VERTICAL ASCENT, OTHER MANEUVERS

Summer 1958; Erie, Penna. Victor G. Didelot, B.S. Physics, research engineer in aircraft instrumentation and magnetics; "The object appeared to be elliptic or oval shaped, approximately twice as long about its longest axis as it was thick. The object maintained a course parallel to the ground for a visible arc of close to 120 degrees, and roughly parallel to the shore line of Lake Erie. The object moved at a very rapid pace from west to east. When it had reached what appeared to be a position directly over the city of Erie, it abruptly and at a speed at least three times its horizontal speed ascended vertically until it passed from my sight."

Mr. Didelot adds that the time was early afternoon, and the UFO was a silvery-white color. "I was also able to see that the object did wobble slightly, but when it changed course to the vertical, it seemed to lose this apparent instability. There was a complete absence of noise, and there was no discernible vapor trail."

Mid-August 1951; Central, N.M. At his ranch 10 miles east of Silver City, N.M., about 10:30a.m., Alford Roos, mining engineer, heard a "swishing" noise, looked up and observed the performance of two lens-shaped UFOs in particularly interesting detail. Mr. Roos at the time had a Civil Service rating of senior mining engineer, was a project engineer for the U.S Bureau of Mines and other government agencies, and a member of the American Institute of Mining & Metal Engineers. Extracts from his report:

"I saw an object swooping down at an angle of about 45 degrees, from southerly direction, traveling at immense speed, coming quite close to the earth over Ft. Bayard, 2 miles to the NW. Reaching the bottom of the swoop it hovered for moments, then darted up at an angle of about 70 degrees from vertical, in a northwesterly direction, directly over Ft. Bayard. . . . I neglected to state that there were two objects that [converged at the point of hovering] at which time they were in close proximity.......Over Ft. Bayard there was an isolated cloud island covering perhaps 3 degrees of arc and perhaps a mile across. The two objects shot up at this steep angle at incredible speed, both entering the cloud, and neither appeared beyond, and no trace after entering the cloud.

"Their track was as straight as a ruled line, no zigzagging. The astonishing thing was that the cloud immediately split into 3 segments, ever widening, where the objects entered. . . Each object left a pencil-thin vapor trail."

At first, Mr. Roos continued, the UFOs appeared spherical, "but after the hovering and the turn up, they must have tipped, canted so I then saw the edge-on of the lens-like-object. Going toward the cloud they were disc-shaped. There was no gathering of momentum from the low hover, to the lightning-like shoot.

From almost stationary to instant about 500 mph, the shock of inertia would have made human (terrestrial) survival impossible.

"After the objects turned on their sides at the hover, there appeared to be a button, or some small protrusion on the upper side as viewed edge-on . . . the objects were quite close and we [Ed. Note: other witnesses named in report] could all detect some form of outer ornamentation or processor possibly orifices or port holes, on the lower side just below the rim of the lens, and these seemed to undergo change of iridescent color, almost like a blinking."

From: J. J. Kaliszewski

Subject: UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT OBSERVATION

             Time: 1010, 10 October 1951

We had just spotted our trajectory flight and were approaching from the north at an altitude of 4000 feet. We started a climb towards the balloon on a course of 2300. At 5,000 feet I noticed a strange object crossing the skies from East to West, a great deal higher and behind our balloon. I estimate that our balloon was at approximately 20,000 feet at the time.

Using our balloon for comparison, this object appeared to be about 1/4 the size of the balloon. We were climbing and about six miles northeast of the balloon. The object had a peculiar glow to it, crossing behind and above our balloon from East to West very rapidly, first coming in at a slight dive, leveling off for about a minute and slowing down, then into a sharp left turn and climb at an angle of 50 to 60 degrees the southeast with a terrific acceleration, and disappeared.

Jack Donaghue and I observed this object for approximately two minutes and it crossed through an arc of approximately 40 to 50 degrees. We saw no vapor trail and from past experience I know that this object was not a balloon, jet, conventional aircraft, or celestial star.

JJK:rj 
cc: G. O. Haglund

                                                                       /s/ J. J. Kaliszewski

From: J.J. Kaliszewski

Subject: SIGHTING OF UNIDENTIFIED OBJECTS

Time: 0630, 11 October 1951

Dick Reilly and I were flying at 10,000 feet observing the grab bag balloon when I saw a brightly glowing object to the southeast of the University of Minnesota airport. At that time we were a few miles north of Minneapolis and heading east. I pointed it out to Dick and we both made the following observation:

The object was moving from east to west at a high rate and very high. We tried keeping the ship on a constant course and using reinforcing member of the windshield as a point. The object moved past this member at about 5 degrees per second.

This object was peculiar in that it had what can be described as a halo around it with a dark under surface. It crossed rapidly and then slowed down and started to climb in lazy circles slowly. The pattern it made was like a falling oak leaf inverted. It went through these gyrations for a couple minutes. I called our tracking station at the University of Minnesota airport and the observers there on the theodolite managed to get glimpses of a number of them, but couldn't keep the theodolite going fast enough to keep them in the field of their instruments. Both Doug Smith and Dick Dorion caught glimpses of these objects in the theodolite after I notified them of their presence by radio. This object, Dick and I watched for approximately five minutes.

I don't know how to describe its size, because at the time I didn't have the balloon in sight for a comparison.

Two hours later we saw another one, but this one didn't hang around. It approached from the west and disappeared to the east, neither one leaving any trace of vapor trail.

JJK:rj
cc: G. O. Haglund

                                                  /s/ J. J. Kaliszewski
Oscillatory Flight

March 10, 1952; Oakland, California. Two UFOs, one in oscillatory flight, were observed by Clarence K. Greenwood, an Inspector of Engineering Metals:

"About 6:45 a.m., as I waited for my bus to come along, I was examining the sky predicting the weather for the day, when two dark objects came into my line of vision apparently from my right rear. It was difficult to gauge their altitude. I estimated very roughly between five thousand and seventy-five hundred feet. The two dark objects flew - scooted would be a better description of their flight - diagonally away from me gradually picking up speed. One followed a direct or regular course while the

56

other seemed to play at flight - a sort of pendulum motion. I could only estimate their size. I judged about forty-five feet. Their length about one-half the width. Below is a sketch of how they appeared to me."

April 22, 1952; Lexington, Mass. Mr. R. C. Munroe (then Engineering Standards Section Head of Raytheon Manufacturing Company). While watching an AT-6 trainer aircraft about 9:30 a.m., noticed a second object nearby:

"Because of the speed at which this second aircraft was moving, I immediately concluded it was of the jet variety. I would estimate its altitude at approximately 40,000 feet. . . just below the cloud cover. My curiosity was aroused upon realizing that I could not distinguish a fuselage wing configuration. My curiosity was further aroused when this aircraft began to decelerate at an unbelievable rate. I observed the aircraft going into a flat turn, while continuing to decelerate and believe I saw the aircraft come to a stop.

"The observation that inspires writing this letter to you [i.e., to CSI of Los Angeles] was the speed of this aircraft, apparently accelerating from a stopped condition and flying in a northeast direction which would carry it over the north end of Boston. I would relate this speed to the apparent speed of a falling star. This speed was considerably in excess of that of any jet aircraft that I have observed.

"The altitude of this aircraft did not permit color identification. There was no apparent exhaust or vapor trail. It is inconceivable to me that any human being could have withstood the deceleration or acceleration displayed by this aircraft."

Aviation Expert

UFO RENDEZVOUS OBSERVED

July 16, 1952, Hampton, Virginia, 9:00 p.m. (EST). Mr. Paul R. Hill, an Aeronautical Research Engineer, holds a B.S. degree in mechanical and aeronautical engineering from the University of California. At the time of the report he had 13 years experience in aeronautical research.

Mr. Hill was aware of previous UFO sightings which had been headlined in July 1952,. particularly the report by Capt. William B. Nash, Pan-American Airways pilot, who on the night of July 14 had sighted 8 circular UFOs while flying above Newport News, Va. [Section V]. Mr. Hill was situated on Chesapeake Avenue (near La Salle Avenue) on the north shore of Hampton Roads watching the sky. With him was his wife, Frances, who also witnessed what followed.

At 9:00 p.m., he noticed two amber-colored lights. He gave this description: "Two were seen first coming in over Hampton Roads at about 500 mph. from the south. These slowed down as they made a "U" turn at the southern edge of the Peninsula. They moved side by side until they revolved around each other at a high rate of speed in a tight circle 2 or 3 hundred feet in diameter. This appeared to be a rendezvous signal as a third UFO came racing up from the direction of Virginia Beach and "fell in" several hundred feet below the first two, forming a sort of "V" formation. A fourth UFO came in from up the James River and joined the group which headed on south at about 500 mph."

Mr. Hill added that the UFOs changed altitude "only when they revolved around each other, circling or spiraling rapidly (as fast as once per second).

"They moved jerkily when moving slowly. The speed varied from about 50 to 500 mph. Their ability to make tight circling turns was amazing." [See diagram.]

At about 9:03 p.m., the four UFOs had moved into the distance out of sight to the south. The color and brightness of the objects, which did not change except apparently due to increase in distance, was compared to "an amber traffic light about 3 or 4 blocks away." The elevation angle of the UFOs covered a range of about 50 degrees, from about 10 to 60 degrees, during the observation.

Mr. Hill was interrogated by an Air Force intelligence officer from Langley Air Force Base. [9.]

NICAP note: Four amber-colored UFOs were reported at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida later the same evening.

1. Two UFOs approached, slowed.

2. Point of fast circling.
3. Third two joined circling ones.
4. Fourth joined formation.
5. All four moved south in group.
===============================
Paul R. Hill - Hampton, Virginia July 16, 1952

September 30, 1952; Edwards AFB, California. In a letter to the President of CSI of Los Angeles, Dick Beemer, aviation photographer for North American Aviation Company, described the following sighting. [Note that once again observation of a passing aircraft attracted the witnesses' attention to the sky. Otherwise they probably would not have noticed the UFOs]

"I went to Edwards Air Force Base [Muroc]. . . to direct the motion picture photography of a flight test, We had driven to the test site on the lake bed, and were standing outside. At 10:30 a.m., Carlos Garcia, one of our cameramen, looked up at a B-29 which was passing overhead. He said that he believed something had fallen from the plane. He then discovered that it was not from the plane, but seemed to be flying around. Then he noticed another. I thought he was joking and didn't pay much attention. Then Gene Piehler, the other cameraman looked up. He too observed them. By this time, I joined the watching party, and sure enough, there was really something there. We watched them for nearly ten minutes, and they appeared as follows:

"They were east of us at approximately a fifty degree angle from the ground level, and just below the mid-morning sun. They were flying at a very high altitude, moved at an extremely high rate of speed (much faster than a jet plane), left no vapor trails, and made no sound. Each of us thought that there were at least three in flight, but we could see no more than two at one time. They moved in no definite direction. For a short time, fifteen seconds or more, one would hover while the other would

zoom down past one side of it, make a sharp turn, and flash back above it on the opposite side.

"They seemed to be shaped more like flattened spheres, rather than thin saucers. In fact, they looked and behaved somewhat like yo-yo's. They moved about quickly, but seemed to have no particular destination.

"Although the sun was above them, the side away from the sun, that is, the side toward us, appeared as if it were reflecting the sunlight. They were somewhat metallic tn appearance, but seemed whiter than modern aircraft.

"We had a color motion picture camera with us, but were waiting for them to fly away from the direct rays of the sun. Instead, they disappeared away from us, and we were left with nothing but memories.

Formation of Discs

Mid-August 1956; Boulder City, Nevada. A formation of five disc-shaped UFOs was seen about 10:15 pm. (PDT) by Edison F. Carpenter, a research technician for a division of North American Aviation, At the time of the sighting, Mr. Carpenter was employed by the U.S Bureau of Mines.

"My wife and I were sitting on the back step of our home. It was a clear night, not a cloud in sight and a slight breeze from the southwest. We were facing due south. . . Suddenly from directly overhead, they had come over the house from the north, we both became aware of a group of slightly glowing objects as they flew to the south. The group numbered five and was in roughly this formation:

Their shape was perfectly round as viewed from below and they had a sort of phosphorescent glow (pinkish in color). The general shape must have been round and flat rather than round like a ball because as they drew away the shape was like this (elliptical) rather than this (circular) as a ball would appear from any angle.

"They held the formation illustrated while in view and maintained a spacing of approximately one diameter between ships. This diameter was about the diameter of a cigarette cross-section held at arm's length. They crossed approximately 60 degrees of sky, from the time they came into view over our roof until I lost sight of them, in about 6 seconds. I'm quite sure of the time element because pistol shooting is a hobby of mine and I've become accustomed to counting off 10 and 20 seconds for rapid and timed fire."

(In an accompanying letter to NICAP, Mr. Carpenter added an important point about the duration of some UFO sightings: "I am also aware that 10 seconds is a much longer interval than most people realize since it allows time for 5 aimed shots with a pistol." Some skeptics deny the validity of observations of several seconds duration, even when made by trained observers. Anyone in military service who has taken courses in aircraft and ship identification is also aware of how much detail can be observed in 2-3 seconds, and even in a fraction of a second with appropriate training).

November 11, 1957: at 4:20 p.m. the group was driving in a generally ESE direction from the Rocketdyne SanSu facility toward Canoga Park, with the late afternoon sun to their back. One of the men happened to look up and saw three shiny objects crossing their path, from NE to SW. He alerted the others, and they all clearly saw a large narrow oval object (almost cigar- shaped) accompanied by two smaller nearly circular objects (slightly oval, as if discs viewed at an angle). The large UFO was silvery on top, but bright orange underneath, possibly reflecting sunlight. The two smaller UFOs were solid silver colored. Keeping the same positions relative to each other, a V with one of the smaller objects slightly ahead and one slightly behind the large object, the three UFOs accelerated and climbed away into the distance.

The four men compared notes, and arrived at a consensus of opinion that the UFOs were first seen at about 10,000 feet altitude, climbing to 30,000 feet, at an estimated 5000 mph.

TELESCOPIC SIGHTINGS

August 11, 1958; Chautauqua Lake, N.Y.

Dr. Fair, a retired professor of Engineering, New York University, submitted the following log of observations of aerial phenomena. He and Gary Phillips were using a survey transit to observe the altitude and azimuth of certain stars.

"(1) A white light was observed moving across the sky to the right and away from the observers. When the transit telescope was sighted on the moving light, possibly a minute had elapsed since it was first observed. At first only one white light was seen, then a second was noted, then a third and finally a fourth light, all four being more or less in line, and each separated by an angular distance of about 2 degrees. It is the opinion of both observers that when the first of the four lights was seen, that there were no other moving lights in the vicinity. Which does not mean that the objects were not in the sky, but that they were not emitting visible light at that time.

Shortly after watching all four lights with the naked eye, the third light became about ten times as bright as the others, becoming brighter than Jupiter which was in the same sky area. The other three lights at this time were about as bright as a second magnitude star. A few seconds later this third light rather suddenly dimmed until it was the faintest of the four lights.

Due to the narrow field of view of a surveyor's transit telescope, it is rather difficult to locate and follow a rapidly moving object. By the time that Gary made his first observation through the telescope the moving lights had traveled from Northwest to Southwest, passing close to Jupiter. Gary made the statement that the objects were Flying Saucers, and that the telescope showed that what appeared to be a single light to the naked eye was several lights, and that there was a red light above the others. When Dr. Fair took his turn to observe the lights, three of the objects had already disappeared behind trees to the south. The very brief glance that Dr. Fair had showed several white lights, he thought there were five, and he observed a faint red light to the rear and above the white ones.

(2) Fifteen minutes later, while in a boat on Lake Chautauqua, while looking for meteors, a single white light was seen in the southeast sky traveling from south to north. The light slowly and continuously varied intensity, fluctuating from 5th to 3rd magnitude, but the time of the cycle was irregular, but of more than three-second duration per cycle. For several seconds the light appeared to be stationary and when it resumed its motion it was traveling in a direction opposite to when first observed. Total time of observation of this light was about five minutes. As it receded in the south it became too faint to be further seen.

At about this time a jet trail, making an arc of about 180 degrees was observed in a tighter radius than that described by the first four objects, but following essentially the same course. At the head of the jet trail Gary saw a red glow, possibly the exhaust from the jet.

(3) Still later a different type of lighting was seen close to the horizon in the western sky. We were still out on the lake at the time. A bright, rapidly blinking red and white light moved rapidly from right to left. Soon a similar blinking red and white light was seen to the right of this light, moving from right to left. It was fainter than the other which could have been due to being farther away. When the two lights passed each other they were separated by a vertical angle of about 2 or 3 degrees.

(4) After returning to the transit on shore, star observations were resumed but in a few minutes were interrupted to again observe a white light in the northwest traveling rapidly from west to north. The telescope showed this light to be similar to the first objects. Dr. Fair noted in particular that the five white lights were not arranged in a straight line, but appeared as though spaced on the circumference of an oval. [Emphasis added]. Again, a red light was noted above and slightly to the rear of the white lights. This was followed with the telescope until it disappeared behind some nearby trees. Gary who noticed this object first saw only two white lights. Probably fifteen seconds elapsed before Dr. Fair was sighted on the object and observed that there were five white lights.

No vapor trail was observed behind any of the sighted objects.

September 4, 1960; Lexington, Kentucky. John R. Cooke, currently owner of an automobile company, was a radar technician in the U. S. Air Force Strategic Air Command for four years, completing special electronics courses during Air Force service. His report was obtained by the Bluegrass NICAP Affiliate in Lexington, on a NICAP report form

About 9:30 p.m., Mrs. Cooke noticed a bright light low on the horizon to the SW, and called it to the attention of her husband. As they watched, the UFO, appearing as a fiery-looking, glowing sphere, passed from horizon to horizon in about 2 minutes, fading from sight in the bright lights above the city. The UFO did not move particularly rapidly, but was unlike any conventional phenomenon, and flew parallel to the earth.

(Mr. Cooke also stated that in 1952, while a passenger in a B-25, he had listened on the radio to an F-86 jet pilot describing the maneuvers of a UFO).

NOTES

1. Associated Press; February 25, 1951