This article was published in the daily newspaper The Oklahoma City Times, USA, on August 3, 1965.
|
By Jack Taylor
Reports of unidentified flying objects swamped civilian and military authorities in at least four state before dawn Monday. Scores of sightings were reported in Oklahoma, many in the Oklahoma City area.
Air force officials at Tinker AFB said they are investigating, but that further comment will have to come from Washington. This is normal procedure.
The brilliantly-colored objects apparently were similar to those reported by a Wynijewood policeman two days ago.
The UFO's have been described as egg or turtle-shaped, flying in formation, making sharp maneuvers and changing colors.
The weather bureau at Tulsa said it tracked UFO's on its theodolight [sic] (visual tracking unit) and that they moved precisely with the stars.
A spokesman explained the night was exceptionally clear and some of the brighter stars "rose" in the sky and tended to give off strange lighting near the horizon.
Sightings were reported in a steady stream between 8 p.m. Sunday and 3 a.m. Monday in Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Kansas.
Radar at weather bureaus and air force bases scattered throughout the area reported tracking something,
One civilian UFO enthusiast said he received reports from counterparts that sightings ranged over a 9-state area.
The deluge of reports is the heaviest in the 17-year recorded history of UFO's, he said.
Oklahoma City police said they received 30 to 40 UFO reports during the night.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol headquarters reported a similar experience and at one point three dispatchers couldn't handle all the reports.
Reports of UFO's poured in from Pecos, Monahans, Odessa, Midland, Fort Worth, Canyon and Dalhart, Texas; Hobbs, Carlsbad and Artesia, N. M.; Oxford, Belle Plairie, Winfield, Cald well, Mulvane, Liberal and Wichita, Ari.
In Oklahoma, they came from Chickasha, Shawnee, Cushing, Guymon, Moore, Tulsa, Purcell, Norman, Meeker, Chandler, Gage, Del City and Oklahoma City.
The air force's official UFO center at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio, was reported launching an investigation Monday.
An air force spokesman for the Oklahoma City Air Defense Command refused to confirm or deny a report that a plane was sent after one of the UFO's.
North American Air Defense Command at Colorado Springs was reported in touch with the air force in connection with the UFO sightings.
The Sedgwick County sheriff's office at Wichita, Kan., said the weather bureau tracked several UFO's at altitudes of 6,000 to 9,000 feet.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said Tinker was tracking as many as four UFO's on its radar screen at one time, estimated their altitude at about 22,000 feet. A Tinker spokesman declined comment, however.
[Photo caption:] Hayden Hewe plots "saucer" course.
