The CIA UFO Papers

by Dan Wright

  October 29, 1970

  At 4:40 p.m., a motorist outside Jæren, Norway, spotted a bright light approaching and pulled off the road for a better look. As it neared, the light was revealed as disc-shaped, 10 meters in diameter, with a steely blue body and dome above. When it stopped overhead, the car's engine quit. The driver exited and stood next to the vehicle, looking up at the intruder. After a few minutes, the disc left swiftly, somehow knocking the witness to the ground and breaking the auto's windshield.6

  November 17–20, 1970

  At a radar meteorology conference in Tucson, Arizona, atmospheric physicist James McDonald presented “Meteorological Factors in Unidentified Radar Returns,” advancing the understanding of radar-visual UFO cases.7

  Chapter 24

  1971: Science Journals—More to Say

  Since 1968, UFO reports and general public interest had declined. The Wall Street Journal opined this was caused by publication of the Condon Report in 1968, which concluded that “nothing has come from the study of UFO's in the last 21 years that has added to scientific knowledge.” A Stanford University academic, meanwhile, concluded that people simply lost interest. They turned to drugs, astrology, Oriental religions, and other philosophic subjects. National and international events drove people inward for answers to universal questions, he added, but as a recurring fad, interest in UFOs would inevitably return. A University of Michigan social work professor viewed UFOs as a form of escape. “One expression of this escape is the possibility of other lives, other planets, other beings like or unlike oneself.”1

  Curiously, the Condon study, having preselected specific cases, found 35 out of 117 unexplainable. Among the entire population, unexplained sightings would be a small but not negligible number. Science News reporters concluded, “... [W]e find it difficult to ignore the small residue of well-documented but unexplainable cases which form the hard core of the UFO controversy ... characterized by both a high degree of credibility and a high abnormality (‘strangeness’ in Hynek's terminology).” The Colorado group made no serious attempt to find commonalities among the 35 unexplained cases; hence, any conclusions it reached were not necessarily the final word on the subject: “... [I]t is unacceptable to simply ignore substantial numbers of unexplained observations and to close the book about them on the basis of premature conclusions.” Given the Air Force decision to divorce itself from the UFO subject, its files should be archived by a civilian agency, the author reported.2

  The journal Astronautics and Aeronautics in September 1971 outlined the events on the night of August 13–14, 1956, at two air bases in England's interior—RAF Lakenheath and the US Air Force's Bentwaters AFB—as supported by radars at both.

  At 9:30 p.m., an unidentified radar echo (URE) was picked up east-southeast of Bentwaters, moving at least 4,000 mph. Contact was lost west-northwest of the base.

  At roughly 9:35, 12–15 UREs appeared southwest of Bentwaters. A check of the radar found no technical problem. Individual targets moved 80–125 mph. In 10–15 minutes, when 40 miles northeast of the base, the targets merged into one that was first stationary, traveled 5–6 miles, stopped again, then moved beyond the 50-mile radar range.

  At 10 p.m., Bentwaters plotted an unknown for 16 seconds, moving over 4,000 mph, perhaps up to 12,000 mph.

  At 10:55 p.m., Lakenheath targeted an unknown moving 2,000–4,000 mph that “disappeared” in the few seconds of one radar sweep. Bentwaters personnel saw a bright light move overhead at “terrific speed.”

  At 12:10 a.m., Lakenheath radar again targeted unknowns. Visual sightings by base personnel were inconclusive. Before midnight, Waterbeach RAF station had scrambled a fighter jet to investigate. The plane's onboard radar locked onto a target for several seconds, so “there was something there that was solid.” The pilot was vectored to one of the unknowns and made visual contact coincidental with radar detection, calling it a “bright white light.” He locked weapons on the target then lost sight of it; seemingly in an instant the unknown had circled around behind the plane and was following it.

  The pilot returned to the base and a second fighter was vectored to the area, where the unknown was shown as a stationary object on both bases' radars. It then moved away at 400–600 mph. Radar operators reported no apparent acceleration/deceleration of any target. “[T]here was no build-up to this speed—it was constant from the second it started to move ...”3

  J. Allen Hynek ruled out a meteor hypothesis as UFO identifiers, despite the ongoing Perseids meteor shower: “The Condon Report in its analysis of this incident had stated: ‘In conclusion, although conventional or natural explanations certainly cannot be ruled out, the probability of such seems low in this case and the probability that at least one genuine UFO was involved appears to be fairly high’ (emphasis added).” Condon's conclusion: “In summary, this is the most puzzling and unusual case in the radar-visual files. The rational, intelligent behavior of the UFO suggests a mechanical device of unknown origin as the most probable explanation of the sighting.”4

  The article's author was quick to declare that Condon's probable-UFO assessment did not imply an extraterrestrial origin. Soon Philip Klass of Aviation Week suggested the Lakenheath radar was malfunctioning, but the author remarked, “[T]he coincident observation of the URE by the Lakenheath GCI radar, a different type (than Bentwaters' RATCC radar), and later by the Venom's (i.e., fighter jet's) airborne radar seems to rule out this hypothesis.”5

  Conclusions reached by the article's author:

  Meteors could be ruled out.

  A visual mirage was not possible.

  Anomalous radar propagation could not explain most of the instances.

  “Taking into consideration the high credibility of information and the cohesiveness and continuity of accounts, combined with a high degree of ‘strangeness,’ it is also certainly one of the most disturbing UFO incidents known today.”6

  Note: Readers might think, “Let me get this straight ...” Of the Condon Committee's 117 preselected UFO cases to study, 35 (30 percent) were left unresolved. Condon's group threw up its hands on the 1956 Bentwaters-Lakenheath airbases case, suggesting the objects in question were technologically advanced. “Puzzling,” they wrote. Still, they had the cojones to call for an end to the government's UFO involvement: “Move along, nothing to see here,” as it were. Once again, it would seem the fix was in. (Emphasis added.)

  While you were away from your desk . . .

  January 3, 1971

  That night, at Aberdeen, Washington, three fuzzy round objects, two feet in diameter, moved over a bridge and hovered as an auto approached. The vehicle's engine quit and the radio had heavy interference, but the headlights remained on. The three objects then rose somewhat and drifted slowly down the river. The car could then be restarted.7

  September 19, 1971

  A young man at Bahia Blanca, Argentina, witnessed an anomalous object moving over pasture fields, unable to move as he watched. The object stirred up whirlwinds of dust, while cows appeared to change color in its presence. Afterward, his face was severely burned and he suffered from a persistent migraine headache.8

  September 30, 1971

  Secretary of State William Rogers and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko signed a bilateral agreement, to reduce the risks of nuclear war. Article 3 read: “The Parties undertake to notify each other immediately in the event of detection by missile warning systems of unidentified objects, or in the event of signs of interference with these systems or with related communications facilities, if such occurrences could create a risk of outbreak of nuclear war between the two countries.”9

  Chapter 25

  1972: The Government Remains Quiet

  In an Information Report of April 10 from somewhere behind the Iron Curtain, five of the six topical discussions were redacted. As to the one shown, a member of a Soviet committee to study unusual phenomena gave a talk that was received with much humor. This “flying saucer committee” consisted of politicians,
theorists, historians, and others with little scientific background.1

  While you were away from your desk . . .

  June 26, 1972

  On a farm outside Fort Beaufort, South Africa, the owner was called out by a laborer who pointed to a fiery red sphere a short distance away. It moved into the open a second time, now fiery green, about 2½ feet in diameter. Then it turned to a yellowish white. The farmer raced into the house, alerted authorities, and returned with a rifle. He fired several rounds, believing at least one struck the intruder with a thud. It moved up and down then behind some trees. In time a warrant officer and a sergeant from the local fort arrived. After several more shots were fired, the ball emerged, shiny black. It maneuvered away and back again, apparently unfazed by the gunfire. One of the men snuck up from behind and fired once more, whereupon it turned gray-white and issued a whirring sound. Finally, it darted over treetops, parting the foliage with an unseen force as it went, and moved out of sight.2

  August 21, 1972

  At 2:30 a.m. a man was driving in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, when he spotted an object hovering over trees near the road. Its shape was undefined in the darkness, but it appeared to be 20–30 feet in diameter. Just then his engine and headlights failed and the radiator boiled over as he felt a buildup of heat. Before the anomalous vehicle departed he heard beeping sounds. In the aftermath, the car's lights, radio, and horn were inoperable.3

  Chapter 26

  1973: MUFON's Year of the Humanoid

  Dr. Jacques Vallee, a French mathematician and UFO researcher, said in conversation that as people experience increasingly strange phenomena, such as in UFO encounters, they tell fewer people. The mind is shocked by high strangeness and subconsciously adds to the incoming data, resulting in a mix of reliable information and conjecture. If the experience is severely stressful, one's mental state might not return to normal. Thus, in such a circumstance, “the mind should be centered on a reality so substantial and yet so far beyond form that no particular form will disturb its equilibrium.” Many cultures across the ages had suggested centering the mind on this depth of reality. The report writer suggested balancing the person's mind first; otherwise the information brought forth thereafter would be useless.1

  The Agency had intentionally shifted its focus away from UFOs toward other aspects of, broadly speaking, paranormal activity—extrasensory perception (ESP), remote viewing—amid rumors that the Soviets had a head start in those areas.

  NICAP's Donald Keyhoe spoke to The Oregonian on the 1st of December, 1973, remarking to Portland readers that the only unanswered questions regarding UFOs were: (a) whether the crews resemble humans physically or mentally, (b) where in space they come from, and (c) their motive in surveilling Earth.

  The continued government cover-up, Keyhoe emphasized, was prompted by a fear of public panic and chaos if the truth about alien visitors were admitted. A secrecy directive by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, JANAP-146, kept thousands of military and commercial pilots “strictly muzzled” by threat of fine and jail. Keyhoe's book, Aliens from Space, presented “Operation Lure” to coax UFOs to land for long enough to allow TV crews and linguists to intervene.2

  Note: Joint Army-Navy-Air Force Publication (JANAP) 146(E), first issued on March 31, 1966, by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, required pilots and related personnel to immediately report sightings of, or encounters with, unidentified flying objects through established formal channels. Concurrently, it forbade personnel from communicating with anyone in the media or other member of the public about such incidents. A substantial fine, imprisonment, or both would result from any violation of the regulation. The rules were extended to commercial pilots informally by pressuring their airlines, stipulating that UFO reports were an intelligence matter, protected from disclosure by the Espionage Act.3

  In an article in the journal Science, “Beings from Outer Space—Corporeal and Spiritual,” the author, Hudson Hoagland, compared UFO research to the practice of psychic research in the 1920s and beyond. The problem for scientists was the impossibility of proving a negative. “The Condon report rightly points out that further investigations of UFO's will be wasteful. In time we may expect that UFO visitors from outer space will be forgotten, just as ectoplasm as evidence for communication with the dead is now forgotten.”4

  While you were away from your desk . . .

  February 14, 1973

  At 2:30 a.m., east of McAlester, Oklahoma, the pilots of a DC-8 cargo jet spotted a light a mile away, below them on the same path, confirmed by onboard radar. It suddenly rose up, rushed the plane, then resumed pacing from 300 yards. An oval shape was now evident, 75 feet by 40 feet, with small fins, a transparent dome, and three figures inside. The captain vainly radioed to keep a safe distance. The craft slid in front of the jet, arcing gracefully up and down before flying away. Air Force officers twice interviewed the pilots, first cordially, then later arguing that they had been mistaken.5

  October 3, 1973

  In the predawn light at 6:30 a.m., a husband and wife driving team in a trailer-tractor rig was south of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, on Interstate 55, nearing their terminal. The man saw something in his rearview mirror approaching rapidly without headlights. Then it slowed and began pacing right behind them. The overall shape was “like a turnip or top,” its mass covering both lanes of the interstate. The upper and lower sections looked silvery and seemed to be spinning. A band of glittering “rainbow lights” shone in the middle. When the ship cast a beam of light onto the rear wheels of the trailer, the man leaned his head out for a better look, but “something like a red flash of fire hit me across the face and forehead.”

  He managed to bring the truck to a panic stop but was totally blind for the next 2½ hours. His wife drove them to the terminal, where they called an ambulance. A week of hospitalization and months of rest restored most of his sight. His glasses, blistered and warped, were tested by a prominent physicist who concluded that high heat was the cause.6

  October 17, 1973

  The Falkville, Alabama, police chief took a call about an unknown with flashing lights that had landed in a farm field that evening. When he arrived, he saw a figure, human-size, dressed in what appeared to be aluminum foil, with an antenna on its head. He snapped four Polaroid pictures. When he turned on the cruiser's overhead lights, the creature ran down the dirt road nearby. The chief gave chase on the primitive road but was unable to keep up, saying later, “He was running faster than any human I ever saw.” Several residents in the area phoned the next day with their own UFO sightings of that night. However, the event soon turned sour for the chief. In short order his wife divorced him and the mayor asked for his resignation.7

  October 18, 1973

  The next night, an Army Reserve UH-1 (a.k.a. Huey) helicopter with a four-man crew was headed back to Cleveland, Ohio, from a day trip to Columbus. Captain Lawrence J. Coyne commanded the team. The sky was clear, starry, and moonless. The chopper was cruising at 90 knots and 2,500 feet. Both men in the rear seats noticed a single red light unlike an aircraft running light, apparently pacing them; one of them brought it to Captain Coyne's attention. Then the light closed on the Huey, seemingly on a collision path. Coyne took the controls and began a steep descent—2,000 feet per minute. The light slowed but continued to pace them, now above and in front of the Huey. It was discernible as cigar-shaped and gray metallic; it filled their windshield. A red light was at the nose, a white light was at the rear, and a green beam emanated from the bottom. The beam swung around and bathed the cockpit and men in green light. All sounds ceased for the crew; they felt no turbulence. After a few more seconds the anomaly accelerated, turned sharply 45 degrees, and sped away.

  The crewmen now checked the altimeter and were astonished to find they were at 3,500 feet and climbing. The collective was still in the full down position. The magnetic compass was also malfunctioning. They were able to level off and continued their journey with no further incident. Afterward, seven other witnesses on the
ground, from two families, were located. They had watched the Huey and the unknown in close proximity and had seen them separate.8

  October 20, 1973

  At an undisclosed location a woman was abducted from her car and taken aboard a UFO. Nonhuman beings conducted medical tests including taking blood samples and skin scrapings, and performing a rectal exam. Needles were inserted in her arms and abdomen. During the extended event she was given food and water. Afterward she experienced weight loss, depression, and sleep disturbances.9

  November 6, 1973

  At 9:45 p.m., air police at Kirtland AFB East were alerted to a breach of security in the Manzano Laboratory area. (Manzano carried on America's atomic weapons research, development, design, testing, and storage following the Manhattan Project.) The intruder was later described by an APRO investigator as “oblate spherical in shape, 150 feet in diameter, golden in color, and absolutely silent.” The object hovered 100 feet over Plant No. 3, which stored atomic weapons. In moments, four F-101 Voodoo interceptors of the New Mexico Air National Guard were scrambled at the far end of the base. As those were assembling in the sky, the UFO began moving away at treetop level (under the radar floor). It quickly crossed over the Manzano Mountains east of the base. By the time the Voodoos arrived, there was nothing to intercept. Per one of the MPs in a later interview, officials at the base were greatly upset at coming up empty and chose to treat the incident as if it never happened. Intelligence briefs thereafter made no mention of it.10