Florida Sighting
Thank you for the consideration and attention. By way of background, I am 65, and a retired USAF Lt Col (25 years), with considerable training and experience in the law enforcement and security career field. I do have a long term interest in the UFO phenomenon, but do not consider myself as any kind of expert in observance of aerial phenomena.
My experience in this regard is limited to one sighting while visiting my son in Navarre, Florida, two years ago. I was aware that UFO activity in that area is more active than most, and I suspect at least some of it is military-related, as Pensacola Naval Air Station lies just to the west, and the Eglin/ Hurlburt AFB complex just a few miles to the east.
It was because of my interest and desire to see a UFO that I decided to watch the sky over the Sound. I was standing on the third floor balcony outside of our room, which faced south out on the Sound, at approximately 10:30 PM on a Saturday night, in October as nearly as I remember.
The sky was partly cloudy, with a clear opening overhead, and stars were clearly visible. It was quiet, with just a very light breeze blowing at the time. I was looking out over the Sound, when my attention was drawn to movement up in the sky to my left (east.)
I looked and saw a triangular shape, highlighted by three white corner lights, zipping rapidly across the sky. I noted it at approximately 30 degrees above the horizon just in front of some scattered light clouds, and it continued rapidly across the sky overhead at approximately 75 degrees to the west, and disappeared behind more clouds at about 30 degrees off the western horizon.
The object was solid, very dark black (darker than the sky) and silent, and remained in view for just a few seconds. The object was approximately the size of a quarter at arm's length. (I made this determination immediately after the sighting, using a quarter in my pocket.)
It was difficult to estimate altitude due to the brief period of observation and lack of comparative background, although the cumulus clouds were likely at around 5,000 feet, and it appeared the object was just above them.
Ohio Sightings
I have since watched for similar sightings on other visits, but have never seen anything else of interest. One other occurrence of note, my father, approximately 20 years ago, was in his back yard in Portage Lakes, Ohio, a suburb just a few miles south of Akron, as he walked his dog.
The yard had some full-grown trees, but also a fair amount of open-view sky overhead. It was a warm summer evening, about 10:00 PM at night. He suddenly sensed something overhead and looked up to see a large circular (he thinks, it was so large he couldn't really tell) craft drift silently overhead from the southeast to the northwest. He noted that it was solid, and blocked out the view of the stars while passing slowly overhead.
He estimated its altitude was no more than a few hundred feet. The craft was dark / black, but he noted a series of large rectangular windows emitting yellow light in the upper part of the craft. He could not recall any other details about the craft, except that it was huge, at least two hundred feet in diameter, and he noted a definite low frequency hum emitting from it, which reminded him of the sound of turbines like those at Hoover Dam.
While had did hold an interest in UFOs, this was his first experience in witnessing one. It jolted him and made a significant impression on him. He immediately called both the Akron Airport and Akron-Canton Airports to inquire whether there were any dirigibles in flight at that time, or other large craft, including helicopters, etc. He was advised there were no craft in his area.
The following day, the Akron beacon Journal reported that a few hundred calls had been received by the Akron Police Department about the craft. No other reports were ever given explaining the observed phenomenon. My dad's father also had an experience with a UFO. He lived in a small home in central southern Akron.
One Spring morning around 6:00 AM approximately 30 years ago (or more), he was preparing morning coffee in the kitchen - he was an early riser by habit, even though already retired. He noted a bright glint through the kitchen window facing out to his backyard, which caused him to go to the window for a better look.
He observed a highly reflective metallic globe, perfectly round and about the size of a basketball, flitting from flower to flower and bush, where it would hover briefly, and then move on. This continued for a minute or two, after which it flew to the neighbor's yard and continued to do the same thing.
It was silent, and reminded him of decorative glass balls with a mirror finish that people placed on crockery pedestals as yard decorations, but its movements were more like a humming bird or insect going from plant to plant. He was a private man by lifestyle, but he did ask his neighbors about the experience. Unfortunately, no one else had been up that early at the time, or had seen anything like what he saw.
West Virginia Sightings
Finally, just a brief comment my mother made to us many years ago, regarding apparent UFO sightings that occurred on occasion in West Virginia, where she lived during her early childhood. Such sightings supposedly took place periodically, and were more or less accepted by local residents a the time, who had no idea what they were seeing, and simply accepted the fact that such things did happen.
These sightings were noted by her grandfather, among others, who noted that they had been occurring for years, and dated back to well before the advent of manned flight.
Frank Winkler
