flash from S to N, time uncertain. (UFOE, VIII; Hynek-CUFOS-Willy Smith files; cf. CR p. 165) 7 mins ? Nov. 5, 1957; Scotia, Nebraska (BBU)
Nov. 5, 1957; Haverhill, Mass.5:30 p.m. Winslow heard helicopter-like noise, smelled "burning" odor, saw a balloon-like, elongated object coming to ground level, without touching down, emanating thick smoke, then object rose again and disappeared. Witness was "paralyzed" during sighting. (Vallée Magonia 424; FUFOR Index) Nov. 5, 1957; Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia Cat. 3. Brilliant round orange object hovered, revolving; television blacked out. November 5, 1957; East St. Louis, Illinois Three Alton & Southern Railroad employees saw two silvery, egg-shaped UFOs.(UFOE) Nov. 5, 1957; Hedley, TX Cat. 3. Farmer saw UFO; neighbor reported TV off at same time. Nov. 5, 1957; Hobbs, New Mexico Cat 3. Speeding car, motor failed, lights went out as UFO swooped over car. Ground Observer Corps reported a circular or spherical glowing object which appeared to vibrate up and down and from side to side while hovering. [UFOE, VII] Nov. 5, 1957; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Cat. 3. Apartment lights dead, electric clock stopped; bright light awakened couple. Milkman reported flaming disc. Nov. 5, 1957; Ringwood, Illinois Cat. 3. UFO followed car returning to town. TV sets in town dimmed, finally lost both picture and sound during same time period. Nov. 5, 1957; San Antonio (near), Texas Cat. 3. Car radio quit, headlights dimmed, engine stopped; UFO seen hovering low over field. Nov. 5, 1957; Springfield, Ohio Cat. 3. Car and cab stalled as UFO observed Nov. 6, 1957; Kagoshima, Japan (BBU)
(McDonald list) Nov.
6,
1957;
Whiteman
AFB, Missouri (BBU)
(McDonald list) Nov. 6, 1957; N of Seoul, South Korea (BBU) Morning. A luminous bluish-white barrelshaped object was seen close to the ground, reflected in a pool of water. It rose and vanished "like a light switched off." (Vallée Magonia 426) Nov. 6, 1957; Santa Fe, New Mexico (BBU)
12:10 a.m. J. Martinez and A. Gallegos saw an
egg-shaped object slowly coming toward them at low
altitude, illuminating their car, producing a humming
sound. Car engine, clock and a wristwatch stopped.
Object shot away to the SW. (Vallée Magonia
425; BB files??)
Nov. 6, 1957; Laredo AFB, Texas (BBU) Starting at 3:05 p.m. CST, and over a period of 41 minutes, seven or more objects were observed on a GCA Surveillance scope. The objects appeared as large as a T-33 to a C-47 and their speed was estimated at 3600 mph. The location of the objects from the observer was 170 to 350 degrees. (McDonald, Sparks, Wilson) Nov. 6, 1957; Boerne, Texas (BBU 5205)
6 p.m. McGregor saw an oval object, about 15 ft
long, bright orange similar to glowing coals, hovering
12 ft above ground. He went to call his family but the
object had vanished when he returned. Tape [?]. (cf.
Vallée Magonia 431; FUFOR Index)
Nov. 6, 1957; Lake County, Ohio (BBU)
6:30 a.m. Markell saw an unbearably bright round
object, much larger than a plane, landing on a ridge,
then taking off again. Object had an "odd color," left
no trail, made no noise. (Vallée Magonia 428;
FUFOR Index)
Nov. 6, 1957; Nr. Danville, IllinoisNov. 6, 1957; Merom (25 miles south of Terre Haute), Indiana Early evening, Rene Gilham, a young ironworker Haute witnessed a 30-40 foot diameter, circular object hovering 200-300 feet overhead. It was also observed by his family and neighbors across the street. Mr. Gilham stood under the object for about ten minutes in the recurrent blue light beams being projected down. The effects of the encounter put him in the hospital. (Frank Edwards, NICAP files) Cat. 3. State Police chased UFO for 15 miles, unable to notify headquarters because their radio went mysteriously dead." (UFOE) Nov. 6, 1957; Nr. Atlanta, Ga. Three truckers independently reported seeing reddish elliptical objects on the road.(UFOE) Nov. 6, 1957; Cannon AFB, New Mexico (BB) November 6, 1957; Cannon AFB, New Mexico (BB)
At 8:15 p.m. MST, there occurred a radar sighting of
slow moving objects the apparent size of an
aircraft. Seventeen targets were tracked at various
bearings over a period of 9 minutes. 07/0315Z (Dan
Wilson)Nov. 6, 1957; Radium Springs, New Mexico (BBU 5227) 10:50 p.m. Las Cruces policeman [Barela?] and a Dona Ana County Deputy Sheriff saw a round object changing from red to green to blue to white rising vertically from a mountain top. (Berliner; FUFOR Index) 10 mins Nov.
6,
1957; Montville, Ohio (BBU)
11:30 [11:20] p.m. (EST). Olden J. Moore, 28, a
plasterer, while driving home suddenly saw an object
like a bright meteor split into two pieces, one
going straight up, the other getting larger while
color changing from bright white to blue-green.
Object hovered 200 ft above a field close to ground,
500 ft away, with a soft whirring sound. After 15
mins, Moore walked to the object, which was shaped
like "a covered dish" 50 ft in diameter, 15 ft high,
with a cone on top about 10 ft high, surrounded by
haze or fog, pulsating slowly. Holes, footprints and
decaying radioactivity found at the site by Civil
Defense Director Kenneth Locke. (UFOE, XII;
Vallée Magonia 433) 15 mins
Nov. 6, 1957; Ottawa (north of), Canada
Cat. 3. Battery radio and portable short wave radio failed, tone signal heard on one short wave frequency. UFO hovering. Nov. 6, 1957; Pell City, Alabama Cat. 3. Car motor stalled as driver attempted to approach hovering UFO low over ground. Nov. 7, 1957
EI Paso, Texas, Times: "Some of the nation's top
scientists are 'pretty shook up' about the
mysterious flying objects sighted in New Mexico
and West Texas skies this week, said Charles Capen
(a scientist at White Sands). 'This is something
that hasn't happened before,' (he said)." (UFOE)Nov. 7, 1957; Harlingen AFB, Texas (BBU)
(McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Nov. 7, 1957; Lake Charles, Louisiana Silvery disc hovered, car motor failed. (UFOE) Nov. 7, 1957; Orogrande (near), New Mexico Cat. 3. Car traveling about 60 mph, speedometer waved wildly between 60 and 110. Then UFO sighted. Nov. 8, 1957; Merrick, Long Island, New York
(BBU 5254)
10:10 a.m. Mrs. L. Dinner saw a bar-shaped
object, 3.5 ft long, giving off blue flashes and a
swishing sound. No further data. (Berliner)
Nov. 9, 1957; Lake City, Missouri (BBU)
1 a.m. Boardman driving home from work saw a
hovering object 50 ft long. Car engine died as he
approached, restarted again after object's
departure. (Vallée Magonia 439; FUFOR
Index)
Nov. 12, 1957; Houma, Louisiana (BBU)
Nov. 9, 1957; White Oaks (near), New Mexico Cat. 3. Car lights failed as UFO observed. Nov. 10, 1957; Hammond, Indiana Police chased an elongated UFO; electromagnetic interference reported. (UFOE) Nov. 10, 1957; Madison, Ohio Cat. 2,4. Close encounter with a domed-top 40' UFO. Nov. 11, 1957; Nr. Los Angeles, California
Airline passenger saw elliptical UFO flying low over ground below plane. [UFOE, VII] Nov. 11,
1957; San Fernando Valley, Calif.
Rocketdyne engineers observed three UFOs climbing at high speed. [UFOE, VI] Nov. 11, 1957; Hazleton, Pennsylvania Cat. 3. TV disrupted as UFO seen. Nov. 11, 1957; Rumney, New Hampshire Cat. 3. Car motor and lights failed. Ground Observer Corps reported UFO at same time. (McDonald list)
Nov. 14, 1957; Rothwesten, West Germany (BBU) 12:01 p.m. local time. (601st AC&W Squadron) The first target was initially detected on AN/MPS-11 and AN/MPS-14 (?) radar at 22 miles SW of Merseberg Sovzone Airfield, at 100 degrees azimuth at 70 nautical miles. This radar blip split into two targets on a parallel course on separation. The flight path was to the north. The speed of the targets were from 2,000 to 3,000 nmph. At 6:42 p.m. (1742Z), a high speed target was detected on the AN/MPS-11 radar at 100 degrees at 135 nautical miles with a flight path to the north. The height indicator showed the target at 60,000 feet, changing to 63,000 feet. This sighting lasted for 2 minutes. There was an unusual amount of electronic interference which the radar maintenance officer was able to explain except for the target being reported. At 6:53 p.m. (1753Z), a high speed blip was detected on the AN/MPS-11 radar at 131.5 degrees at 136 nautical miles. Flight of the blip was to the NE at an estimated speed of 5,300 nmph. (The report form does say 5,300 nautical miles per minute.) This sighting lasted for 1 minutes plus. There was an unusual amount of electronic interference which the radar maintenance officer was able to explain except for the target being reported. All the targets painted as normal aircraft. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) Nov. 14, 1957; Tamaroa, Illinois Cat. 3. Power failed for 10 minutes in a four mile area, just after hovering UFO flashed. Nov. 15, 1957; Carthage, Tenn. Highway patrolman, sheriff, others saw many flashing revolving red lights which moved around slowly, hovered. [UFOE, VII] Nov. 15, 1957; Cachoeira, Brazil Cat. 3. Several car motors failed as drivers attempted to approach UFO hovering low above ground. Nov. 21, 1957; Houma AFS, Louisiana 12:00 a.m. to 2:50 a.m. CST A radar target 15 miles long and 10 miles wide was observed. The target had a speed of 55 knots. After some figuring the altitude was estimated to be at 31,000 feet on the initial plot. The target had decreased in altitude to 3000 feet before it faded. The 747th AC&W Squadron and the 653rd AC&W Squadron also had radar contact with this target. The target was observed on MPS-7 and MPS-14 radar equipment. The search scopes were UPA-35 and OA-175. Weather and chaff were both considered and seemed unlikely that they caused the return. The Project 10073 Record Card gives the location as Houm, Alabama. (For the record this sighting took place at Houma AFS, Louisiana, the home of the 657th AC&W Squadron.) (Dan Wilson, BB files) Nov. 22, 1957; 10 miles SE of Tarakly, Turkey
(BBU)
Daytime. Turkish Air Force pilot saw a 10 ft
regular-hexagon-shaped object. (Project 1947)
Nov. 22, 1957; Canutillo, Texas Silvery UFO sped back and forth, ascended. [UFOE, VII] Nov. 23, 1957; Joliet, Illinois (BBU) 7:05 p.m. CST. A large round brilliant white object was seen above the overcast by five individual airline pilots. The object was observed from 5 miles NE of V10 and V38 Airways. The object seemed to hover at times and fly on a straight course when it was moving. CAA Ground Radar Operator J. J. Murphy, reported a contact for 10 sweeps on his scope 50 miles SW of Chicago at 253 degrees from Midway Airport. The length of the observation was 5 minutes.(McDonald list; FUFOR Index) Nov. 23, 1957; 30 miles W of Tonopah, Nevada
(BBU)
6:10-30 a.m. (PST). 1st Lt. Joseph F. Long,
fighter pilot. Car engine stalled, he heard
high-pitched
whining noise, saw 4 landed 50-foot
saucer-shaped UFO's to the right of the road at
900-1200 ft away. He approached on foot to 50 ft
distance, objects lifted off, flew north over
highway, disappeared behind hills 1/2 mile away.
Ground impressions at the landing site. (UFOE, II;
Hynek UFO Rpt pp. 182-6; Willy Smith pp. 71-79;
Vallée Magonia 445) 20 mins
Nov. 25, 1957; Eglin AFB, Florida (BBU) 10 p.m. USAF B-66 crew saw 3 objects, tracked
by ground radar. (McDonald list; Project 1947)
Nov. 25, 1957; Mogi Mirim, Brazil Cat. 3. All city lights failed as three UFOs passed overhead. Nov. 26, 1957; Joliet, Illinois (BBU)
6:30 a.m. Air National Guard F-86A pilot saw a
stationary yellowish object disappear slightly [?]
to the N. (Project 1947)
Nov. 26, 1957; Robins AFB, Georgia (BBU 5419)
10:07 a.m. 3 control tower operators, 1 weather
observer and 4 others saw a silver, cigar-shaped
object, which suddenly vanished. (Berliner)Nov. 26, 1957; West Mesa AFS, New Mexico (BBU) 8:41 p.m. MST. Blip on MPS-7 (B) radar clocked at 3000 knots, azimuth 315 degrees, range at 170 miles. The length of the observation was 1 minute 24 seconds.(McDonald list; FUFOR Index) Nov. 26, 1957; Sea of Okhotsk, W of Kamchatka,
USSR (BBU)
11:04 p.m. USAF crew of RB-50, 6091st Recon Sq,
saw a brilliant red object with bluish-green tail
in level trajectory. (Project 1947)
Nov. 27, 1957; Yakima, Wash. (BBU)
1:25 a.m. (PST). Northwest Airlines Flight 535
pilot in the air and control tower operator on the
ground saw a bright red glow turning to white
smoke moving S. (Project 1947)
Nov. 27, 1957; Toledo, Ohio (BBU)
7:35 p.m. (EST). Pilots of Eastern and
Northwest Airlines airliners saw an object flying
straight at about 4,800 knots (5,500 mph).
(Project 1947)
Nov. 30, 1957; Minot, North Dakota (BBU) At 4:20 a.m. local time, a one inch blip on an FPS-6 radar scope climbed from 5,000 feet to 25,000 feet in 20 seconds. The blip traveled 100 miles in 20 seconds when it faded from the radar. (Dan Wilson, McDonald list; FUFOR Index) Nov. 30, 1957; New Orleans, Louisiana (BBU
5445)
2:11 p.m. 3 U.S. Coast Guardsmen saw a round
object turn [?] white, then gold, then separate
into 3 parts and turn red. (Berliner) 20 mins
Dec. 1957; Pacific Ocean Photograph of alleged disc-shaped UFO. [UFOE, VIII] Dec. 1, 1957; LOS Angeles, California Formation of oval UFOs photographed. [UFOE, VIII] Dec. 3, 1957; Cobalt, Ontario, Canada Cat. 3. Radio static as several UFOs seen over area. Dec. 3, 1957; Ellensburg (near), Washington Cat. 3. Truck motor "almost stopped", caught again, as UFO sighted. Sighting confirmed by police. Dec. 8, 1957; Coulee City (near), Washington Cat. 3. Automobiles stalled, headlights flickered and went out, as large fiery object passed overhead. Dec. 11, 1957; Guthrie, Penna. and Parkersburg, West Virginia (BBU) 10 p.m. USAF pilots of 3 F-86's with 87th FI Sq
saw an orange circular or crescent-shaped object
moving erratically at Mach 1.5 (about 1,000 mph)
with ground radar tracking. (Dan Wilson, Brad
Sparks, Project 1947, McDonald list)
<>Dec. 11, 1957; Lake City AFS; Tennessee (BBU) At 7:48 p.m. EST, an AN/FPS-10 radar set picked up object about the size of three B-47 a/c in close formation. The speed of the object was estimated at 90 knots. When first detected the object was at 225 degrees at 13,000 feet in altitude. When last detected the object had descended to 11,000 feet at 205 degrees. The length of the observation was 41 minutes. (McDonald list) Dec. 12, 1957; Chatham, Windsor area, Canada Trans-Canada Airlines pilot, many police, saw orange oval UFO curving rapidly at low altitude. [UFOE, X] Dec. 12-15, 1957; Misawa, Chitose, Hokkaido, Japan (BBU) Beginning at 1745 hours local time, Dec.
12, at least 13 witnesses observed a very
bright light in the sky to the SSW over the Sea of
Japan. The object was tracked on radar and seen
through binoculars. At 1822 local time a
scramble was ordered and two F-86D's took off from
Misawa AFB. Site P-45 assumed control of Subway
Red (F-86D) at 1829 local and immediately was
vectored toward the object. P-45 was painting the
object by the Height Range Indicator and visually.
Subway Red reported he had a visual on the object
at1839 local but lost it almost simultaniously. In
the meantime, site P-45 had lost contact, both
visually and electronically with the object. Site
29 advised they were observing the object at a
bearing of 240 degrees, 110 miles from site 45.
Subway Red was vectored toward the object and
obtained another visual, but the object wasn't
moving latterally, but vertically. The aircraft
lost the object and the chase was broken off. The
object was circular in shape and was under visual
observation for one hour and twenty minutes and
under radar observation for approximately 35
minutes. The object was tracked on radar at speeds
ranging from 94 mph to 1686 mph. (Dan Wilson, Brad
Sparks, UFOE, VIII; McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Dec. 13, 1957; Col Anahuac, Mexico (BBU 5545)
9:35 a.m. R. C. Cano saw 14-15 [or 30]
circular, tapered discs, very bright, fly in a
formation like a stack of coins, then change to an
inverted-V formation. (Berliner; cf. Hynek UFO
Rpt. p. 120) 20 mins
Dec. 16, 1957; Old Saybrook, Conn. Elliptical UFO with "portholes." [UFOE, XII] Dec. 17, 1957; Fruita-Grand Junction, Colo.
(BBU 5559)
7:20 p.m. F. G. Hickman, 17, saw a round object
change from yellow to white to green to red, with
red tail 2x as long as the body. Object stopped,
started, backed up. (Berliner) 45 mins
Dec. 18, 1957; Sarasota, Florida Cat. 3. White light source glided overhead, TV interference noted. Dec. 19, 1957; Pepperrell AFB,
Newfoundland, Canada (BBU)
7:02 p.m. local. One red egg-shaped object the size of a pea held at arm's length was seen visually and picked up on radar. The object was reportedly stationary but it did move. There were also 5 photos taken of the object but were undeveloped for possible instructions. The length of the observation was 8 minutes. (McDonald list, Dan Wilson, BB files) Dec. 23, 1957; Sea of Japan
(BBU)
9:34 p.m. local time. A projectile was sighted by the aircraft commander which passed over the tail of an RB-47 aircraft. It appeared to have a long trail behind and traveled in an arcing course, disappearing in a very bright explosion like a flash bomb. Radar was jammed and could not be tuned out. According to the PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD, this was an Air-Visual, Ground-Radar, and Air-Intercept Radar sighting. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index, Dan Wilson) |
|
|
