Article/Document:
2nd Anniversary of 'Phoenix Lights' Incident
Peter B. Davenport, Director, National UFO Reporting Center
original source | fair use notice
Summary: Saturday, March 13, 1999, marks the second anniversary of the dramatic UFO sighting event that occurred two years ago over both the states of Nevada and Arizona, an event generally referred to as the “Phoenix Lights” case. Many aspects of the case still remain unexplained and controversial, but a considerable body of data and evidence has been collected by many capable investigators, which suggests that the event was extraordinarily dramatic and bizarre.
Saturday, March 13, 1999, marks the second anniversary of the dramatic UFO sighting event that occurred two years ago over both the states of Nevada and Arizona, an event generally referred to as the “Phoenix Lights” case. One unconfirmed sighting report was received from the State of New Mexico, as well.
Many aspects of the case still remain unexplained and controversial, but a considerable body of data and evidence has been collected by many capable investigators, which suggests that the event was extraordinarily dramatic and bizarre. Moreover, it went virtually unreported in the press, save for a handful of short articles printed in local Arizona newspapers. The story finally “broke” with a major, front-page article in USA TODAY on Wednesday, June 18, 1997, some three months after the incident had occurred.
Some of the salient features of the case are described below:
1) Perhaps thousands, or tens of thousands, of witnesses on the ground witnessed at least one object pass and/or hover overhead which they described as being huge, gigantic, or unimaginably large. Many of the witnesses reported that they had the impression that a Boeing 747 could land on the back of the object they had just witnessed pass overhead their location.
2) Most witnesses described the object as being generally triangular in shape, with anywhere from five, to “many, innumerable,” lights on the leading edge of the object. Some observers reported that the pattern of lights consisted of three lights clustered near the “nose” of the object, with one light on each of the trailing tips of the triangle. Other individuals reported an object that appeared to have seven large lights equally spaced along its leading edge.
3) The object apparently was capable of very rapid flight, probably even supersonic flight, although few witnesses reported any sound emanating from it. The object was reported heading generally to the southeast over Henderson, NV, at 1855 hrs. (Pacific), and was next reported heading to the south in the vicinity of Paulden, AZ, approximately 22 minutes later at 2017 hrs. (Mountain). Within approximately one minute of the sighting in Paulden, the object was reported from the vicinity of Prescott Valley, AZ, roughly 30 miles to the south. The object then appeared over Phoenix, where it is reported to have hovered for 4-5 minutes in the vicinity of the intersection of Indian School Road and 7th Avenue.
4) The object passed through the airspace of Sky Harbor Airport, where it was witnessed by air traffic controllers in the airport tower, and where it also was reported via radio by at least one commercial flight crew. They reported via radio that the object was passing directly overhead their aircraft, which was on the ground preparing to depart Sky Harbor. The object reportedly did not appear on radar, and it did not communicate via either radio or transponder.
5) From the Phoenix area, the object reportedly proceeded generally south toward South Mountain, continuing southeast toward Tucson, AZ, along Interstate 10. One family, driving northwest toward Phoenix on Interstate 10 near Casa Grande, AZ, reported that the object remained above them for an estimated 1-2 minutes while they were driving at approximately 80 miles per hour. The object was so large above them that the family’s two children in the back seat of their station wagon simultaneously could see the opposite “wing tips” of the object out both the left and right passenger windows.
6) The National UFO Reporting Center received a telephone call approximately seven hours after the incident from a person who identified himself as an airman stationed at Luke Air Force Base, located 20 miles to the west of Phoenix. The individual reported that the U. S. Air Force had launched two F-15c fighter aircraft from Luke AFB, and that one of the aircraft had “intercepted” a gigantic object over the intersection of Indian School Road and 7th Avenue. It was also reported by this individual that the onboard radar of the intercepting fighter had suddenly gone to a condition of “white noise,” and that the lights on the anomalous object simultaneously had suddenly dimmed in unison and disappeared from the pilot’s sight. (Please see text of conversation with the alleged airman at www.ufocenter.com)
7) On March 14, 1997, senior officers from Luke Air Force Base stated that they knew nothing about the incident, and that the base had received no reports from the public regarding the event. Long distance telephone bills, which indicate calls to the base, contradict the statements made by these officers.
8) Some military personnel and UFO investigators have asserted that the entire event was caused by “military flares” that had been released at approximately 2130 hrs. (Mountain) by a flight of USAF A-10 aircraft in the general vicinity of the Gila Bend Bombing Range. The bombing facility is located approximately 60-80 miles to the southwest of Phoenix. This event, if in fact it did take place, occurred at approximately 2130 or 2200 hrs., some 45 minutes after the UFO sighting had already occurred over northern Arizona, Phoenix, and Tucson.
9) The witnesses who reported their sightings of the object over northern Arizona and Phoenix include architects, physicians, law enforcement officers, educators, attorneys, airline pilots, scientists, real estate brokers, and other seemingly reliable citizens. Many are qualified observers, and have reported their sightings in eloquent, written form.
Further questions may be directed to:
The National UFO Reporting Center
P. O. Box 45623
University Station
Seattle, WA 98145
Hotline: (206) 722-3000 (0800 to 2400 hrs. Pacific)
[Press release prepared by Peter B. Davenport, Director, National UFO Reporting Center]
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