Ancillary Mercy полностью

Pilot took evasive action, object appeared to have a brilliant greenish-white center with an outer ring which reflected the glow from the center.... Above description fits what seven other flights saw.... Miami reports no missile activity.... Original reports of jet activity discounted.

The story received some press coverage, and the CAB, required by federal law to investigate, began a thorough check. Without waiting for a CAB opinion, however, the air force quickly explained the object as a shooting star. Although the CAB listed the case as unsolved, it mattered little, as most press accounts mentioned only the air force debunking.¹⁶

In Long Beach, California, on March 23, 1957, large numbers—perhaps thousands—of people, including three Ventura County deputy sheriffs, saw four strange flying objects. They appeared to be large, round, and flashing a brilliant red light. CAA radar tracked them, and by midnight, air force personnel at Oxnard AFB also saw them. When an F-89 was sent to pursue, the objects climbed and swiftly maneuvered away. Because there was no CIRVIS report, the incident did not fall under JANAP restrictions, and news about it quickly leaked out. The tower operator said the first object

was moving much faster than anything I’d ever seen. About forty miles away, it came to an abrupt stop and reversed course, all within a period of about three seconds.

Each object was tracked moving thirty miles in thirty seconds, or 3,600 mph. Keyhoe and NICAP tried to get the Oxnard report, and were referred to the 4602nd Intelligence Squadron, which in turn told Keyhoe that only Air Force Headquarters could release it. Although NICAP had the tower operator’s report, he was no longer inclined to jeopardize his career by talking.¹⁷

Another radar tracking of a UFO occurred on April 4 in Wigtownshire, Scotland, when three radar posts tracked an object which moved across the sky at sixty thousand feet, dived to fourteen thousand feet, circled around, and sped away. On April 19, members of the Kitsukawa Maru, a Japanese fishing boat, saw two metallic silvery objects descend into the sea. They estimated the size to be about thirty feet long, with no wings of any kind. As the objects hit the water, they created “a violent disturbance.”¹⁸

Sightings of landed UFOs with humanoid occupants were reported in Argentina, Pennsylvania, and France in May 1957. The sightings did not differ in essentials from those of the great wave of 1954. The French sighting of May 10, for example, involved a man who was riding a bicycle on the Miraumont-Beaucourt road in France. At 10:45 P.M., he saw a bright light and four human-shaped silhouettes less than five feet tall. He ran off the road and found a path to the home of some friends. He arrived in a panic, and four others returned with him. They all saw a luminous object, pulsing red and white, and three silhouettes with huge heads. The people watched for twenty minutes, during which time they were joined by another person. Finally, a car approached, and the lights went out; after it passed, a light appeared just above the road. It rose rapidly and silently at a forty-five-degree angle and was gone.¹⁹

NICAP AND THE U.S. SENATE

In July 1957, NICAP learned that the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Investigations was considering hearings on UFOs and wanted NICAP’s assistance. Keyhoe contacted several board members for advice; Hillenkoetter suggested withholding the best cases, at least initially. “Just give them a good, strong sample of the evidence. There’s nothing wrong in reserving something for the hearings.” Keyhoe decided to ask Ruppelt to join NICAP’s board of directors. Ruppelt was now an engineer with Northrop Aircraft, a major air force contractor, and—some NICAP members feared—under pressure to keep quiet. Nevertheless, Keyhoe caught up with Ruppelt at a rehearsal for the I’ve Got a Secret television program, which featured an episode about UFOs. Ruppelt said NICAP was doing a fine job, and Keyhoe mentioned the rumors about air force pressure. “It’s not true,” Ruppelt said. “Would I be here if it was?” On the show, he stated that 20 percent of sightings were unsolved while he was on Blue Book. Afterwards, Keyhoe invited Ruppelt to join NICAP’s board. He added, “We won’t load you with work, Ed. We mainly want your advice and your help in our fight against the censorship.” Ruppelt agreed, and considered it “an honor.” Keyhoe stressed the workload for a reason: Ruppelt had recently had a heart attack. Ruppelt wasn’t obese, and was only thirty-four at the time. Three years later, he would be dead of a second heart attack. Did Ruppelt have a pre-existing medical condition that put him at risk? It would be helpful to learn the reasons for these multiple heart attacks at such a young age, but no researchers have offered any idea.²⁰