ACUFO:

ACUFO is my comprehensive catalog of cases of encounters between aircraft and UFOs, whether they are "explained" or "unexplained".

The ACUFO catalog is made of case files with a case number, summary, quantitative information (date, location, number of witnesses...), classifications, all sources mentioning the case with their references, a discussion of the case in order to evaluate its causes, and a history of the changes made to the file.

< Previous case Next case >

Iwo Jima, Japan, on April 18, 1945:

Case number:

ACUFO-1945-04-18-IWOJIMA-1

Summary:

Around 1999, in a catalog of UFO sightings by airmen during the World War II, the American ufologist Jan Aldrich noted a sighting that took place on April 18, 1945, around 3:00 a.m., 20 miles away north of Iwo Jima.

Abour 3 a.m., the ground radar station (GCI, Ground Control Intercept) had tracked a target 18 to 8 miles away, the gunner of a P-61 had seen a yellowish light, like a star, approaching and losing altitude. Contact by the aircraft's radar was lost. The shooter saw another light, but had no radar contact with the onboard radar.

Jan Aldrich specified that he found this observation in Mission Report No. 4-27 of the 549th Night Fighter Squadron.

Data:

Temporal data:

Date:	April 18, 1945
Time:	03:00 a.m.
Duration:	?
First known report date:	April 27, 1945
Reporting delay:	Hours, 1 week.

Geographical data:

Country:	Japan
State/Department:	Ogasawara
City:	Iwo Jima

Witnesses data:

Number of alleged witnesses:	2 to 4
Number of known witnesses:	?
Number of named witnesses:	0

Ufology data:

Reporting channel:	Military operations report.
Visibility conditions:	Night.
UFO observed:	Yes.
UFO arrival observed:	Yes.
UFO departure observed:	Yes.
UFO action:	Approaches, disappears.
Witnesses action:
Photographs:	No.
Sketch(s) by witness(es):	No.
Sketch(es) approved by witness(es):	No.
Witness(es) feelings:	?
Witnesses interpretation:	?

Classifications:

Sensors:	[X] Visual: 2 to 4. [X] Airborne radar: Yes. [X] Directional ground radar: Yes. [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages:
Hynek:	NL
Armed / unarmed:	Armed, 4 Hispano 20 mm cannons, 4 Browning M2 12.7 mm machine guns.
Reliability 1-3:	2
Strangeness 1-3:	2
ACUFO:	Possible enemy plane.

Sources:

[Ref. prt4:] JAN ALDRICH - "PROJECT 1947":

N - 1945.04.18 - about 0300 hours, 20 miles north of Iwo Jima.

P-61-B, 549th NFS, GCI (Ground Control Intercept) radar tracked a target at 18 to 8 miles almost immediately. P-61 gunner saw a yellowish light (like a star) approaching and losing altitude. AI contact was lost. Gunner saw another light, but no AI contact.(549th NFS Mission Reprot #4-27)

[Ref. dwn1:] DOMINIQUE WEINSTEIN:

April 18, 1945 20 miles north of lwo Jima, Japan GR

At about 0300, the Ground Control Intercept (GCI) tracked a target at 18 to 8 miles almost immediately. The gunner of a P-61B (USAAF 549th NFS) sighted a yellowish light (like a star) approaching and loosing altitude. The radar contact was lost. The gunner saw another light no radar contact.

Sources: 549 NFS (Night Fighter Squadron), Mission report #4-27, Unit history / Project 1947 Jan Aldrich.

[Ref. gvo1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:

1945, April 18

JAPAN, near Iwo Jima

At 0300 hours a P-61 B bomber (from the 549th NFS) was about 20 miles from Iwo Jima when the gunner saw a round yellowish light approaching and losing altitude. There was a CGI radar contact. At 4:15 a.m. it was a reddish light which gave two spots to the radar in evasive actions (PROJECT ACUFOE, Catalog 1999, Dominique Weinstein)

[Ref. dwn2:] DOMINIQUE WEINSTEIN:

Case 121

April 18, 1945

20 miles north of Iwo Jima, Japan GR

Sources: 549 NFS (Night Fighter Squadron), Mission report #4-27, Unit history / Project 1947 Jan Aldrich.

Aircraft information:

The Northrop P-61 "Black Widow" was a high performance american night fighter plane used in WWII.

It was twin-engined, with a maximum speed of 589 km/h, 3,060 km range. The crew was of three men.

It was equipped with a radar and armed with 4 Hispano 20 mm cannons in the fuselage and 4 Browning M2 12.7 mm machine guns in the remotely controlled upper turret.

Discussion:

Nothing in the report seems particularly strange, and nothing in the report indicates that the witnesses thought it was anything strange.

The comparison of the light seen with a star, its detection by ground and airborne radar, also suggest that this is a report of an attempted interception by a Japanese aircraft.

Evaluation:

Possible enemy plane.

Sources references:

* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.

[aaf1] ? Mission report #4-27, 549 Night Fighter Squadron Unit History, US Army Air Forces.
[prt4] * "ACUFOE in World War II", catalogue by Jan Aldrich, Project 1947, USA, October 9, 1999, at http://www.project1947.com/47cats/acupdt.htm
[gvo1] * "Chronologie OVNI", electronic catalogue compiled by Godelieve Van Overmeire, Belgium, circa 1999.
[dwn1] * "Appendix 1 - Catalog of Unconventional Aerial Phenomena - reported by Allied pilots (1942-1945)", catalogue by Dominique F. Weinstein, France, June 20, 2005.
[dwn2] * "The Foofighters Files (1) - Catalogue of Unconventional Aerial Phenomena Reported by Allied pilots during WW II (1943-1945)", catalogue by Dominique F. Weinstein, France, October 2009.

File history:

Authoring:

Main author:	Patrick Gross
Contributors:	None
Reviewers:	None
Editor:	Patrick Gross

Changes history:

Version:	Create/changed by:	Date:	Description:
0.1	Patrick Gross	December 16, 2023	Creation, [prt4], [gvo1], [dwn1], [dwn2].
1.0	Patrick Gross	December 16, 2023	First published.

This page was last updated on December 16, 2023.