((NUFORC Note: We spoke at length via telephone with this witness, and we deem him to be an exceptionally qualified observer, and a very credible source of accurate information. In addition, he has provided a second report, providing summary data from other witnesses, who currently are active military aviators. Please see other reports for this incident. PD))
Five bright amber lights form a "W" formation and hover 5 mins over NW FL sky 1840L Mon 7 Nov '05.
My sons came running into the house talking about lights in the sky, so I went out and ran over to an E-W street w/them for a unobstructed view.
What we all (a couple neighbors also came out and witnessed them) were five bright lights (amber-colored) which were holding steady in the shape of a giant "W" up in the night sky.
The formation was approx 25 degrees abv horizon, sky was clear and dark (1.5 hrs after sunset.)
The lights held position, evenly-spaced, for approx 5 mins, during which time I ran back inside my house to get the video camera, but battery was dead!
At one point, watched a small, civilian plane approach the formation, then turn away and circle a couple times before departing. From our perspective, believe the plane was closer to us than the bright lights.
When "W" formation broke apart, they did so one by one, starting w/furthest N or right side, turn away, then vanish after a couple seconds, then next one, and so on. Next day, I spoke w/military contacts who researched and told me no milair was up over the Eglin reservation in NW Florida at time of sighting.
Am a retired USAF Special Ops aviator w/nearly 5,000 hrs of flight time in a wide range of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, and I can't explain what we watched that night.
Also, learned several active duty AF people witnessed the lights that night and couldn't explain them, either. As a former journalist and military aviator, I consider myself pretty level-headed and thorough.
((ADDENDUM #1 OF 2 TO ORIGINAL REPORT))
Formation of five bright amber lights held a hover in "W" formation over NW FL Mon 7 Nov 1840L
(Addendum to earlier report) Witnessed a formation of very bright, amber-colored lights holding a "W" formation and hovering at steady altitude approx 15 miles distance, directly west of our location, angle of elevation approx 25 degrees from horizon. I am a retired AF Special Ops aviator w/nearly 5,000 hours in a multitude of both fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. I've seen flares, SAM and air-to-air missile launches. These lights were none of the above. They held formation for approx 5 mins, then one by one, broke formation and disappeared w/in a few seconds of each other. There were no milair in the area (Eglin Military Reservation) at the time of sighting (I checked w/base) but one small civilian plane did fly into the area during time of sighting. It flew N to S, crossing in front of formation, then circled a 180 back N until it was clear of our view, then did a 360 before departing back to N. We all felt the small plane was closer to us than the bright lights, since we could see it's red and green wing beacons and white anti-collision strobe. The bright lights were evenly spaced and held perfectly still in the "W" formation for the five minutes I saw them.
((END ADDENDUM #1))
((ADDENDUM #2 OF 2 TO ORIGINAL REPORT))
Multiple AD USAF witnesses report formation of bright lights hovering over rural Santa Rosa County FL
Addendum 2 to earlier report - This is a compilation of three additional witness accounts who are active duty Air Force flyers who did not want to be identified.
Witness 1 was driving W-bound on Hwy 98 near Navarre when he observed a formation of 5 bright white lights in the dark WNW sky. He continued to watch the formation of lights in an attempt to identify what type of aircraft they were. As he continued driving W, he realized the formation (described as sort of a diamond shape) wasn't moving, but just hung in the sky at approx 35-40 degrees elevation. Since he was driving, he couldn't remain visually fixed on the formation, and after approx 10 mins of glancing while driving, he glanced back and realized the lights were no longer there. He did not see them depart, but claims he had only looked away from the formation to the road a matter of a few seconds.
Witness 2 was also driving W-bound on Hwy 98 near Navarre and observed a similar formation of lights. He at first assumed they were AFSOC helos on a night training mission, but after several minutes of driving realized his helos were still there, in the same angular, diamond-like formation, and the lights continued to hold position, hovering at what appeared to be very high altitude. He said as he continued his drive W he doubted his helicopter formation theory more and more, especially when the formation broke apart. He described the formation break as a one-by-one realignment into almost a straight line, with some decending and some ascending, then the light on the far end of the formation suddenly veered away from the others and vanished. This pattern of breakaway continued for the next minute, until all the lights were gone. He has no explanation as to the source of the lights, but is very familiar with flares and other air-ordnance which could cause illumination, and stated "These lights were under controlled guidance." Witness 3 was driving N on Hwy 87 after turning from it's intersection w/Hwy 98. He witnessed "several bright lights" through the trees off to the western sky. He at first thought they were stars or planets, but as he got more glimpses through the trees, he said he realized they were "way too bright" to be either stars or planets. He then also assumed they were a formation of helos doing night ops, and didn't pay much more attention until he turned W-bound off Hwy 87 onto East Bay Rd just south of Holley. That was when he saw the lights better and re-evaluated them as "unknown." He only saw them for a minute or less after turning onto East Bay Rd before each light "took off like a bat outta hell" and the lights winked off, one by one. He said he believes there were four or five lights in all.
None of the above three Air Force flyers reported seeing other aircraft in the sky during their incidents, and all three reported the times at somewhere between 18:30 and 18:50, lasting from 5-10 mins in duration.
((END ADDENDUM #2))
Five bright amber lights form a "W" formation and hover 5 mins over NW FL sky 1840L Mon 7 Nov '05.
My sons came running into the house talking about lights in the sky, so I went out and ran over to an E-W street w/them for a unobstructed view.
What we all (a couple neighbors also came out and witnessed them) were five bright lights (amber-colored) which were holding steady in the shape of a giant "W" up in the night sky.
The formation was approx 25 degrees abv horizon, sky was clear and dark (1.5 hrs after sunset.)
The lights held position, evenly-spaced, for approx 5 mins, during which time I ran back inside my house to get the video camera, but battery was dead!
At one point, watched a small, civilian plane approach the formation, then turn away and circle a couple times before departing. From our perspective, believe the plane was closer to us than the bright lights.
When "W" formation broke apart, they did so one by one, starting w/furthest N or right side, turn away, then vanish after a couple seconds, then next one, and so on. Next day, I spoke w/military contacts who researched and told me no milair was up over the Eglin reservation in NW Florida at time of sighting.
Am a retired USAF Special Ops aviator w/nearly 5,000 hrs of flight time in a wide range of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, and I can't explain what we watched that night.
Also, learned several active duty AF people witnessed the lights that night and couldn't explain them, either. As a former journalist and military aviator, I consider myself pretty level-headed and thorough.
((ADDENDUM #1 OF 2 TO ORIGINAL REPORT))
Formation of five bright amber lights held a hover in "W" formation over NW FL Mon 7 Nov 1840L
(Addendum to earlier report) Witnessed a formation of very bright, amber-colored lights holding a "W" formation and hovering at steady altitude approx 15 miles distance, directly west of our location, angle of elevation approx 25 degrees from horizon. I am a retired AF Special Ops aviator w/nearly 5,000 hours in a multitude of both fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. I've seen flares, SAM and air-to-air missile launches. These lights were none of the above. They held formation for approx 5 mins, then one by one, broke formation and disappeared w/in a few seconds of each other. There were no milair in the area (Eglin Military Reservation) at the time of sighting (I checked w/base) but one small civilian plane did fly into the area during time of sighting. It flew N to S, crossing in front of formation, then circled a 180 back N until it was clear of our view, then did a 360 before departing back to N. We all felt the small plane was closer to us than the bright lights, since we could see it's red and green wing beacons and white anti-collision strobe. The bright lights were evenly spaced and held perfectly still in the "W" formation for the five minutes I saw them.
((END ADDENDUM #1))
((ADDENDUM #2 OF 2 TO ORIGINAL REPORT))
Multiple AD USAF witnesses report formation of bright lights hovering over rural Santa Rosa County FL
Addendum 2 to earlier report - This is a compilation of three additional witness accounts who are active duty Air Force flyers who did not want to be identified.
Witness 1 was driving W-bound on Hwy 98 near Navarre when he observed a formation of 5 bright white lights in the dark WNW sky. He continued to watch the formation of lights in an attempt to identify what type of aircraft they were. As he continued driving W, he realized the formation (described as sort of a diamond shape) wasn't moving, but just hung in the sky at approx 35-40 degrees elevation. Since he was driving, he couldn't remain visually fixed on the formation, and after approx 10 mins of glancing while driving, he glanced back and realized the lights were no longer there. He did not see them depart, but claims he had only looked away from the formation to the road a matter of a few seconds.
Witness 2 was also driving W-bound on Hwy 98 near Navarre and observed a similar formation of lights. He at first assumed they were AFSOC helos on a night training mission, but after several minutes of driving realized his helos were still there, in the same angular, diamond-like formation, and the lights continued to hold position, hovering at what appeared to be very high altitude. He said as he continued his drive W he doubted his helicopter formation theory more and more, especially when the formation broke apart. He described the formation break as a one-by-one realignment into almost a straight line, with some decending and some ascending, then the light on the far end of the formation suddenly veered away from the others and vanished. This pattern of breakaway continued for the next minute, until all the lights were gone. He has no explanation as to the source of the lights, but is very familiar with flares and other air-ordnance which could cause illumination, and stated "These lights were under controlled guidance." Witness 3 was driving N on Hwy 87 after turning from it's intersection w/Hwy 98. He witnessed "several bright lights" through the trees off to the western sky. He at first thought they were stars or planets, but as he got more glimpses through the trees, he said he realized they were "way too bright" to be either stars or planets. He then also assumed they were a formation of helos doing night ops, and didn't pay much more attention until he turned W-bound off Hwy 87 onto East Bay Rd just south of Holley. That was when he saw the lights better and re-evaluated them as "unknown." He only saw them for a minute or less after turning onto East Bay Rd before each light "took off like a bat outta hell" and the lights winked off, one by one. He said he believes there were four or five lights in all.
None of the above three Air Force flyers reported seeing other aircraft in the sky during their incidents, and all three reported the times at somewhere between 18:30 and 18:50, lasting from 5-10 mins in duration.
((END ADDENDUM #2))
No
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Fort Walton Beach
USA
10 mins
10 mins
30.44
-86.63
light
FL
Occurred : 11/7/2005 18:40 (Entered as : 11/07/05 18:40) Reported: 11/9/2005 10:48:06 AM 10:48 Posted: 12/16/2005 Location: Fort Walton Beach, FL Shape: Light Duration: 10 mins Characteristics: There were aircraft in the vicinity or aircraft chasing the object
Five bright amber lights form a "W" formation and hover 5 mins over NW FL sky 1840L Mon 7 Nov '05.