ACUFO-1945-00-00-JAPAN-1
On November 8, 1945, the newspaper Dothan Eagle, of Dothan, Alabama, USA, about the wartime experiences of a citizen of that town, Cyrus Roys Lewis.
Lewis, now an attorney in Dothan, had been a Lieutenant-Colonel in the 505th Bombardment Group of the US Army Air Forces based on the island of Tinian during World War II. He had flown as a B-29 pilot 13 missions of bomb raids against Japan, mainly in 1945 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki shortly before the atom bomb was used.
He explained that there were all sorts of "displays" during the raids, searchlights, tracer bullets, streamers, flak shells, rockets, fighter planes with blue lights in the cockpits, and "strange red balls of fire." He said that some pilots reported the "ghostlike balls followed them for many miles."
He said:
"We never learned for sure what those balls of fire were. Too many said the balls followed them to doubt their story."
He added that he encountered two of these balls on one mission, a ball a few hundred yards from each wing:
"I started diving and outran them, but some pilots said the balls followed them a long way when they started home."
| Date: | 1945 before August |
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| Time: | ? |
| Duration: | ? |
| First known report date: | November 8, 1945 |
| Reporting delay: | Weeks. |
| Country: | Japan |
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| State/Department: | |
| City: | Probably Hiroshima or Nagasaki |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 1 or more. |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | 1 |
| Number of named witnesses: | 1 |
| Reporting channel: | Newspaper. |
|---|---|
| Visibility conditions: | ? |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | ? |
| UFO departure observed: | ? |
| UFO action: | Flew off plane wingtips. |
| Witnesses action: | Succesfull evasive action. |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | ? |
| Witnesses interpretation: | Unidentified. |
| Sensors: |
[X] Visual: 1 or more.
[ ] Airborne radar: [ ] Directional ground radar: [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages: |
|---|---|
| Hynek: | ? |
| Armed / unarmed: | Armed, 12 Browning M2 12,7 mm machine guns. |
| Reliability 1-3: | 3 |
| Strangeness 1-3: | 2 |
| ACUFO: | Possible extraterrestrial craft. |
[Ref. ale1:] NEWSPAPER "DOTHAN EAGLE":
BY NAT C. FAULK
The Japanese threw everything in the book – and some things that weren't – in their efforts to defend the home islands against Superfortress "burn-out" raids. So says Cyrus Roys Lewis, who made 13 missions in B-29s against the Japs before the Nipponese called it quits last August.
Now home and practicing law, where he left off on July 22, 1941 to volunteer for active duty with the Army, Lewis can recall those raids without wondering whether he and his crew will get back to their home base at Tinian island. "That was the thought of everyone after we reached our objective, and had it not been for that," he said, "we might have enjoyed the fireworks display."
The displays, which were not staged for pyrotechnical purposes, had everything. "There were searchlights – and the Japs had some good ones – tracer bullets, streamers, flak shells, rockets, fighter planes with blue lights in the cockpits, and strange red balls of fire," he said, adding that some pilots reported the ghostlike balls followed them for many miles.
"We never learned for sure what those balls of fire were," he said. "Too many said the balls followed them to doubt their story." He added that he encountered two of these balls on one mission, a ball a few hundred yards from each wing. "I started diving and outran them," he said, "but some pilots said the balls followed them a long way when they started home."
[Ref. prt1:] JAN ALDRICH - "PROJECT 1947":
Dothan, Alabama Eagle - 8 Nov., 1945
Lt. Col. Lewis Tells of Mysterious Red
Fireballs Pursuing Planes After Nip Raids
BY NAT C. FAULK
The Japanese threw everything in the book – and some things that weren't – in their efforts to defend the home islands against Superfortress "burn-out” raids. So says Cyrus Roys Lewis, who made 13 missions in B-29s against the Japs before the Nipponese called it quits last August.
Now home and practicing law, where he left off on July 22, 1941 to volunteer for active duty with the Army, Lewis can recall those raids without wondering whether he and his crew will get back to their home base at Tinian island. "That was the thought of everyone after we reached our objective, and had it not been for that," he said, "we might have enjoyed the fireworks display.”
The displays, which were not staged for pyrotechnical purposes, had everything. "There were searchlights – and the Japs had some good ones – tracer bullets, streamers, flak shells, rockets, fighter planes with blue lights in the cockpits, and strange red balls of fire,” he said, adding that some pilots reported the ghostlike balls followed them for many miles.
"We never learned for sure what those balls of fire were,” he said. "Too many said the balls followed them to doubt their story." He added that he encountered two of these balls on one mission, a ball a few hundred yards from each wing. "I started diving and outran them,” he said, "but some pilots said the balls followed them a long way when they started home.”
The Boeing B-29 "Superfortress" was the heaviest bomber of the US Army Air Force, used in operations from May 8, 1944 and on. Its maximum speed was 574 km/h.
Its defensive armament was 12 Browning M2 12.7 mm machine guns.
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Cyrus Roys Lewis was born on September 8, 1915, in Tuskegee, Macon County, Alabama, USA, and died on November 6, 1989, in Dothan, Houston County, Alabama, USA.
I can confirm he was an Attorney at Dothan after WWII (Photo below).
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He served as a pilot in the 505th Bombardment Group in the Pacific Theater from July 22, 1941 to March 17, 1946, stationed on the island on Tinian, where he met his wife. He ranked a Lieutenant-Colonel. He participated in raids on Hiroshima and Nagasaki just prior to the drops of the atomic bombs.
(I found the above information in the Alabama Lawyer magazine for January 1990, page 60.)
The 505th Bombardment Group was deployed to the Central Pacific Area in late 1944, being assigned to the XXI Bomber Command 313th Bombardment Wing in the Northern Mariana Islands; being stationed at North Field, Tinian. It entered combat in February 1945 with strikes on Iwo Jima and the Truk Islands. It then began bombing the Japanese Home Islands at very long ranges, attacking military, industrial and transportation targets. Switched to night incendiary raids attacking major Japanese cities in the spring of 1945, causing massive destruction of urbanized areas.
The 505th Bombardment Group received a Distinguished Unit Citation for a strike against the Nakajima aircraft factory at Ota in February 1945. Conducted incendiary raids on area targets in Japan, carrying out these missions at night and at low altitude. Bombed in support of the Allied assault on Okinawa in April 1945. Engaged in mining operations against Japanese shipping, receiving second DUC for mining the Shimonoseki Strait and harbors of the Inland sea, June–July 1945. The group continued strategic bombing raids and incendiary attacks until the Japanese Capitulation.
It operated B-29.
Japan surrendered on September 2, 1945. The first atomic bomb raid, on Hiroshima, occurred on August 6, 1945. So the case probably took place ine 1945 before August.
The fact that Lt. Col. Lewis talked of the red balls of light to the newspaper indicates that it was not a small deal for him; it was also not an exceptional phenomenon, as he mentioned it happened to other crews. Also, he does say that the nature of the red balls of light was never identified.
Possible extraterrestrial craft.
* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.
| Main author: | Patrick Gross |
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| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Create/changed by: | Date: | Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | December 10, 2023 | Creation, [ale1], [prt1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | December 10, 2023 | First published. |
