NUFORC Sighting 83920

Occurred: 2011-09-07 21:00 Local
Reported: 2011-09-14 20:51 Pacific
Duration: 10 seconds
No of observers: 1

Location: Pflugerville, TX, USA

Shape: Formation
Characteristics: Lights on object

Craft w/ 2-3 yellowish-orange lights flies slowly parallel to horizon then suddenly flies down below horizon/trees at impossible speed.

On the date of Wednesday, September 7, 2011, in the city of Pflugerville, TX, I was driving east on Parmer Lane between 9 and 10pm, stopped at the traffic light about to turn north on Harris Ridge Blvd when I observed what I thought initially was a standard commercial airplane flying along the horizon northward. Having looked at a map I would approximate it was on the latitude between Elgin and Bastrop, TX. The craft was an estimated 3 to 20 miles away (distances are hard to approximate). It consisted of 2 to 3 yellowish orange lights that moved in exact unity, so as to give the appearance of a single craft. Initially it was moving at a normal speed for a commercial aircraft. (I assumed it was an airplane since I live north of Austin airport and regularly see airplanes at night.) After 5 to 8 seconds of flying parallel to the horizon, it suddenly made a swooping descent, covering what I estimated to be at least 3,000 feet in less than 2 seconds, then disappe! aring behind the trees near horizon. My reaction was to think, "Wow, that airplane is going down!"

After several minutes of thought when it disappeared, I realized it could not have been a standard plane for 2 reasons: 1) It was clearly going too fast, even for a downed aircraft, and 2) A standard aircraft doesn't spontaneously change speeds like that. The descent of the craft was not straight down but rather in an arc motion, appearing as if it was not a fall or trajectory but a controlled descent at a speed which was alarming enough to grab my attention. After it disappeared behind the trees, I did not see it again.

Several days later I thought to look on the map (this is how I estimated the geographical area and direction) and made a connection that this was near or around the Texas wildfires in Bastrop area. At the time of witnessing the event, I made no connection between the UFO and the wildfires. After connecting the two, I thought it might be explained as an aerial firefighting craft. But then discarded this idea for two reasons: 1) Nothing was dropped by the craft, but rather the craft itself dropped, and 2) I called all the police departments in the area and was told there were no downed aircraft of any kind.

Posted 2011-10-10

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