NUFORC Sighting 53998

Occurred: 1971-08-11 13:00 Local - Approximate
Reported: 2006-12-14 18:24 Pacific
Duration: 4 SECONDS
No of observers: 1

Location: Fallsburg, NY, USA

Shape: Cross

AN OBJECT RESEMBLING AN AIRPLANE FLEW OVERHEAD AT GREAT SPEED, STOPPED ABRUPTLY, AND FLEW OFF AT 90 DEGREES TO IT'S ORIGINAL FLIGHT PAT

THIS INCIDENT OCCURRED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT, DURING THE AFTERNOON OF A CLEAR, WARM DAY IN THE SUMMER WHEN I WAS ABOUT 14 YEARS OLD. I DON'T THINK THE WIND WAS BLOWING VERY HARD AT ALL. I WAS THROWING A BALL UP IN THE AIR AND CATCHING IT IN MY GLOVE. AS I THREW THE BALL UP, I SAW WHAT APPEARED AT FIRST GLANCE TO BE AN AIRPLANE. I ALLOWED THE BALL TO DROP WITHOUT TAKING MY EYES OFF THE "PLANE" BECAUSE I WAS AMAZED AT HOW FAST IT WAS MOVING. AT THE TIME, AND TO THIS DAY, I BELEIVED THE CRAFT TO HAVE BEEN FLYING AT LEAST AS HIGH AS A SMALL AIRPLANE WOULD FLY. WHEN I SAW IT, I WAS FACING ROUGHLY SOUTH. THE CRAFT FLEW WEST TO EAST AND WAS ALMOST DIRECTLY OVERHEAD AND AT ABOUT MY 2 O'CLOCK POSITION WHEN I FIRST NOTICED IT. WHEN THE CRAFT REACHED ABOUT MY 11:00 POSITION, IT STOPPED ABRUPTLY, SPUN COMPLETELY AROUND ON IT'S AXIS ONCE, AND FLEW OFF TO THE SOUTH ON PATH WHICH WAS AT A 90 DEGREE ANGLE TO IT'S ORIGINAL FLIGHT PATH. I WAS STANDING ABOUT ONE HUNDRED YARDS FROM A HILL WITH TALL TREES ON IT. THE CRAFT FLEW FAR ABOVE THOSE TREES. IT DID NOT MAKE ANY SOUND.

IT APPEARED TO BE WHITE IN COLOR AND HAD NO MARKING ON IT. I DID NOT SEE ANY LIGHTS. IT DID NOT GLOW OR REFLECT THE SUNLIGHT. THE ONLY WAY I CAN DESCRIBE THE SPEED AT WHICH IT FLEW WOULD BE TO SAY THAT ONLY ONE TO TWO SECONDS ELAPSED BETWEEN THE TIME I FIRST NOTICED IT UNTIL IT WAS OUT OF SITE. WHEN IT STOPPED, IT DID SO WITHOUT SLOWING DOWN. IT JUST STOPPED AS THOUGH IT HAD HIT A WALL. WHEN IT SPUN, IT DID SO RAPIDLY, NOT IN A SLOW DELIBERATE MANNER.

THE CRAFT RESEMBLED AN AIRPLANE IN THAT IT HAD A FUSELAGE AND WINGS. THE MAIN WINGS AND THE WINGS AT THE TAIL WERE ALL WHERE THEY WOULD BE ON AN AIRPLANE, ACCEPT THAT THE FUSELAGE CONTINUED SLIGHTLY BEYOND THE TAIL WINGS. THE NOSE, ALL FOUR WINGS, AND THE TAIL WERE SQUARED OFF AT THEIR ENDS. THE MAIN WINGS IN THE CENTER OF THE FUSELAGE WERE SWEPT BACK ABOUT 45 DEGREES. THERE WAS A STEADY, EVEN WIDENING OF THE FUSELAGE FROM THE NOSE TOWARD THE TAIL. I HAD THE IMPRESSION THAT THE BOTTOM OF THE CRAFT WAS FLAT, NOT ROUNDED AS ON AN AIRPLANE.

WHEN I SAW THE CRAFT, I WAS AT MY HOME, WHICH WAS LOCATED ABOUT 30 MILES FROM STEWART AIRFEILD IN NEWBURG, NY. AT THE TIME, STEWART WAS AN AIRFORCE BASE, AND JETS OFTEN FLEW OVER ON A FLIGHT PATH SIMILAR TO THE ONE THE CRAFT I SAW WAS FLYING.

NUFORC Note:

Witness indicates that the date of the sighting is approximate. PD

Posted 2007-02-01