Case File Details

Note from The Black Vault

Chapter 13 of the FIRE OFFICER’S GUIDE TO DISASTER CONTROL by WILLIAM M. KRAMER, Ph.D & CHARLES W. BAHME, J.D. deals with an enemy attack associated with the UFO phenomenon.  It should be noted that this is not an official declassified government document, but rather, a book that was published in 1992. All copyrights are owned by their respective owners, and this excerpt below is considered ‘fair use’ under the copyright law. It is archived here for reference, and research.

Also included below, thanks to a member of The Black Vault, is a .pdf high resolution scan from the book itself. Although the text has circulated for many years, there are not many sources for the book itself. Special thanks for their anonymous contribution.

Post your thoughts on this Fire Officer’s Guide on The Black Vault Message Forums.

 Download .PDF Version (22MB)

Chapter 13: Enemy Attack and UFO Potential

The UFO Threat – A Fact

(29th paragraph page 458)
In this chapter we will now turn our attention to the very real threat posed by Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), whether they exist or not. The well-documented and highly publicized War of the Worlds radio drama by Orson Welles shows how even a perceived existence to alien creatures can cause very real disaster-like conditions and panic among a given populace. In addition, if the apparent visits by alien beings and their space vehicles should pose any type of threat, it will, as always, be the fire service that is called upon to provide the first line of life-saving defense and disaster mitigation.
On April 25,1991, radio station KSHE in St. Louis, Missouri was fined $25,000 by the Federal Communications Commission for broadcasting a mock warning of a nuclear attack during the Persian Gulf War. The seriousness with which the FCC treated this case is indicative of the very real panic that can be created from even illusionary or fictional phenomena. Certainly if these unexplainable events become more prevalent, the possibility of panic could be even greater; and again, the fire department will be the agency called upon to handle the situation.(35) Hence, as we near the year 2000 and move beyond, any comprehensive disaster plan should address the potential for panic and other deleterious effects that might befall a populated area when unexplainable phenomena occur. We will see, as we continue our discussion in this chapter, that widespread blackouts, communication disruptions, and other potentially disastrous conditions have been linked directly to UFO sightings. Hence, fire service leaders who want to ensure that their disaster planning is complete will not neglect an appendix to outline those things that could be done in preparation for the occurrence of such phenomena.
Throughout this book, many of the references to actual events are based on the experiences of both of the authors. However, in this area of UFOs and their potential, we are relying largely on the research and experiences of Charles Bahme. Chuck has made a considerable study of this subject and is acquiring many publications and VCR tapes to augment his library on this and related phenomena. His interest in UFOs was greatly heightened when Congress in 1969 adopted a law (14 CFR Ch. V Part 1211–Extraterrestrial Exposure) which gave the NASA Administrator the arbitrary discretion to quarantine under armed guard any object, person, or other form of life which has been extraterrestrially exposed. The very fact that our congressmen believed there was a necessity for such drastic authority made Chuck wonder if they had only our astronauts in mind when they adopted it. Could it be applied to anyone who has had a UFO encounter? Whether it has or not is not likely to be a topic for public dissemination.

UFO Discussion – Why Now?

The subject of UFOs (Unidentified Flying Objects) was not included in previous editions of this book. The first edition was the Handbook of Disaster Control which Chuck personally published in 1952 following his release from active naval duty in the Korean War. Although his services in the conflict as Security Coordinator for the Chief of Naval Operations involved the creation of a worldwide disaster control organization for the protection of the physical properties of the Navy, it must be admitted that the directives approved for this new organization did not reflect any significant concern for a flying saucer threat to its shore establishment. That was in the 1950s. Now that we are in the 1990s it is doubtful that the UFO potential would be brushed off so lightly by our military security forces. This change of attitude was evidenced as far back as December 24, 1959, when the Inspector General of the Air Force issued the following Operations and Training Order: “Unidentified Flying Objects– sometimes treated lightly by the press and referred to as ‘Flying Saucers’–must be rapidly and accurately identified as serious Air Force business….”(36)
There is no uncertainty about the reality of the war between nations on our planet and the disastrous effects of military actions. The 200 sorties flown every hour against Iraq in the Persian Gulf provided ample evidence of global war’s destructive power. On the other hand, there are many persons who may believe that a discussion of the theoretical harm that could be caused by a real or imaginary invasion of UFOs would be ‘far out!” But this is not so for the thousands of witnesses of unexplained aerial phenomena. To them it is also serious business.
Chuck’s interest in UFOs commenced during the early morning hours of August 26,1942, while he was roller skating from his house to the nearest fire station a few blocks away; the wail of sirens had signaled his recall to fire duty, and with the stringent blackout orders in effect. driving was not wise; besides, it was much more exciting to be out in the open where he could see the spectacular aerial “fireworks” that filled the heavens all around him. Few residents of the U.S. had ever experienced a real or imaginary invasion of UFOs like that which occurred in what has become known as “The Los Angeles Air Raid of 1942.” The Army announced the approach of hostile aircraft and the city’s air raid warning system went into effect for the first time in World War II. The defense to this “attack” is described in dramatic terms in the opening paragraph of this chapter.
But what enemy had been routed? No one ever knew. All the fire fighters saw in the sky were the 15 or 20 moving “things” which seemed to change course at great speed apparently unaffected by the flak from bursting shells all around them. Rumors that one had been shot down were never verified, nor was the explanation that these zig- zagging invaders were weather balloons ever taken seriously. In any event, for Chuck, that unforgettable episode aroused a continuing interest in UFOs, rivalling his professional fields of law and fire protection. The fact that he subsequently was a member of a group whose sighting of a flight of UFOs was authenticated by airport radar helped to sustain that interest. UFO Background Information With no intention of trying to prove or disprove the authenticity of the numerous UFO encounters often related by very credible witnesses including airline and military pilots, astronauts, police officers, fire fighters, members of Congress, and even a U.S. President, the balance of this chapter will present a brief history and nature of UFOs and their alleged occupants; their widespread sightings over the globe since ancient times; their appearance, propulsion origin, and possible motives for continuing reconnaissance. A quick look at some of the classic accounts of encounters documented in numerous foreign and U.S. publications might help us judge the magnitude of their threat, if any, to social stability, and, if deemed desirable, propose a fire service plan for coping with some of the conceivable catastrophic effects that UFOs could produce on cities and densely populated areas. For readers who already have made up their minds that there is no such thing as a UFO notwithstanding the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, it should be pointed out that there is circumstantial evidence that disastrous effects have already been attributed to UFO activity in more than one nation, including the United States.

UFO Background Information

With no intention of trying to prove or disprove the authenticity of the numerous UFO encounters often related by very credible witnesses including airline and military pilots, astronauts, police officers, fire fighters, members of Congress, and even a U.S. President, the balance of this chapter will present a brief history and nature of UFOs and their alleged occupants; their widespread sightings over the globe since ancient times; their appearance, propulsion origin, and possible motives for continuing reconnaissance.
A quick look at some of the classic accounts of encounters documented in numerous foreign and U.S. publications might help us judge the magnitude of their threat, if any, to social stability, and, if deemed desirable, propose a fire service plan for coping with some of the conceivable catastrophic effects that UFOs could produce on cities and densely populated areas.
For readers who already have made up their minds that there is no such thing as a UFO notwithstanding the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, it should be pointed out that there is circumstantial evidence that disastrous effects have already been attributed to UFO activity in more than one nation, including the United States.

UFOs – What Are They?

William Shakespeare put a fitting observation in the mouth of Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, that went like this: “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamed of in your philosophy.” Whether Hamlet was referring to those strange lights or objects that appear in the sky or near the ground and have no known cause, we will never know, but the World Book Encyclopedia defines such things as UFOs.(37)
Several theories have been propounded as to what they might be. Some scientists believe that they are of extraterrestrial origin– coming from other planets. Military officers conjecture that they might be alien aircraft. Some attribute them all to natural causes, such as meteors, comets, sun dogs, light reflections, marsh gas, ball lightning, even though they must admit that scientists cannot explain all UFO reports in that manner. Still others are inclined to believe that they may be forms from other dimensions which can materialize and dematerialize at will perhaps by making a wavelength or frequency transition so as to become invisible to humans. Some believe they are time travelers from the future.

UFO Classification System

Dr. J. Allen Hynek, Northern University Professor Emeritus of Astronomy and an advisor to the Air Force’s Blue Book Project adopted a very simple classification system based solely upon the manner of observation:
1. Nocturnal lights
2. Daylight disks
3. Close encounters (day or night)
4. Radar readings.
He concluded that this system tells us nothing about the nature of the UFOs, but can suggest a means for gathering data.(38) He found that while a large number of such reports were readily identifiable by trained investigators as misconceptions of known objects or events, a small residue (about 1.000) were not. These came from credible witnesses from such widely separated places as Canada. Australia. South America, and Antarctica. He concludes with: “Although I know of no hypothesis that adequately covers the mountainous evidence, this should not and must not deter us from following the advice of Schroedinger: to be curious, capable of being astonished, and eager to find out.”(39) Dr. Hynek has an excellent, well-illustrated article on UFOs in a 1982 book which gives a detailed history of the UFO sightings, together with the reports of some well-known people who made them, including President Jimmy Carter while governor of Georgia.(40)

Shapes of UFOs

Witnesses have described the shapes of UFOs as anything varying from a sphere to a boomerang. Some have resembled flying saucers with a lid; others a glowing tube; some as semi-spherical with colored apertures; some with reddish-orange glows, or fire-like or sparking discharges. Incredible speed and maneuverabilities not attainable by aircraft of any kind are commonly observed. Many of the books and articles in Appendix H have excellent photographs of these unexplained visitors–photos that have been checked by experts for their authenticity.

History of UFOs

For hundreds of years mysterious objects in the sky and strange moving lights have been reported by many people, including the military pilots in World War II who called them foo fighters, (“Where there’s Foo, there’s Fire”). In the middle of the 1900s flying saucers were increasingly observed in the United States and other countries.
Scientists at the University of Colorado hired by the Air Force from 1966 to 1968 to study this type of aerial phenomena could explain most of the UFO reports as a star (Venus), meteor, planet, balloon, rocket, artificial satellite, etc. Sometimes atmospheric conditions, aircraft exhaust trails, or unusual lighting conditions may produce optical illusions that observers thought were UFOs. After investigating more than 12,000 reports, the U.S. Air Force was unable to explain where the unexplained UFOs come from, but apparently concluded that the national security was not threatened by them.(41) The emphasis of the university’s team, headed by Edward U. Condon, seemed to be more concerned with the establishment of the emotional stability or instability of those who reported the sightings than with other evidence.
Psychiatrists have examined the witnesses who claimed to have encountered UFOs and even been taken aboard their craft, such as the two shipyard workers in Mississippi, and found that they are not unbalanced people.(42) “They’re not crackpots. There was definitely something here that was not terrestrial.”(43)
Dr. J. Allen Hynek agreed, and added. “Where they are coming from and why they are here is a matter of conjecture. but the fact that they were here on this planet is beyond a reasonable doubt.”(44)
The Air Force. after 20 years of being deluged with UFO sightings and spending millions of dollars on their investigation, decided to drop the inquiry business and turned the project over to a Kensington, Maryland, group called NICAP (National Investigation Committee on Aerial Phenomena). This left NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) with part of the task of trying to run UFO sighting reports, including many by its own Apollo and Skylab astronauts. By 1974 over a score of astronauts saw and photographed UFOs during their flights beyond the earth’s atmosphere.
Early in the Apollo 11 mission, which culminated in the moon walk, astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin Aldrin, and Michael Collins reported sightings of what seemed to be a UFO during the first half of their flight to the lunar surface. There were many more sightings by U.S. and Soviet Astronauts. On November 11,1966, Gemini XII astronauts Jim Lovell and Edwin Aldrin said that they saw four UFOs linked together, and on October 12, 1964, three Russian astronauts aboard Voskod reported that they were surrounded by a “formation of fast-moving disc-shaped objects.”(45) UFO Organizations In addition to NICAP, some of the other organizations that study UFO phenomena are MUFON (Mutual UFO Networks), CAUS (Citizens Against UFO Secrecy), GSW (Ground Saucer Watch), CUFOS (the Center for UFO Studies), and APRO (Aerial Phenomena Research Organization), an Arizona nonprofit scientific and educational organization, founded in 1952.(46)

UFO Organizations

In addition to NICAP, some of the other organizations that study UFO phenomena are MUFON (Mutual UFO Networks), CAUS (Citizens Against UFO Secrecy), GSW (Ground Saucer Watch), CUFOS (the Center for UFO Studies), and APRO (Aerial Phenomena Research Organization), an Arizona nonprofit scientific and educational organization, founded in 1952.(46)

Why The Secrecy?

In their book UFOs Over America, authors Jim and Carol Lorenzo charge that the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) has been closely involved in the collection and suppression of UFO information. “Witnesses to the phenomena have been bribed, coerced, and threatened by the CIA, who wanted valuable evidence given to them alone.”(47) One reason given is that military intelligence may view the UFOs as a tool of either a known or unknown potential enemy. “If these vehicles prove evasive and surreptitious, all the more reason to suspect them…. the probability looms large that the minds behind these vehicles may well be gathering intelligence of their own.”(48)
Another reason for secrecy may lie in the hope of obtaining knowledge relating to advanced propulsion methods and anti-gravity systems before other potential enemies on earth may acquire it. Hence, though many nations are secretly investigating UFOs, they are reluctant to share their findings. Robert Lofton, in his book Identified Flying Saucers, claims that the Air Force became the “goat” in the effort of the CIA to debunk many sightings by pilots, radar technicians and reliable civilian observers. He thinks that the suppression of information about how dangerous UFOs can be is wrong. After citing a case where a child was burned over 50 to 60 percent of her body by a low flying UFO and then taken to an Air Force hospital, no one would explain why her clothes were not burned at the same time. He also describes another burn case in New Mexico and another man who recently received a sledge-hammer like blow that knocked him unconscious by the force field of a 100-foot diameter UFO. “The public ought to be told the danger! . . . Nothing helps rumors and panic more than ignorance.”(49)
Major Donald Keyhoe describes in his book “Aliens from Space: The Real Story of Unidentified Flying Objects”, the difficulties he had in 1957 in trying to get the truth from government agencies after he was director of NICAP, the world’s largest UFO research organization with over 30 subcommittees in the U.S. and abroad.(50)
According to some UFOlogists the attempts at cover-up by the CIA extend to destruction of evidence that it could not confiscate. Apparently some of our nation’s important leaders have been denied access to some UFO secrets in the possession of an agency of the United States, the very existence of which is classified above top secret.(51) Senator Barry Goldwater, a retired Air Force Reserve Brigadier General and pilot with many decades of flying experience, was quoted as saying “I certainly believe in aliens in space. They may not look like us, but I have very strong feelings that they have advanced beyond our mental capabilities.” He said he was refused permission to check the Air Force files on UFOs and added, “I think some highly secret government UFO investigations are going on that we don’t know about–and probably never will unless the Air Force discloses them.”(52) He said that he put faith in the reports of the Air Force, Navy, and commercial pilots who reported instances where a UFO would fly near them–right off their plane’s wing–and then just zoom away at incredible speeds. “I remember the case in Georgia in the 1950s of a National Guard plane going after a UFO and never returning. And I recall the case in Franklin. Kentucky, when four military planes investigated a UFO. One of them exploded in midair and no one knows why.”(53)
Unleashed by the policy of Glasnost (greater openness) the Soviet media felt free to include accounts of UFO sightings. A Tuss report of October 10, 1989, reported a large shiny ball or disk hovering over a Voronezh park; residents saw the UFO land and three creatures similar to human beings emerged, accompanied by a robot.(54)
Apparently the Russians felt no need to suppress this report which was poked fun at in Newsweek and Time magazines(55) but not in U.S. News and World Report: “A scant few decades ago, both the U.S. government and the media treated flying objects as no laughing matter–which even Congress looked into. In 1966, Representative Ford responded to a rash of sightings in his home state of Michigan by calling for, and getting, a House hearing on UFOs.”(56)

UFO Missions

Many reasons have been advanced for the purpose of the UFOs visits to our planet. Although some of the persons who apparently have been the subjects of genetic investigation, such as the family of Whitley Streiber may not agree, the majority of those who have studied possible UFO visitors feel that they are friendly. Mr. Streiber described his experience as terrifying, and believes that these “little figures with eyes that seem to stare into the deepest core of being are asking for something. Whatever it is, it is more than simple information. The goal does not seem to be a sort of clear and open exchange that we might expect; whatever may be surfacing, it wants far more than that. It seems to me that it seeks the very depth of soul; it seeks communion.”(57)
From the thousands of reports he has studied. William Spaulding, aerospace engineer and head of the Arizona-based Ground Saucer Watch, believes that a pattern indicates that UFOs are here on a surveillance mission: the fact that a majority of sightings occur around our military installations, research and development areas leads to the conclusion that a methodical study is being made of the earth and its defensive and offensive capabilities. “The phenomena is not unlike our own space explorations: scout ship survey: soil samples; landing.”(58)
In his book Incident at Exeter, John Fuller discusses the seeming affinity of UFOs for electrical power lines in the northeastern part of the United States. In a later section of this chapter dealing with the effects of UFOs on our terrestrial activities, we will see how this affinity may have been responsible for causing 36 million people to lose power over an area of 8,000 square miles.(59)
Because of our recent adventures into space, there are some who speculate that UFOs are more concerned with what we will do there than in settling here. In any event, the Air Force’s official publication (issued by the Government Printing Office 1968) called Flying Objects says that ‘No UFO has been determined to represent a threat to our national security.’ That conclusion, however, should not rule out less disastrous consequences than the overthrow of our government. Adverse Potential Of UFOS Regardless of its past evaluations, the Air Force could be wrong about a number of things. “It can’t even guess within a couple of billion dollars what one of its planes is going to cost; maybe, despite the skepticism of the scientists and other investigators, the UFOs sent from other planets do exist and have visited earth.”(60) And maybe they have exhibited some destructive effects, whether or not intentionally in every instance, which we need to consider when drafting a plan for coping with an emergency situation where UFOs are involved. Some of these documented effects are as follows.

UFO Hazards

The two principal hazards noted with relation to UFOs have been attributed to powerful electrical fields which they can project in a general or localized area and the psychological effects they have produced on the general populace or individual contacts.

Force Field Impact

The disruption of air and ground travel has often been reported in the presence of UFOs. The ignition systems of auto and aircraft engines have apparently been affected by energized force fields to such an extent as to stop their operation; the headlights and radios have also ceased to function. Here are a couple of examples. In Buenos Aires, on March 29, 1978, “A strange force shut off their engine and headlights of their Citroen CG, lifted it 15 feet off the road, then set it down a minute later and 75 miles to the north.” The driver had noticed a yellow and violet light shining in his rear view mirror while driving the last leg of a long stock car race, and he realized that it was approaching too fast to be a competitor. A month later a Colombian bank manager and a navy officer had their car headlights go off when buzzed by a UFO, with the navy man suffering temporary paralysis. Other South American countries in which similar actions were reported around that time included Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Uruguay.(61)
These effects have also been noted to influence the controls and instruments of aircraft, e.g., the pilot of a Piper PH-24 reported that his controls became inoperable when he was approached by three disk-shaped objects, 10 to 12 feet in diameter, over Mexico City on May 3,1975.(62) Similar cases have been reported by military pilots, illustrated by the classic case of the near mid-air collision of an army helicopter with a UFO on October 18, 1973, over Ohio, where not only did both the UHF and VHF radio wave- lengths go dead temporarily, but the downward movement of the helicopter with its four occupants was levitated upward by a green beam from the UFO in time to prevent its crash into the ground.(63)

Communications Disruption

In addition to the impedance of radio transmissions and reception, such as that described in the preceding incident, telephone interference has occurred, illustrated by the chagrin of President Lyndon Johnson in having his conversation from the Texas White House cut off while talking to assistants in Washington, D.C.(64) The ability to render inoperable all electronic forms of communications, including those that control the launching of defense weapons systems, has been considered within the range of UFO capability. Whether this could extend to the erasing of recorded computer data such as bank records, personnel data, FBI, CIA, and NSA files, along with critical information of every kind, is not beyond the realm of possibility.

Regional Power Blackouts

It has long been suspected that UFOs have the capability of blacking out a city, state, or many states by exerting a force field sufficient to overload the circuits of public and private utility installations. “Few things are more disturbing than to be plunged into pitch darkness without warning; it is dangerous for masses of people. It paralyzes cities, blocks highways, stops trains, leaves elevators suspended between floors. In general it simply plays hell with the modern way of life.”(65) You would think that the power companies would have achieved sufficient reliability in their high tech systems that a mass failure such as that which blacked out New York and New England in 1965 would never happen–but it did. Although, as we have mentioned before, it was known that UFO activity was associated with disturbances with compasses. instruments, ignition systems, radios, etc., it was inconceivable that it could also interfere with generation and distribution of electrical power. Such a connection was also inferred in November 1953, when a glowing red object went over a residential area of New Haven, Connecticut, causing lights to dim out on both sides of the object’s path and then come on when it went out of sight.
Power failures were also reported in association with UFOs in Brazil in 1957 to l959, Rome, Italy, in 1958; and Mexico in 1965. Likewise, in Uberlandia, where the power station operators promptly closed the circuits when the UFO apparently caused them to open, it did no good, and they were unable to restore the power until the UFO departed.
“The Granddaddy of all blackouts to date was the stygian blanket that fell over 30 million people in the northeastern corner of the U.S. during the early evening rush hour period on November 9, 1965.”(66) Relay services that were supposed to automatically transfer the load in case of failure in one area to an alternate source malfunctioned. Military communications relying on public power without alternate backup systems also failed, but communications were operable to make a quick public announcement that there was no military emergency. Though it was largely over by the next morning, the official explanation about a malfunctioning small device in a Canadian hydroelectric generating plant never accounted for the failure of millions of dollars worth of electronic devices to shift the load when the breakdown occurred.

Fireballs Over Syracuse – The Blackout Connection

Airplane pilots reported that UFOs were being chased across Pennsylvania about 4:30 P.M., and electronics and construction engineers who were driving in the area of the Syracuse airport saw UFOs moving about 5:30 P.M., just prior to the Great Blackout. A veteran flight instructor who had been flying over Syracuse on a training flight saw a glowing globe over the power lines leading to the Niagara Falls generating plant. Hundreds of others saw the glowing object in the sky on the night of the big power failure.
That was on November 9th. On December 2nd, about 700,000 persons in Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico also had their power fail. It was said to have originated in a regular failure in El Paso; then on December 5th, three nights later. 40,000 homes plus military installations in the area of East Texas were also blacked out– overloaded! Missile grounds (White Sands), Fort Bliss, Holloman Air Force Base, and numerous airports were all blacked out (with no emergency power backup), and this was when President Johnson’s telephone call to the White House in Washington, D.C. was cut off. In response to his request for an explanation, President Johnson was told that his calls were fed into a cable system that went dead when the surge of power caused by the El Paso regulator blow-up hit it, and the backup batteries didn’t work. Though it may be debatable whether the above cases of electrical transmission failure were merely coincidences with UFO activity, an incident on April 18,1962, involving a UFO that had been tracked from New York, through Kansas to Eureka, Utah, was well documented. The Air Force spokesman admitted that the object had landed, and during the 42 minutes that it was on the ground near the power station there was no power, but it was restored when the UFO left. The object was pursued by jet interceptors summoned from Phoenix and Stead Field in Reno until it exploded over the Mesquite Range in Nevada in a brilliant glare that was visible over five states.(67)

UFOS – The Panic Hazard

The second major disastrous effect that UFO activity, real or imagined, can have on the populace, is the creation of fear, panic, flight, and all kinds of irrational behavior. We have mentioned already the rather well-documented case of hysterical contagion and mass hysteria created by War of the Worlds, the radio drama by Orson Welles about an invasion of Martians. It was broadcast on Halloween of 1938 during the period of the invasions of Germany into Austria and Japan into China. “The drama, realistically presented in the form of news bulletins and interviews concerning an alien spaceship landing in New Jersey, resulted in many kinds of hysterical actions, including thousands of panic-stricken phone calls, wildly fleeing automobiles, and impromptu shot gun brigades.”(68)
Though most persons reporting UFOs do not interpret them as personal threats, it is possible that some of the large volume of reports may be attributable to hysterical contagion. In any case, one of the reasons often cited for the tight secrecy on government UFO research findings is the need to prevent the possible panic that a revelation of the truth might arouse. Rumors that people were being abducted, dematerialized, burned, made radioactive, rounded up and impounded, liquidated with ray guns and lasers or shipped off to Mars or Venus might well give rise to fear–fear of the unknown. Hysteria could cause frightened persons to imagine that their water was poisoned, the air contaminated with undetectable but lethal aerosols or nerve gases. With hundreds of UFO squadrons zooming across the landscape from California to New York, Toronto to Mexico City, communications disrupted, widespread power failures, airports and railroads paralyzed, highways turned into giant parking lots of immobilized vehicles full of terrified motorists, the problem of restoring order and sanity would be a tremendous challenge to all of the emergency services, assuming their personnel would remain calm, detached. and able to resist the human impulse to put the safety and well being of their own families ahead of the public’s. To make matters worse, some of the more excitable gun owners might be tempted to rush out Rambo fashion, and in utter disregard of the damage that falling bullets might cause innocent residents below their fallout, start firing at the evasive objects regardless of the range.

Personal Hazards – Physiological

The force field affects on the physical environment– communication, transportation, illumination, and computerized data storage–have already been considered. We might have added that some physical effects have been observed at locations where UFOs have landed– circular patterns of crops destroyed by heat or radiation and baking or sterilization of the soil at the site.
On a more practical basis there may be grounds for concern that more than just the environment can be adversely affected by UFO actions. While pursuing UFOs, military aircraft have disappeared in mid-air, exploded, and suffered harassment. Persons on the ground have sustained serious burns, paralysis, and “blows” from a force field, radiated emissions, or rays and beams that have been described like that of a “stun-gun”(69)
In 1980, three witnesses saw a red ball of light hovering above houses in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, when suddenly a bolt of blue light shot down and two houses burst into flames.(70) An Indiana man saw a bright light flash pass his window; the power went off in his house so he went outside to investigate and found a brilliantly lit object hovering above him; when he started to walk toward it his body commenced to tingle and he was unable to move until the object disappeared. A similar tingling sensation swept over another man in Lvnn, Massachusetts. one night when he approached a domed object with a red glowing cone rising from a parking lot. He too was immobile until the object moved out of sight. Some believe that even animals may be at risk by UFOs; in trying to account for the death of 15 ponies, the leader of an investigative team believed they were crushed by the anti-gravity field of a flying saucer as it took off.(71)
Thus, UFOs may not only have the power to control some of our military and industrial establishment’s highly technical scientific hardware, they may also possess the ability to impose pain and control over people who attempt to attack them, even to the extent of “liquidating” them in one way or another.

UFOs – Emergency Action

In view of the fact that many UFOlogists believe that we are fast approaching a time when overt landings of UFOs will become less remarkable, and in the absence of our knowing whether their visits are friendly or hostile, it would not be remiss to give some thought to the part that fire departments might play in the event of the unexpected arrival of UFOs in their communities. For example, what would be your course of action as an incident commander at the scene of a school ground where a UFO has crashed into the boiler room, rupturing a fuel line, and ignition has occurred in the spilling oil, endangering the occupants of the craft who are trapped in the wreckage? If your rescue attempts are successful, and two of the five small alien creatures are injured but still alive, how do you dispose of the dead and treat the survivors? How would the presence of children on the school grounds affect your actions? What persons and agencies would be notified?
The authors have never read any advice on these matters. The following admonition was printed on the inside front jacket of Frank Edward’s book on flying saucers:

In view of the federal law (cited earlier) empowering NASA’s administrator to impound, without a hearing, anyone who touches a UFO or its occupants. it would be inadvisable to make personal contact unless you are willing to submit to NASA’s quarantine requirements, should the law be invoked.
Besides the possible physical effects of approaching a UFO, e.g.. burns, radiation, etc., there may be psychological effects produced by force fields that could induce a hypnotic state in the viewer, loss of consciousness, memory relapse, and submission to the occupants. Jacques Vallee, author of “The Invisible College” cautions that we should consider psychic effects, such as space-time distortions experienced by percipients of craft-like devices which appear to fade away–dematerialize–and then reappear; of alien, strange voices or thoughts that may effect involuntary changes in the manner in which witnesses may react in such circumstances.(72)
Perhaps the above warnings of Edwards and Vallee are a little too cautious and apprehensive to adopt as a general pattern of conduct in every situation. In the absence of overt acts indicating hostility, there may be no danger in approaching a landing (or landed) UFO with a positive, solicitous attitude of wanting to be of service. This nonaggressive mental state may be telepathically sensed by those aboard or emerging from the craft; a form of nonvocal communication is a possibility. It goes without saying that any display of firearms or other weapons on your part could be construed as unfriendly and likely to thwart your intention of conveying a helpful attitude.
In a best case scenario, you may be able to obtain guidance as to the appropriate actions to take, whether of a life-saving nature, e.g., in quelling a fire, abating a spill, and of preservation of property, or even in the reduction of apprehension on the part of your response team and the spectators.
In a less optimistic scenario, you may have engine trouble upon approaching the scene, and radio contact could be lost with your dispatcher. If at night, your headlights could go out, the city could be blacked out, and your portable generators may malfunction when you attempt to use them for fans and portable lights. It would certainly be an inopportune time for your comrades to announce that they had decided to take their pensions, effective immediately.
In any event, the incident could provide invaluable experience for further training in coping with rare and difficult emergencies. Whatever “inside” information you are able to pass along to your fellow officers and citizens of the world might help to alleviate unreasonable fear, so that there would be less likelihood that we would ever again experience the panic and hysteria that was created by War of the Worlds a half century ago. Truth is the best cure for the unknown. A list of some of the available books on Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) is found in Appendix H.

Conclusion

Some fire chiefs have little confidence in disaster plans, especially those dealing with UFOs or enemy attack. If you develop a plan that sets forth your responsibilities, resources, organizations, supplies information, telephone numbers, and special data that will be useful in obtaining help and fulfilling your role in disaster control, commit it to an electronic medium, a computer with a capability for continuous updating through modern word processing. Bring it forth when the need requires. With a good plan, good leadership, and adequate resources, you may save many lives in any disaster, including attack from possible enemies.

Chapter 13 References

1. Smith. Iack. “The Night L.A. Bombed.” Los Angeles Times, September 9, 1975, Part 1, p. I .
2. World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 21, p. 21, Chicago, IL Field Enterprises Educational Corporation, 1976.
3. Cloud, Stanley W. “Gathering Storm” in Time, September 3, 1990, pp. 24-28.
4. “Secret History of the War” in Newsweek, March 18,1991, p.28.
5. “Snubbing People Power” in U.S. News ~ World Report, April 8,1991, p.38.
6. World Book Encyclopedia, Vol. 21, p.22. Field Enterprises Educational Corporation, Chicago, IL 1976.
7. “Preparing for Iraqi Chemical Warfare,” photo and story in Time, September 3,1990, p.26.
8. “Steel Rain’ in Newsweek, March 18,1991, p.31.
9. See note 2, volume 9, p. 416.
10. See Chapter 8 for a more in-depth discussion of terrorism.
11. Gilliam. l. “A-Bomb Materials Can Be Stolen, Expert Says,” Los Angeles Times, December ll. 1975, Part Il, p. 1.
12. Nuclear Blackmail Emergency Response Plan for the State of California, Officer of Emergency Service, State of California, June 1976.
13. “After the Storm” in Newsweek, March 11, 1991, pp. 26-29.
14. Nuclear Attack and Industrial Survival, McGraw-Hill Publishing Company Special Report, 1962, p.52.
15. Willenson, K., and L. Norman. “Missiles on the Move” in Newsweek, February 16, 1976, p.42.
16. CBS News broadcast, April 1991.
17. Disaster Planning Guide for Business and Industry, Defense Civil Preparedness Agency, 1974, p.7, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
18. L. A. Postal Report, Volume 10, No. 9, April 23,1965, p.2, Los Angeles, CA.
19. Worldwide Effects of Nuclear War–Some Perspectives, a Report of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, 1975, p. 5, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
20. Ibid. p. 6.
21. “Turning Up the Heat on the Greenhouse” in Newsweek, April 22, 1991, p. 69.
22. See note 19, p. 6.
23. Seenote 19, p. 5.
24. “Deadly Meltdown” in Time, May 12, 1986, p. 39.
25. “A ‘Big 50’ for Pearl Harbor in USA Today, Thursday, May 9, 1991. p. 3A.
26. Bahme,.Charles W. Fire Officer’s Guide To Disaster Control, Ist ed., Boston, MA: NFPA 1978, p. 340.
27. Fire Effects of Bombing Attacks, Technical Manual 9-2, October 1959, Office of Civil Defense Mobilization, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
28. Fire Aspects of Civil Defense, TR-25, Office of Civil Defense, July 1968, p. 4, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
29. World Book Encyclopedia, 1991.
30. Disaster Operations, Defense Civil Preparedness Agency, 1972. p. 29, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
31. Bruno, Hal. “The Wait May Be Over at FEMA” in Firehouse, Vol. 15, No. 5 (May 1990) p. 10.
32. See note 30, p. 40.
33. The U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. has several publications available as of 1991 which suggest measures that can be taken to safeguard dwellings and other buildings, in preparation for a nuclear attack; they illustrate the relative protection afforded for fallout radiation by various types of construction and in various locations within a building. Two available from the U.S. Government Printing Office, are Fallout Protection and ln Time of Emergency, both Office of Civil Defense.
34. Weldon, Curt. “The Fight for Fire Protection” in Firehouse, Vol. 16, No. 4 (April 1991), p. 20.
35. Radio Broadcast on station KSHE, St. Louis, MO, reported on April 25, 1991.
36. Edwards, Frank. Flying Saucers–Serious Business, NY: Lyle Stuart,965. p. 315.
37. World Book Encyclopedia, World Book Inc., 1988, Vol. 20, p. 19.
38. Sagan, Carl, and Thornton Page. UFOs–A Scientific Deoate, Cornell Univ., 1972, p. 44.
39. Ibid. p. 51.
40. Readers Digest. Mysteries Of The Unexplained, p. 219.
41. Steiger, Brad, Editor. Project Blue Book. NY: Ballantine Books, 1976, p. 170.
42. Uphoff, Walter and Mary lo, New Psychic Frontiers, Colin Smyth Ltd., 1975. p. 152.
43. Ibid., quoting Dr. James Harder, University of California.
44. Ibid. p. 152.
45. Macomber, Frank. “UFOs Spotted by Astronauts Still Haven’t Been Identified,” Santa Cruz Sentinel, April 17, 1974, p. 30.
46. APRO’s addre$s was given as 3910 E. Kleindale Rd.. Tucson, Arizona, 85716.
47. Lorenzen, lim and Coral. UFOs Over America, NY: Signet. 1968, pp. 182 et seq.
48. Ibid. p. 186.
49. Lofton, Robert. ldentified Flying Saucers, NY: David McKay Co., 1968, p. 86.
50. Kehoe, Donald, Major. Aliens From Space, The Real Story of the UFOs, New York: Doubleday, 1972.
51. Friedman, Stanton. Cosmic Watergate, New Realities, 1979; Hvnek, l. Allen. “UFOs.” This World, Aug. 30, 1981, p. 13.
52. Zullo, Allan A. “I Believe That Earth Has Been Visited By Creatures From Outer Space,” National Enquirer, December 1973.
53. Ibid. p. 2.
54. Press Democrat, October 10, 1989, p. A-5; also reported in weekly news magazines; see notes 22 and 23.
55. Time, October 23,1989; Newsweek, October 30,1989; UFO update, Omni, January 1990.
56. U.S. News ~ World Report, “UFOs in Uncle Sam’s Closet,” October 23, 1989, p.19.
57. Streiber, Whitley. Communion, NY: William Morrow, 1987, p. 15.
58. Adamski, George, lnside the Flying Saucers, NY: Paperback Library, 1967. p. 11.
59. Fuller, John. lncident at Exeter, cited in UFO Update, in New Realities,1978. p.52.
60. “Shooting Down The Flying Saucers,” Los Angeles Times, December 15,1959, Pt. Il, p. 5.
61. Boudreaux, Richard. “South Americans Take UFOs Seriously,” Los Angeles Times, November 29, 1978. Pt. VI, p. 7.
62. See note 6, p. 224.
63. Randles, Jenny. The UFO Conspiracy, NY: Sterling Pub. Co.. 1990, p. 105.
64. See note 1, p. 267.
65. See note 1, p. 255.
66. Ibid. p. 259.
67. Ibid. p. 269.
68. See note 4, p. 216.
69. Blundell, Nigel, and Roger Boar. The World’s Greatest UFO Mysteries, NY: Berkeley Books, 1990, p. 175.
70. Ibid. p. 176.
71. Ibid. p. 179.
72. Vallee. Jacques. The Invisible College, NY: E. P. Dutton, 1975 p. 6.

{ http://www.theblackvault.com/casefiles }

Grey aliens, also referred to as “Alien Greys”, “Greys”, “Grays”, “Roswell Greys”, and “Zeta Reticulans”, are alleged Extraterrestrial beings whose existence is promoted in ufological, paranormal, and New Age communities, and who are named for their skin colour. Around half of all reported alien encounters in the United States describe Grey aliens. Such claims vary in every respect including their nature (ETs, extradimensionals, demons, or machines), origins, moral dispositions, intentions, and physical appearances (even varying in their eponymous skin colour). A composite description derived from overlap in claims would have Greys as small-bodied sexless beings with smooth grey-coloured skin, enlarged head and large black eyes.

The origin of the idea of the Grey is commonly associated with the Betty and Barney Hill abduction claim which took place 1961, although sceptics see precursors in science fiction and earlier paranormal claims. The Grey aliens are also famous from the Roswell UFO incident from 1947.

Appearance

Greys are typically depicted as dark grey-skinned diminutive humanoid beings that possess reduced forms of, or completely lack, external human organs such as noses, ears or sex organs. Their bodies are usually depicted as being elongated, having a small chest, and lacking in muscular definition and visible skeletal structure. Their legs are shorter and jointed differently from what one would expect in a human. Their limbs are often depicted as proportionally different from a human’s; their humerus and thighs are the same lengths as their forearms and shins, respectively.

Greys are depicted as having unusually large heads in proportion to their bodies. They are depicted as having no hair anywhere on the body, including the face, and no noticeable outer ears or noses, but only small openings or orifices for ears and nostrils. They are depicted as having very small mouths, and very large opaque black eyes with no discernible iris or pupil. Sometimes Greys are depicted as having no noticeable nostrils or mouths. Also reports of alleged encounters state their height to be 2–4 ft tall.

History

In the 1893 article “Man of the Year Million”, H. G. Wells envisaged humanity transformed into a race of grey-skinned beings, stunted and with big heads. (Compare the Morlocks of Wells’s 1895 novel, The Time Machine, who appear greyish-white and large-eyed, but hairy.) In his 1901 book The First Men in the Moon, Wells described Selenites (natives of the Moon) as having grey skin, big heads, large black eyes and wasp-stings. He also briefly describes aliens resembling Greys brought down to Earth as food by the Martian antagonists of his 1898 novel The War of the Worlds.

In 1933, the Swedish novelist Gustav Sandgren, using the pen name Gabriel Linde, published a science-fiction novel called Den okända faran (The Unknown Danger), in which he describes a race of Extraterrestrials: ” the creatures did not resemble any race of humans. They were short, shorter than the average Japanese, and their heads were big and bald, with strong, square foreheads, and very small noses and mouths, and weak chins. What was most extraordinary about them were the eyes – large, dark, gleaming, with a sharp gaze. They wore clothes made of soft grey fabric, and their limbs seemed to be similar to those of humans.” The novel, aimed at young readers, included illustrations of the imagined aliens.
Star map of Zeta Reticuli, according to Betty Hill and Marjorie Fish
In 1965 newspaper reports of the Betty and Barney Hill abduction brought Greys to international attention. The alleged abductees, Betty and Barney Hill, claimed that in 1961 alien beings had abducted them and taken them to a saucer-shaped spaceship. (The term “Greys” did not come into usage until many years later, but the alleged beings described by Betty and Barney Hill generally fit many of the common traits of the so-called Greys.) From a star chart reported by Betty Hill, Marjorie Fish, an elementary-school teacher and amateur astronomer, located the home planet of these beings in the Zeta Reticuli star-system (allegedly the fourth planet of one of the stars of the Zeta Reticuli binary system). The Greys therefore sometimes became known as Zeta Reticulans.

The Greys also appear as the (benevolent) aliens in the 1977 movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

1980 – 1991

During the early 1980s popular culture linked Greys to the alleged crash-landing of a flying saucer in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947. A number of publications contained statements from individuals who claimed to have seen the U.S. military handling a number of unusually proportioned, bald, child-sized beings. These individuals claimed that the beings had over-sized heads and slanted eyes—but scant other facial features—during and after the incident.

In 1987, popular novelist Whitley Strieber published the book Communion, in which he describes a number of close encounters he purports to have experienced with Greys and other extraterrestrial beings. The book became a New York Times bestseller, and New Line Cinema released a film adaption starring Christopher Walken in 1989.

In 1988 Christophe Dechavanne interviewed the French science-fiction writer and ufologist Jimmy Guieu during a weekly French TV Live Show which, at the time, was entitled “Ciel, mon mardi !”. It was broadcast by TF1, one of the three national TV channels in France. Besides mentioning Majestic 12, Jimmy Guieu described the existence of what he called “the little greys” which, later on, became better known in French under the following name: les Petits-Gris.[3] In early 90’s, the same ufologist Jimmy Guieu has written two docu-dramas, using as plot the Grey aliens / Majestic-12 conspiracy as described by John Lear and Milton William Cooper : the series “E.B.E.” (for “Extraterrestrial Biological Entity”) : E.B.E. : Alerte rouge (first part) (1990) and E.B.E. : L’entité noire d’Andamooka (second part) (1991).

1992 – Present day

During the 1990s, popular culture began to increasingly link Greys to a number of military-industrial complex/New World Order conspiracy theories.[4] A well-known example of this was the FOX television series The X-Files, which first aired in 1993. It combined the quest to find proof of the existence of Grey-like extraterrestrials with a number of UFO conspiracy theory subplots, in order to form its primary story arc. Other notable examples include Dark Skies, first broadcast in 1996, which expanded upon the MJ-12 conspiracy, and Stargate SG-1, which in the 1998 episode “Thor’s Chariot” introduced the Asgard, a race of benevolent Greys who visited ancient Earth masquerading as characters from Norse Mythology. Greys, referred to as ‘visitors’, appear in two episodes of South Park, and Roger Smith, a regular character on the animated comedy series American Dad! since its debut in 2005, is a Grey-like alien. On Babylon 5, the Greys were referred to as the Vree, and depicted as being allies and trade partners of 23rd Century Earth.

In 1995 filmmaker Ray Santilli claimed to have obtained 22 reels of 16 mm film that depicted the autopsy of a “real” Grey supposedly recovered from the site of the 1947 incident in Roswell, New Mexico.[5][6] However, in 2006 Santilli announced that the film was not original, but was instead a “reconstruction” created after the original film was found to have degraded. He maintained that a real Grey had been found and autopsied on camera in 1947, and that the footage released to the public contained a percentage of that original footage, but he was unable to say what that percentage was. This incident became the subject of the British comedy film Alien Autopsy, starring television presenters Ant & Dec.[7][8]

The 2011 film Paul tells the story of a Grey who attributes the Greys’ frequent presence in science-fiction pop-culture to the US government deliberately inserting the stereotypical Grey alien image into mainstream media so that if humanity came into contact with Paul’s species, there would be no immediate shock as to their appearance.

The 2012 video game XCOM: Enemy Unknown uses grey aliens (called Sectoids) as a main enemy type.

In close encounter claims and ufology

Greys are commonly included in alien abduction claims. Among reports of supposed alien encounters, Greys make up approximately 50 percent in Australia, 43 percent in the United States, 90 percent in Canada, 67 percent in Brazil, 20 percent in Continental Europe, and around 12 percent in the United Kingdom. These reports include two distinct groups of Greys that differ in height. Abductees say that they recognize the leader of their abductors by its “demeanour. “Some ufologists and abduction researchers believe that taller Greys, with their reported increased authority and apparently more complex psychology, may be the only Grey type to be biologically alive and that the shorter form could be their artificially constructed robot or cyborg servants.

Some alien abduction reports have depicted variant skin colours such as blue-grey, green-grey, or purple-grey and sometimes not grey at all. The skin is typically described as being extremely smooth, almost as if made of an artificial material like rubber or plastic.

Abduction claims are often described as extremely traumatic, similar to an abduction by humans or even a sexual assault in the level of trauma and distress. (Research has shown that emotional impact of perceived abduction can be as great as or even greater than that of combat, sexual abuse, and other traumatic events.)

The eyes are often a focus of abduction claims. They are said to not move or focus in any observable way to the naked eye. Claims often describe a Grey staring into the eyes of an abductee when conducting mental procedures. This staring is claimed to induce hallucinogenic states or directly provoke different emotions. Although abduction claimants often say that the Grey was only inches from their face during the staring mind scan procedure, they often subsequently claim to not feeling breath or seeing the Grey’s chest move from breathing.

Evolutionary feasibility debate

According to English reproductive biologist Jack Cohen, the typical image of a Grey, given that it would have evolved into a world with different environmental and ecological conditions from Earth, is too physiologically similar to a human to be credible as a representation of an alien. Their physical structure has been sometimes viewed as supporting the Panspermia theory of origins, although the level “parallel evolution” (using the term in as it is used in Sci-Fi, distinct from the use in Biology and the related term Convergent Evolution) required is statistically next to nil. The “parallel evolution” concept is utilized as a plot device by Star Trek writers Gene Roddenberry and Gene Coon and referred to as “Hodgkins Law of Parallel Planet Development”.

Some Ufologists say such seemingly impossible coincidences show that extraterrestrial beings had some influence on the evolution of life on Earth in the distant past (the theory of “ancient astronauts”), specifically that extraterrestrials were directly involved in the evolution of primates, including humans. This was supposedly done by genetic engineering, cross-breeding, or a combination of both. This idea may have first gained widespread exposure with the 1968 publication of Chariots of the Gods? by Erich von Däniken and has since been the source of much controversy, inspiring numerous other books with various related theories.

Proponents of this theory of alien genetic/evolutionary intervention on Earth argue that if the Greys (or similar beings) were performing genetic manipulations and/or experiments with pre-human life forms on Earth (and could somehow overcome the vast genetic and biochemical differences involved in the completely separate evolutionary histories) that these alleged aliens may have attempted to influence the evolution of life forms here in a direction consistent with their own genetic makeup, and similar to their own physiology and general physical structure, since genetically that is what they would presumably be most familiar with.

Since the history of life on Earth gives some idea of what is and is not feasible on other worlds, and there is no conclusive evidence of any alleged past extraterrestrial genetic manipulation in our own evolution, some Ufologists have offered alternative explanations to accommodate for the evolutionary improbability of Greys (or any other bipedal, humanoid “extraterrestrial” species) by explaining them as being native hominids to Earth either having left or living in hiding, as Mac Tonnies proposed in his book The Cryptoterrestrials, or from another dimension, as proposed by John A. Keel and J. Allen Hynek.

Conspiracy theories

Some conspiracy theorists believe that Greys represent part of a government-led disinformation or plausible deniability campaign,[14] or that they are a product of government mind control experiments.[15][16] Dr. Steven Greer, founder of the Disclosure Project, head of CSETI, and a prominent UFO conspiracy theorist, claims to have over 400 “government, military, and intelligence community witnesses” that have offered testimony to the existence of aliens and UFOs or efforts to cover up their existence and who have stated that they would be willing to defend their claims under oath.

Alien Grey

Alien Grey Agenda (Video)

 { http://www.ufointernationalproject.com/ }

Case File Details

Note from The Black Vault: Playing off the popularity of the return of The X-Files, the CIA has created a few pages online showcasing their UFO documents, and even creating a, “How To Investigate a Flying Saucer” guide. This guide has been archived below for research purposes, in case the online page ever disappears or is taken offline.  It is not edited in any way.

Southbound on a lone desert highway, police officer Lonnie Zamora was in pursuit of a speeding car outside the town of Socorro, New Mexico, when he was startled by a loud roar! Seconds later, he saw a large flame rise from the ground and pierce the sky above a remote patch of desert southwest of the highway. Fearing a nearby dynamite shack might have exploded, Zamora let the speeding car go, turned right, and drove down a bumpy gravel road that ran alongside the shack.

Zamora’s cruiser clunked along the rocky road until he came upon a steep hill. Rising from behind the hill was a smokeless fire that glowed in a funnel of blue and orange tinted flames. The hill obscured the origin of the flames, so Zamora attempted to drive up it. His cruiser’s tires slipped and swayed on the loose gravel, but after three attempts, Zamora finally made it to the top.

A shiny object, the size of a sedan, sparkled in the late afternoon sunshine about 150-200 yards from where Zamora was perched on the hilltop. At first glance, he thought it was a car overturned in an arroyo (dry creek bed), but when he drove closer, it appeared to be aluminum in color, not chrome, and oval-shaped like a football.

Zamora drove toward the object, along the hill’s crest, for about 50 feet and then stopped the car. He radioed back to the sheriff’s office that he would be busy checking on a wreck “down in the arroyo,” and then he descended on foot down the hill toward the object.

Roooaaarrr! Zamora was startled again by a very loud rumble, not exactly like a blast but also not steady like a jet engine. It started at a low frequency, with the pitch slowly rising. The flame appeared to be coming from the underside of the object, glowing light blue on top and orange at the bottom. Zamora panicked, afraid the object was about to blow.

He ran to take cover but turned back to look at the object as he fled. He noticed a red symbol on the side, shaped like a point that was about 2 inches high and 2 inches wide. The object was smooth, a shiny white aluminum, with no visible windows or doors. There appeared to be two metal legs, slanted outward, supporting it.

Zamora sprinted to his car, hit his leg on the fender, and crashed to the ground. He got up, ran another 25 feet or so, and when he looked back again, he saw the object begin to rise.

It rose to the level of the car, then higher, about 20 to 25 feet in the air.

Zamora ran another 50 feet from his car, just over the edge of the hill, and ducked. Kneeling as close to the ground as he could, he covered his face with his arms for protection. Suddenly, the roar stopped. In the uneasy silence, Zamora lifted his head and looked.

The object sped away from him, toward the southwest, appearing to go in a straight line at about 10-15 feet off the ground. It cleared the eight foot tall dynamite shack by about three feet and then continued in a southwesterly direction, until it went over the high desert mountains and disappeared…

Hector Quintanilla, the last chief officer of the US Air Force’s famous UFO investigation program, Project BLUE BOOK, was in charge of the Zamora case. His team was convinced that Zamora was telling the truth, and despite an extremely thorough investigation, they were unable to locate the object or its origins. In an article for Studies in Intelligence called, “The Investigation of UFO’s,” Quintanilla says that the Zamora sighting is “the best-documented case on record.” It remains unsolved.

Project BLUE BOOK was based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio. Between 1947 and 1969, the Air Force recorded 12,618 sightings of strange phenomena — 701 of which remain “unidentified” like the Zamora case. Although the CIA was not directly affiliated with Project BLUE BOOK, the Agency did play a large role in investigating UFOs in the late 1940s and early 1950s, which led to the creation of several studies, panels, and programs. Former CIA Chief Historian, Gerald K. Haines, wrote an in-depth article looking at the Agency’s role in studying the UFO phenomenon for Studies in Intelligence. In his article,“CIA’s Role in the Study of UFOs, 1947-90,” Haines says that “while the Agency’s concern over UFOs was substantial until the early 1950s, CIA has since paid only limited and peripheral attention to the phenomena.”

With over 20 years of investigations, from the late 1940s until Project BLUE BOOK’s termination in 1969, the CIA and USAF have learned a thing or two about how to investigate a UFO sighting. While most government officials and scientists now dismiss flying saucer reports as a quaint relic of the 1950s and 1960s, there’s still a lot that can be learned from the history and methodology of “flying saucer intelligence.”

10 Tips When Investigating a Flying Saucer:

1. Establish a Group To Investigate and Evaluate Sightings

Before December 1947, there was no specific organization tasked with the responsibility for investigating and evaluating UFO sightings. There were no standards on how to evaluate reports coming in, nor were there any measurable data points or results from controlled experiment for comparison against reported sightings.

To end the confusion, head of the Air Force Technical Service Command, General Nathan Twining, established Project SIGN (initially named Project SAUCER) in 1948 to collect, collate, evaluate, and distribute within the government all information relating to such sightings, on the premise that UFOs might be real (although not necessarily extraterrestrial) and of national security concern. Project SIGN eventually gave way to Project GRUDGE, which finally turned into Project BLUE BOOK in 1952.

2. Determine the Objectives of Your Investigation

The CIA’s concern over UFOs was substantial until the early 1950s because of the potential threat to national security from these unidentified flying objects. Most officials did not believe the sightings were extraterrestrial in origin; they were instead concerned the UFOs might be new Soviet weapons.

The Project BLUE BOOK team, according to Quintanilla, defined three main objectives for their investigations:

• To determine if UFO phenomena present a threat to the security of the US;
• To determine if UFO phenomena exhibit any technological advances which could be channeled into US research and development; and
• To explain or identify the stimuli which caused the observer to report a UFO.

Although BLUE BOOK, like previous investigative projects on the topic, did not rule out the possibility of extraterrestrial phenomena, their research and investigations focused primarily on national security implications, especially possible Soviet technological advancements.

3. Consult With Experts

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, various projects, panels, and other studies were led or sponsored by the US government to research the UFO phenomenon. This includes the CIA-sponsored 1953 Scientific Advisory Panel on Unidentified Flying Objects, also known as the “Robertson Panel.” It was named after the noted physicist H.P. Robertson from the California Institute of Technology, who helped put together the distinguished panel of nonmilitary scientists to study the UFO issue.

Project BLUE BOOK also frequently consulted with outside experts, including: astrophysicists, Federal Aviation officials, pilots, the US Weather Bureau, local weather stations, academics, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, NASA, Kodak (for photo analysis), and various laboratories (for physical specimens). Even the famous astronomer Carl Sagan took part in a panel to review Project BLUE BOOK’s findings in the mid-1960s. The report from that panel concluded that “no UFO case which represented technological or scientific advances outside of a terrestrial framework” had been found, but the committee did recommend that UFOs be studied intensively to settle the issue once and for all.

4. Create a Reporting System To Organize Incoming Cases

The US Air Force’s Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) developed questionnaires to be used when taking reports of possible UFO sightings, which were used throughout the duration of Project BLUE BOOK. The forms were used to provide the investigators enough information to determine what the unknown phenomenon most likely was. The duration of the sighting, the date, time, location, or position in the sky, weather conditions, and the manner of appearance or disappearance are essential clues for investigators evaluating reported UFO sightings.

Project BLUE BOOK categorized sightings according to what the team suspected they were attributable to:Astronomical (including bright stars, planets, comets, fireballs, meteors, and auroral streamers);Aircraft (propeller aircraft, jet aircraft, refueling missions, photo aircraft, advertising aircraft, helicopters); Balloons;Satellites; Other (including missiles, reflections, mirages, searchlights, birds, kites, spurious radar indications, hoaxes, fireworks, and flares); Insufficient Data; and finally,Unidentified.

According to Quintanilla, “a sighting is consideredunidentified when a report apparently contains all the data necessary to suggest a valid hypothesis, but its description cannot be correlated with any known object or phenomenon.”

5. Eliminate False Positives

Eliminate each of the known and probable causes of UFO sightings, leaving a small portion of “unexplained” cases to focus on. By ruling out common explanations, investigators can focus on the truly mysterious cases.

Some common explanations for UFO sightings discovered by early investigations included: misidentified aircrafts (the U-2, A-12, and SR-71 flights accounted for more than half of all UFO reports from the late 1950s and most of the 1960s); celestial events; mass hysteria and hallucination; “war hysteria;” “midsummer madness;” hoaxes; publicity stunts; and the misinterpretation of known objects.

Even history can shed some light. An interesting citation found by the 1953 Robertson Panel noted that some sightings had been attributed to an older phenomenon – “Foo Fighters” – that pre-dated the modern concept of UFOs: “These were unexplained phenomena sighted by aircraft pilots during World War II in both European and Far East theaters of operation wherein ‘balls of light’ would fly near or with the aircraft and maneuver rapidly. They were believed to be electrostatic (similar to St. Elmo’s fire) or electromagnetic phenomena… but their exact cause or nature was never defined. If the term ‘flying saucers’ had been popular in 1943-1945, these objects would have been so labeled.”

6. Develop Methodology To Identify Common Aircraft and Other Aerial Phenomena Often Mistaken for UFOs

Because of the significant likelihood a common (or secret military) aircraft could be mistaken for a UFO, it’s important to know the characteristics of different types of aircraft and aerial phenomenon to evaluate against each sighting. To help investigators go through the troves of reports coming in, Project BLUE BOOK developed a methodology to determine if the UFO sighting could likely be attributable to a known aircraft or aerial phenomenon. They wrote up detailed descriptions characterizing each type of aircraft or astronomical phenomenon, including how it might be mistaken for a UFO, to help investigators evaluate the incoming reports.

7. Examine Witness Documentation

Any photographs, videos, or audio recordings can be immensely helpful in evaluating a reported UFO sighting.

A famous case examined by the Robertson Panel was the “Tremonton, Utah Sighting” of 1952, where a couple and two children traveling cross-country on State Highway 30 outside of Tremonton saw what appeared to be 10-12 bright shining objects moving westward in the sky in a rough formation. The husband was able to capture some of the objects on film.

The case was considered significant because of the “excellent documentary evidence in the form of Kodachrome motion picture films (about 1600 frames).” The Panel examined the film, case history, ATIC’s interpretation, and received a briefing from representatives of the USN Photo Interpretation Laboratory on their analysis of the film. The laboratory believed the objects were not birds, balloons, aircraft, or reflections, and therefore had to be “self-luminous.” The panel disagreed with the assessment that the objects were self-luminous, believing that if a controlled experiment was conducted, a terrestrial explanation for the sighting would be confirmed.

8. Conduct Controlled Experiments

As suggested by the Robertson Panel for investigating the Tremonton, Utah sighting (mentioned in tip #7), controlled experiments might be required to try and replicate the unknown phenomena. In the Tremonton case, the Panel suggested an experiment where scientists would photograph “pillow balloons” at different distances under similar weather conditions at the site. They believed such an experiment could help dispel the “self-luminous” theory about the objects in the film. Unfortunately, in this case, the cost of conducting such an experiment made the idea unfeasible.

9. Gather and Test Physical and Forensic Evidence

In the Zamora case (from the introduction), Quintanilla contends that during the course of the investigation and immediately thereafter, “everything that was humanly possible to verify was checked.” This included bringing in Geiger counters from Kirtland Air Force Base to test for radiation in the landing area and sending soil samples to the Air Force Materials Laboratory. “The soil analysis disclosed no foreign material. Radiation was normal for the ‘tracks’ and surrounding area. Laboratory analysis of the burned brush showed no chemicals that could have been propellant residue,” according to Quintanilla. “The findings were all together negative.” No known explanation could be found for the mysterious event.

10. Discourage False Reporting

The Robertson Panel found that the Air Force had “instituted a fine channel for receiving reports of nearly anything anyone sees in the sky and fails to understand.” This is a classic example of needing to separate the “signal from the noise.” If you have too many false or junk reports, it becomes increasingly difficult to find the few good ones worthy of investigation or attention.

The CIA in the early 1950s was concerned that because of the tense Cold War situation and increased Soviet capabilities, the Soviets could use UFO reports to ignite mass panic and hysteria. Even worse, the Soviets could use UFO sightings to overload the US air warning system so that it could not distinguish real targets from supposed UFOs.

In order to lessen the amount of false-positive reports, the Robertson Panel suggested educating the military, researchers, and even the public on how to identify objects or phenomena commonly mistaken for UFOs. For example, they recommended training enlisted, command, and research personnel on how to properly recognize unusually illuminated objects (like balloons or aircraft reflections), as well as natural phenomena (such as meteors, fireballs, mirages, or noctilucent “night” clouds). By knowing how to correctly recognize objects that were commonly mistaken for UFOs, investigators could quickly eliminate false reports and focus on identifying those sightings which remained unexplained.

 { http://www.theblackvault.com/casefiles }

Case File Details

The following case is used on The Black Vault with permission from the author/investigator. It can not be reproduced in any way without contacting Mr. William Puckett.

Radar Analysis and Computation Worksheet
Hanford, WA sighting of Large Orange Objects
October 18, 2015
Prepared by William Puckett
UFO Investigator and Meteorologist

Background: 2 Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) Officers saw bright orange lights for around 50 seconds between 9:52 and 9:57 PM on Oct 18, 2015. The lights were sighted in a southwesterly direction. The lights were larger than yard lights and were about 25 to 30 degrees above the horizon.

The officers were traveling south on Highway 395 between Connell and Mesa, WA.

James Clarkson MUFON Director for Washington State received the sighting report and requested assistance with analysis of radar data. In response to this request I wrote a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requesting aviation radar data for the Pasco, WA (Tri-cities) area.

I received the radar data submission from the FAA about 2 months later (December 18, 2015).  The FAA provided the data that I requested.

FIGURE ONE – WITNESS & LOCATIONS OF 2 RADAR SITES.

Notes on Radar Data: The radar data were received for Pasco, WA Traffic Control and a NTAP (National Transportation Analysis Program) was also received. The NTAP included a long range radar from Fossil, Oregon which is about 100 miles south of Pasco, WA and the Pasco, WA Traffic Control radar.  (See Figure One to the left).

The closest returns on radar were about 18 miles to the southwest (near Pasco, WA airport). (See Figure Two below.)  The interesting thing about the data in Figure Two is that the Pasco radar report listed that returns were “target reports.” This suggests that data were filtered and weather returns, gr0und traffic, birds and radar angels were removed. This suggests that the remaining returns were actual moving aerial targets.  All of the primary returns are shown in Figure Two below.  A typical “unfiltered” radar map is shown in Figure Three below. The radar map in Figure Three is for Albany, New York.  You can see A “conglomerate” of returns and it is difficult to determine real moving targets while Figure Two shows small patterns of returns.

We can’t definitively say for sure if the radar picked up the objects seen by the witnesses, but we can say that radar returns were in the direction (southwest) and at the time (9:50 to 10 PM) that the witnesses saw the objects. The radar returns were around 18 miles from the estimated witness location and near the Pasco radar. (See Figure Four below.) Figure Four shows the area of returns and a zoom in showing the speed and direction of movement of the returns.

The zoom in box to the left is for returns detected from 9:50 to 9:51 PM. For the box to the left there were six radar returns in sequence.  The target was moving slowly east, then abruptly changes direction to the south-southwest at a higher speed and then turned east-southeast at original speed (38 MPH).  One can’t say for sure if each return represents the same target, but the targets were in sequence with each turn of the radar antenna. The targets were not detected after 9:51 PM.

FIGURE TWO – ALL RETURNS 9:30 TO 10 PM – OCT 18, 2015.

The zoom in box to the right shows returns from 9:54 to 9:55 PM. The box to the right fits more closely with the witness observation time.  Again the speed of the target is slow (38 to 48 MPH) and moving to the west-southwest. The target then turned direction to the northwest and nearly increased it’s speed tenfold. Again we can’t say for sure if this is one target, but it  fits with the radar antenna rotation sequence. The direction of movement (westerly direction ) fits with what the witnesses saw. The targets were no longer detected after 9:55 PM.

Of course the targets could have been multiple targets, but may have showed up as one target on the radar scope if they were close together. The witnesses observed multiple targets.

There were also returns noted in the same area observed by the witnesses before the sighting time, but the witnesses would not have been in position to observe the returns.

Doppler weather radar data were collected from Portland, Oregon and Spokane, Washington. Both of these radars reach the Pasco, WA area.  Some light showers were observed a few hours prior to the sighting. Skies were clear at Pasco Airport at the time of the sighting. The Doppler radar maps did not show anything unusual. The radar sites did show some scattered showers, but the area was well removed from the sighting area. However, Doppler radars are not designed to detect aircraft. The radars have a narrow beam width (one degree) which means that objects will not be detected unless they happen to fly through the narrow beam.

FIGURE THREE – MAP OF ALL PRIMARY RADAR RETURNS ALBANY, NY 9/5/2015.

The discussion below makes the assumption that the object(s) seen by the witnesses were detected by radar:

One of the officers said that his thumb would cover up the object. A thumb has a width of 2 arc degrees. (The moon has a width of 30 arc minutes which is about 25% the size of a thumb in apparent width.)  Let’s assume that the object had a width of 1 arc degrees:

Using trigonometry the width of the object would be around 1,650 feet if what the witnesses saw was detected by radar. For comparison purposes the length of a 747 aircraft is 231 feet with a wingspan of 211 feet.

The witnesses thought that the object(s) were at an elevation of 20 to 30 degrees. For computations we will assume that the elevation was 25 degrees. If we assume that the primary radar returns belonged to the object we can say the following:

Using trigonometry if the radar returns represented the object, the elevation would have just over 44,000 feet.

If the returns represent what the witnesses saw the objects would have been quite large and would have been very visible from the Pasco, WA area.  The fact that the time of the sighting was late (around 10 PM on a Sunday night before the week) and the fact that the objects were only visible for a short time may have resulted in fewer (in any) witnesses.  Also there is a possibility that the objects may have appeared larger to the witnesses due to light scattering in the atmosphere which can make objects appear bigger. This is particularly true if objects are lower on the horizon (25 degrees or lower).

FIGURE FOUR – MAP & ZOOM IN OF AREA OF RADAR RETURNS.

Conclusion and Summary:

2 DOC officers saw 2 large orange objects to the Southwest while returning home from work around 10 PM on October 18, 2015.  The officers were near Connell, WA and were returning to the Tri-Cities area. The officers had never before or have since seen the lights.

The lights were near the Hanford Nuclear Facility in Richland, Washington.

Aviation radar data were heavily filtered which eliminates most superfluous returns (birds, weather, ground targets, angels, etc.)
Radar targets were detected in the direction and times when the witnesses saw the objects. The distance was large (around 18 miles).

The radar targets were only visible for 2 periods of time (9:50-9:51 PM & 9:54-9:55 PM) of around one minute. This is consistent with the brief time that the witnesses saw the objects. The radar targets were in a southwesterly direction which is where the witnesses saw the objects.

The targets were moving in a westerly direction at speeds of 38 to 48 MPH and then accelerated to over 300 MPH before vanishing from the scope. The radar detected this from 9:54 to 9:55 PM. This is consistent with the direction of movement reported by the witnesses and closest to the time (9:52 to 9:57 PM).

If the targets represent what the witnesses saw the objects would have flying around 44,000 feet and would have been over 1,500 feet in width.

The witnesses saw multiple targets. Perhaps the targets were so close to one another that the radar only painted one return?

The targets were close to Pasco Airport. One would think that others would have witnessed the objects if the radar targets represented what the witnesses saw due to their large size and proximity to the Pasco area.