On May 26, 1952, a U.S. Air Force F-94C Starfire fighter jet encountered a bright white object that accelerated to high speed over North Korea and gave chase. The event was written up by both the pilot and his radar observer (R/O) in Air Intelligence Information Report No. 52-85 and subsequently appeared in Project Blue Book.
The object was radar tracked by the F-94C on board radar and simultaneously on ground radar, and seen visually by the F-94C crew.
Here is the first-hand report of Lt. Martin (last name deleted by the USAF), the Starfire's pilot:
"While on combat air patrol sortie from K-13, Bromide informed us of an unknown located at (coordinates) CT 4856 and told us to investigate."
At 3:20 a.m., "after descending to 2,500 feet, we saw in the glare of the front line searchlights, a small plane beneath, but were unable to descend due to terrain to determine type."
"Bromide told us to drop it and take up a southerly heading. When we turned to this heading, we saw a brilliant object above and in front of us and asked Bromide if we could investigate. With his permission, we made our first pass from north to south within 600 feet, then a succession of passes from cardinal compass points, ranging to within 50 feet, but, because of the brilliancy of the light, we could discern no outline."
"On our last pass my Radar Observer looked back and said he thought he saw an object on our tail. I then requested Bromide to vector me for an interception on this new unknown. At this time, the object was still in sight."
"When I received my first vector, I was south of the brilliant object and started a starboard (rightward) turn to the intercept vector for the new unidentified. On a northeasterly heading my R/O gave me a (radar) lock-on, overtaking 50 knots, range 7,000 yards, nearly dead ahead and slightly above."
"When I closed to 6,000 yards, the object started to pull away, and I threw the afterburner in (airspeed at this time was 250 knots). In a gradual climb, and still with the object nearly centered on the scope, the range increased at a steady rate from 6,000 yards to 26,000 yards in 12 to 15 seconds. At that range we broke lock. No evasive action was observed and no exhaust patterns as might be expected."
Covering 20,000 yards in 15 seconds means the object was traveling at 1.920 miles per hour. According to Richard Haines, the object "was classified as a possible balloon on the record card" by the U.S. Air Force, and thus is not considered "unknown."
The case is summarized in Dominique Weinstein's catalog of aircraft and UFO encounters:
52.05.26 - 03h20 LT
North Korea above North Korea
M an F-94C pilot + Radar operator
one bright white object, accelerated at tremendous speed
The case does not appear on the Project Blue Book listing of UFOs that remained of unknown origin, because is was explained away as "possible balloon."
However, balloons cannot accelerate up to a speed of 1.920 miles per hour, and do not dogfight with jet fighters.
The phenomenon could not have been a "temperature inversion" radar mistake: these rare phenomenon do not result is the same punctual radar echo on two different distant radar set, they would appear at different locations. Radar errors also do not appear visually and do not dogfight with jet aircraft.
The phenomenon could not have been a MiG-15 Korean or Russian jet fighter, because these jets were known by the head of Project Bluebook Captain Edward J. Ruppelt and "enemy aircraft" would have been given as explanation if such was the case. The reason that Captain Edward J. Ruppelt knew about the MiG-15 is that he was in charge of the secret evaluation project of the MiG-15 just before he became head of Project Blue Book.
Plasmas and ball lightning and other natural phenomena do not last that long, do not manoeuver this way, and do not appear as the pilot reported. Planets such as Venus or Jupiter do not dogfight with aircraft and are not detected on radar, and do not manoeuver in the sky at tremendous speed. Hallucinations and hoaxes also do not appear on radar. In 1952, no human built flying machine could have achieved an acceleration to 1.920 miles per hours or anything near it.
"UFO-skeptics" do not seem to know about this case or do not care for providing a trivial explanation, if there were one. Until a new plausible explanation can be found, this case stand up as valid evidence that flying machines of unknown origin do sometimes fly in our planet's airspace and interact with aircraft.
