The truth is out there: Roswell incident recalled by local vet who was there 60 years ago

By: GARY WARTH - Staff Writer | Saturday, September 29, 2007 8:41 PM PDT ∞

Milton Sprouse shows one of his collection of model planes in his Escondido home. Sprouse was stationed at Roswell, N.M., in 1947.
WALDO NILO Staff Photographer
Order a copy of this photo
Visit our Photo Gallery

Something happened in Roswell, New Mexico, 60 years ago this summer.

In June or early July 1947, a farmer found strange debris while working on a ranch about 70 miles north of Roswell. He put some of it in a box and drove to the local sheriff. Neither man knew what to make of it, so the sheriff called Roswell Army Air Field, which sent two men to investigate.

On July 9, 1947, the Roswell Daily Record, a newspaper, printed a story with the alarming headline: "RAAF Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch in Roswell Region."

Other than those facts, there appear to be few things people agree on regarding what has become known as "the Roswell incident."

Six decades later, competing UFO enthusiasts promote their own theories, skeptics dismiss the spaceship claims as outrageous, and the military, which originally claimed all the fuss was over a weather balloon, now sticks to its story that it was an experimental spy craft.

Escondido resident Milton Sprouse, 85, said he knows what happened in Roswell ---- not because he favors one theory over another, but because he was there.

As for the outrageous stories of mysterious metal, alien corpses and a military coverup?

It's all true, he said.

From atom bombs to flying saucers

Before arriving at Roswell Army Air Field in 1945 as a corporal and engine mechanic, Sprouse already had participated in an undisputable historic event.

As a member of the 393rd Bomb Squadron assigned to the 509th Composite Group, Sprouse worked on the ground crew of Big Stink, one of the B-29 bombers stationed on the Pacific island of Tinian, where the two atomic bomb missions on Japan were launched to end World War II.

After the war, the 509th Composite Group was reassigned to Roswell, where they were renamed the 509th Bomb Wing. Sprouse continued to lead the ground crew of Big Stink, which had been renamed Dave's Dream after the pilot.

"There was nothing there but tumbleweeds blowing for miles," he said about arriving at Roswell in November 1945.

Sprouse first learned that something odd was going on at Roswell after returning from a three-day trip to Florida aboard Dave's Dream.

"I was there the day they announced a UFO had crashed," he said. "The next day, it was published in the Roswell Daily Record, and that night, all the generals said the story was untrue."

Farmer William "Mac" Brazel had found debris on the J.B. Foster Ranch, where he was a foreman, sometime in June or early July. Brazel took some of the material, which reportedly included sticks, rubber strips, metallic foil and sturdy paper, to Sheriff George Wilcox, who called the air base.

Intelligence Officer Jesse Marcel was sent to the sheriff's station. Marcel reported what he saw to Air Force commanding officer Col. William Blanchard, who told him to go with Brazel to the ranch and examine the crash site.

After spending the night at the ranch, Marcel and another officer loaded their vehicles with debris, some of which reportedly was marked with mysterious symbols, and drove back to the base. Blanchard then ordered a press release stating that the base had captured a flying saucer.

The original story ran in the local paper July 8. That same day, the debris was loaded onto a B-29 and sent with Marcel to an Air Force base in Texas. Marcel was photographed with what was said to be the debris, and the military issued a statement saying that it was in fact a weather balloon.

Search for the truth

Meanwhile, Sprouse said, all copies of the Roswell newspaper were collected by officers, and hundreds of men from the 509th were taken to the crash site and told to walk shoulder-to-shoulder through the field, looking for debris pieces.

Sprouse himself did not go because he was told he was needed for Dave's Dream, but five men from his ground crew went to the ranch.

"They said it was out of this world," Sprouse said about what the crew reported finding. Among the objects it reported seeing was a metallic foil that, when crumpled, unfolded without a crease.

But what was the debris? Was it really something from another world, or just the product of overactive imaginations fueled by the monotony of a desolate 1950s desert town?

One thing that is agreed upon now: It was not from a weather balloon.

In 1995, after years of questions about the incident, the U.S. Air Force admitted the weather-balloon story was fabricated to cover up a top-secret project called Project Mogul designed to detect atomic activity over the Soviet Union with high-altitude balloons.

Some of the launches in the project contained more than two dozen neoprene balloons strung across more than 600 feet.

Charles Moore, a Project Mogul scientist interviewed in the Air Force report, has spoken in public about the project and described striking similarities to what was found at the ranch outside of Roswell and the Project Mogul material, which used sticks, metallic paper and strangely marked tape.

The strange markings that had seemed like cosmic hieroglyphics may have had a much more mundane explanation: Moore said the project used tape made at a toy factory.

The balloons were launched in June and July 1947 from Alamogordo Army Air Field in New Mexico. One flight was launched June 4 and tracked to Arabela, N.M., about 17 miles from the Foster ranch, before its batteries ran down and contact was lost.

More questions

But if the debris did come from a Project Mogul craft, how could a string of balloons create the types of gouges on the ground some witnesses have reported?

Then again, maybe there were no gouges; skeptics of the UFO theory have noted that some witnesses changed their stories about what they saw on the crash site.

The Project Mogul explanation also does not address why some people reported seeing alien bodies at the site. Those were explained in another report in 1997 that concluded the bodies actually were anthropomorphic dummies used to test high-altitude parachutes.

UFO believers found the explanation a little too convenient. There also was a timing problem, as the parachute tests were not conducted until the 1950s. The timing discrepancy has been explained as the result of people who over the years confused the two incidents and compressed memories of them into one event.

Sprouse, however, said he recalls people speaking about "alien bodies" immediately after the debris discovery.

"They took the bodies to a hangar, and there were two guards at each door with machine guns," he said.

Sprouse said one witness, a barracksmate, was an emergency-room medic who reported seeing what he called "humanoid" bodies in the hospital.

"They went to the ER room and two doctors and two nurses were called in, and they dissected two of those humanoid bodies," he said. "Then the doctors and nurses were transferred.

"My friend said he saw the bodies, and I believed him," Sprouse said. "He said, 'We don't think the humanoid ate food.' I don't know why he said that. The digestive system wasn't designed for food or something."

Like the other doctors and nurses, Sprouse said, his friend suddenly was transferred, and he never heard from him again. Others on the base, however, kept the story alive.

"I heard it so many times, it had to be true," he said.

Sprouse said he knew Marcel, but he never spoke to him after the incident.

"From that day on, I could never get close to him," he said.

The story lives on

After the story about the UFO crash was retracted, the rest of the world largely forgot about Roswell and accepted that what had been discovered was just a misidentified weather balloon.

The men stationed at the base, however, did not easily forget.

"They were still talking about it when I left, and I left in '56," Sprouse said.

In 1978, Marcel was interviewed by a researcher and appeared in a documentary, "UFOs Are Real," the following year. The National Enquirer interviewed Marcel in 1980 for an article in which he said the woodlike debris could not be burned and the thin metal could not be bent. "The Roswell Incident" was released in 1980 as the first of a string of books on the subject.

As interest grew in the Roswell UFO incident, so did the number of detractors. Some have questioned Marcel's credibility, saying he got caught up in UFO hysteria and was known to exaggerate his own military past.

Jesse Marcel, Jr. published his own book this year, "The Roswell Legacy," defending his father, who died in 1986.

Sprouse has not kept up with all the books and documentaries on Roswell and did not go to Roswell in July for the 60th anniversary of the discovery.

He does, however, attend annual reunions with the 509th, which attracts 25 to 30 veterans.

"The Roswell incident comes up every year, but there's nothing really new," he said.

Sprouse also speaks about his experience at Tinian to about five high schools a year, and he often is invited to speak to other groups. He usually ends his talk with his memories of Roswell, often to the surprise of his audience.

At a talk in Tucson, Ariz., earlier this year, Sprouse said a man came up to him afterwards and said, "I don't believe a damn thing you said."

"I told him, 'You can believe what you want, but I know it's true,'" Sprouse said.

Contact staff writer Gary Warth at (760) 740-5410 or gwarth@nctimes.com.

66 comment(s)[-]Go to Top

Joe wrote on Sep 30, 2007 11:30 AM:Dear Mr. Warth, Charles Moore balloon trajectory was so fraudulent it was unbelievable.. We have the proof: The major deceptions are in three categories: 1) Moore's actual table balloon rise/fall rates seriously conflict with half of his given ones (thus crazy numbers like 100/12.1 = 350 or 852/2.8 = 100) 2) Moore claimed he was assuming the balloon had perfectly functioning equipment, but instead he secretly treated it as faulty. In setting up his calculation table, he gave it drastically shortened rise and fall times to drastically shorten the trajectory and prevent serious overshoot of the crash site. 3) Moore claimed to be calculating his final trajectory using one method (that was correct), but used another instead that was mathematically incorrect, again to shorten the trajectory. Q: Well surely Prof. Moore has refuted your charges as baseless, right? A: Wrong. The only word from Moore, via debunker Dave Thomas, is that Moore "didn't want to get into the math." If our charges had no merit, math would be the first thing Moore would argue. The fact that he won't argue the math is a really an admission that he CAN'T argue the math. Q: And how did the skeptics deal with this? A: Print and Thomas simply reproduced Moore's mathematically bogus calculation to get his bogus trajectory and proclaimed victory, under the bizarre notion that reproducing a faulty math technique magically makes it correct I enjoy your balanced approach but the truth is it was not a MOGUL As of now 600 hundred witnesses have come forward not one mentions a balloon but what do they know - they were only there. Some have changed there story but the vast majority have not. Joseph C.

Ron wrote on Sep 30, 2007 4:54 PM:Ufos are real. It is just a matter of time before the truth comes out

Art B. wrote on Sep 30, 2007 9:42 PM:I have read the book by Jesse Marcel Jr.It is most informative in ways I didn't expect.I have been skeptical in recent years about Roswell.Now I give the story more thought.

Redoubt wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:26 AM:The whole thing about UFOs is suspended, just hanging out there in mid-air between believability and lunacy. The probability is that this spot is where it has been deliberately sent and held by decades of government misinformation. At this point in time, most folks are more willing to believe the random rumor over their own government? which is the only logical thing thinking humans can do anymore. The US Government has zero credibility in any forum and on any subject. If they said that the sky was blue and stop signs were red, we?d have to go look before believing it. As far as Roswell, personally? I am inclined to think that the government is lying? even if there was no ship or aliens, they are compelled to lie about ?something, anything? just to fulfill their purpose. That?s a sad, tragic truth in a democracy.- ?

Peter wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:43 AM:Why does it have to be conspiracy? Why can't it be fear? Fear keeps people from doing things all the time, and probably kept those who witnessed this event quiet or even prone to lying--as fear does.-

Brian wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:49 AM:What is interesting is that Mr. Warth can't resist using the word "outrageous" when he refers to the claim by Sprouse that the wreckage was from a crashed alien craft. What is truly outrageous is that in spite of the testimony of over 600 witnesses, the press still are fearful of acknowledging that perhaps these men and women are telling the truth. Many witnesses are coming forward only now, after 60 years of keeping things quiet out of fear, intimidation, and ridicule. And the witnesses keep saying the same thing: there was wreckage and bodies from an extraterrestrial craft. How long will it take before the press/media finally take these claims seriously, and DO something about it?-

Wade M. wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:57 AM:Perhaps the alien craft hit the balloon and then crashed? The balloon was very large and enough stuff tied on to it to tangle up something enough to do the job that's for sure. That would give the reason for two crash sites, one was the balloon that they crashed into and the second was the craft itself? Just an idea.-

Shag wrote on Oct 1, 2007 6:09 AM:There is without a doubt something going on in the skys above us very for quite sometime.Yes,I think they got one. I was an Airpoliceman for 4yrs and know how base scuttlebut goes,this sounds about right.-

Steve wrote on Oct 1, 2007 7:53 AM:What is even more amazing than the Roswell story, is that after that 1947 incident, communications relations were reportedly established with these "visitors" in the '50s. Then, in the '60s, an "exchange program" was developed, including training a special military team to go on board a craft of the visitors, as in the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Is it true? Who knows? More on this in the article ... "Alleged 'Project SERPO' sent U.S. military team to another planet?"-

Arfy wrote on Oct 1, 2007 8:44 AM:Here's what bothers me about Sprouse's beliefs, and he said this himself: "I heard it so many times, it had to be true," he said." He wasn't actually there, if you read his account closely. So what is this then but more hearsay with a belief ("I heard it so many times, it had to be true," he said.). This is not credible, this is horsehockey. Did something really happen at Roswell? Perhaps it did - I cannot say it did not. But does this story add any credibility - heck no, it actually detracts from any credibility.-

John F wrote on Oct 1, 2007 8:59 AM:The veterans who saw such things will all die afore long. The government is patient in such matters. The government will also not tell us the truth...

mike wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:46 AM:Isn't funny that the cia was created around that time and so was the state of Isreal. If you were like me and have read countless of articles, not just about Roswell, but of ufos and conspiracies and secret societies to name a few.....they're all related and interconnected somehow. From the market to drugs to everything. It's like all the information is like pieces of a grand puzzle.-

Dave B. wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:46 AM:The story won't die, it must be true. The point I want to make however, is not that this happened as there is much documented evidence already about so called "UFO's", but the question is now, why are they here and where do they come from. I have had at least 6 UFO encounters, two of which were very close ones. I believe.-

Grace wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:52 AM:Roswell happend. Many other ships taken down also. Many species have been here before we were genetically created by the Anunnaki. WE are the grand experiment even though we started out as slaves. ENKI gave us the extra DNA to ascend. How do I know! EH Nak Sha Nah She Nah!! Figure what language that is and you will know! Sah Lah! ps. First contact is already here but will become public very soon to help mother earth and those of good heart and truth to ascend. Get ready!-

Rudy G. wrote on Oct 1, 2007 10:58 AM:Aliens are in fact among us. Look at Hillary. nuff said!

Rock wrote on Oct 1, 2007 11:01 AM:The government is powerful. It can and will keep a secret. It is proven that the government has lied to cover up things in the past. Why keep it a secret? Alien technology = military advantage. There's no doubt in my mind that UFOs from 1947 and on are related to atomic bombs. Who Knows? Maybe we ripped a hole in space-time from all the atomoic testing and let these UFOs in. Or maybe the UFOs try to disable atomic weapons.-

Kennedy wrote on Oct 1, 2007 11:34 AM:Perhaps the truth of the 1947 Roswell incident will never be known in my lifetime. It's too bad that Sheriff George Wilcox called in the military airbase/government so quickly instead of calling in someone, non-military, who could have investigated and documented the alleged crash and humanoids on film. What a story that would have been! Where's CSI (Crash Scene Investigators)when you need them? The truth is still out there!

Robert wrote on Oct 1, 2007 11:49 AM:The Roswell UFO is bullcrap.If dead aliens or flying saucers were on the ground today outside a US city, don't you think the US military and forces around the world would go on high alert.That would have happened in 1947, fighter aircraft,anti-aircraft would have been moved into major population areas.Hundreds of thousands of people would have known of the high alert and used deductive reasoning to tie it to the Roswell newspaper story.The cold war with Russia would never have happened because we would jointly be in a state of readiness up to today.-

Math Matician wrote on Oct 1, 2007 12:57 PM:i'm not sure what to believe now but one thing for sure is that two plus two equals FOUR!!!

Tim wrote on Oct 1, 2007 3:05 PM:As far as Roswell goes, who really can tell? But I can tell you that my brother is retired from NASA. I asked him what he thinks about UFO's and aliens. He said that he can't tell me what he knows but he has very good reason to believe that they exist all over the world. That's good enough for me.

TexasSteel wrote on Oct 1, 2007 3:39 PM:Ol' Robert is one of those guys who feels he will be considered an elite and/or superior type person if he debunks a UFO story. He thinks the rest of us must be stupid to believe that aliens have been to see us here on earth. If you spend a little time to research the story - you will realize it happened and our government covered it up and is still doing so.

Brooks wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:24 PM:My family had a house boat on Lake Conchas New Mexico. We had it till 1969. I remember VERY well the saucers following us down the lake. Seeing them flying the rim of the lake canyon. I was very young. But the pictures in my mind still very clear.

Matt wrote on Oct 1, 2007 4:25 PM:How is it that the indestructable metal was found in pieces - if the craft was made of it, then it should not be in pieces

ren wrote on Oct 1, 2007 5:56 PM:The Roswell incident is being covered up because of religion. Religion is big business in this world and the benefactors of this false world would be crushed if and when the truth is unveiled.

ellis l. wrote on Oct 1, 2007 6:24 PM:My parents were on their way to a convention of Jehovah's Witnesses in Albuquerque in the mid 1950's with another lady and they were buzzed by a UFO and they then stopped and pulled off the road and watched it for about thirty minutes they think and then it left and they continued to Albuquerque and when they got to the motel they got out of the car and asked each other if they saw what each had seen and then promised to never speak about it again and it only came out when the showing of Close Encounters of the third kind came out on tv in the mid eighties and my mom jumped up and began exclaiming she remembered it exactly as the mother ship looked and sounded but some how forgot about it all these years. My dad then reluctantly confirmed this and later said it must have been a government experiment. My two little sisters remember distincly seeing alien faces starring at them through the windows occassionaly growing up and were certain of what they saw. Two of my older brothers related vague memories of being abducted and taken aboard a ship for examinations. Now this i would never believe from anybody else except this came from a deeply religous family who had these memories repressed for years and only remembered them after the movie came out. My opinion on this is that there are good and evil forces that are invisible and they have to belong to one side or the other. If they are good then they have the prime directive to not interfere. If they are evil then they are building ships to get here or jump dimensions to where they were put after the flood of Noahs day and banished to tartarus. Either way, they are here and only people with insight can see or believe when the veil is removed. I run a oil refinery on a computer board and have enourmous responsiblities so im not some nut job and my family members are some of the most sane people out there.

Lawrence wrote on Oct 1, 2007 7:34 PM:I've heard all of these stories Since I was five (65 now) and to all of the Debunkers& Nasayers who rant and rave saying prove it I say this Prove It Didn't Happen....put up or Shut Up

Charlie wrote on Oct 1, 2007 7:53 PM:If the soldiers were "shoulder to shoulder" and there were hundreds of them, why have we never heard a single word from any of them?

Terry wrote on Oct 1, 2007 8:04 PM:Concerning alien visitation: Is it not possible that even JUST ONE of the Roswell witnesses was telling the truth? Is it not possible that that even JUST ONE of the thousands and thousands of people over the years witnessed an alien event? I go with the overwhelming odds. Someone HAS had a real experience with aliens. And just because our puny little brains can not grasp the concept of tranversing space and time are we to proclaim another species can not? The fact is we are a class 0 civilization. Maybe in a few hundred years we will evolve into a class 1 civilzation. Who can say what class 2 or 3 technology civilizations are capable of... harnessing the power of solar systems and even galaxies. Read up on some concepts by such experts as Dr. Michio Kaku and open your mind. We are surley not alone.

steven wrote on Oct 1, 2007 8:36 PM:The et-alien thing has certainly been around way back as noted on pyramid walls and old religous paintings but I do ponder the space invaders arcade game and the not so friendly mode they appear to operate in.Certainly, if various alien bases are hidden all around on land and underwater then getting around certainly no prob.A mothership vehicle for the farther away transports makes sense per that. I have no prob pondering that an event happened around roswell area and even others like it as well.They say greys are like workers headed up by higher ups apparently.Doubtful it was a case of "clumsy aliens" but a rare event of sorts brought it down to ground level. I have been to escondido in the past being a former so. calif. myself and am now not far from mcminnville ufo festival towne and the known farmer trent ufo sighting-photo.Yes, it's also home of the spruce goose plane !-

Lisa Long wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:08 PM:If you want to know the truth about UFOs.. etc.. ...................... Read "The Day After Roswell" ... it is FULL disclosure on Roswell, etc... 10 years AGO.. by Col. Philip J. Corso Mind Blowing.. every page.. and you can get it on Amazon..-

Von wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:10 PM:Roswell? The world operates on fear, greed, and LIES! That includes the U.S. Government. As a retired 70 yr. old professional commercial pilot, I have seen at close range four UFOs in my life time. Three daytime, one of which was while airborne, and one at night. These were as solid appearing craft as any airplane. I don't care whether anyone believes it or not. That doesn't alter the truth!-

Hugh wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:14 PM:For many it is very difficult indeed to truly believe that such things have happened. Until you see one yourself, that is. Even these days we have sporadic sightings in broad daylight in the San Diego / Tijuana area but none are ever acknowledged or reported by the local media. Globe shaped metallic objects approximately 20 feet in diameter, sometimes in groups of three very close together and performing strange maneuvers at an altitude of several hundred to a thousand feet. When aircraft approach they quickly disappear from sight. Have any of you in other parts of the country seen similar objects?-

DG wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:46 PM:I think the little grey antichrist aliens are all evil. Damn those bastards. I say we start probing them!-

Jsmith wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:54 PM:Just take all the remaining people who worked at that base and were at the site and all the witnesses and give them polygraphs the truth will come out. Interesting that none of the debunkers who were at the site have offered to take one huh?-

Paul wrote on Oct 1, 2007 11:01 PM: Given all the events that have happened in the past, often verified by seemingly normal people, you'd have to be goofy not to believe alien entities(from time or space)have visited us./

David wrote on Oct 1, 2007 11:25 PM:The truth will soon be out if the new world thinkers in government power groups can get the information out from the tightly sealed vaults of the FBI,CIA,NASA and the Air Force. The secrets are being kept from everyone as the government fear tatctics they are always giving out will be upstaged and have no control of our mindsets. Most people would not fear this knowledge but they might have some questions about the religious beliefs they have. The big church organizations would have a hard time getting their flocks to listen to the teachings of the bible. However We all have to think that we are just another species that is one of many that have lived on this planet over the past 100,000 years. Soon we will know the truth and I will not be acting any different now then I did back in 1965.-

Eliyah wrote on Oct 2, 2007 12:03 AM:Here 'tis, No one will ever convince others if UFO's are real or not. Okay, so understand. Earth is the battlefield between good and evil. Angels walk among us while aliens attempt to trick us into mocking Almighty God and UFO's are one of the ways they do this. These times are like the days of Noah. Investigate for yourself and see things as they really are. Time will soon reveal terrible events that will make men's hearts stop because of fear. Fear of things that are coming upon the earth. We must prepare the world for the end of this age. Don't be fooled by naysayers who know nothing. The planet of 2012 will not be as it is now. The sky will bring changes and people will not find escape. Nothing is as dangerous and important as this. Demons will rain down and mankind will fall prey to their terror, destruction and foolishness. The present wars on earth are nothing compared to what awaits us. Be ready. Yashua is waiting to take us out. Prepare your family and watch the stars begining in 2009. Yashua is our only hope. Do as he says.-

John wrote on Oct 2, 2007 1:47 AM:In the Roswell region there are gold bearing ores, that are said to be mined to this day. Could there be a connection between the presence of this gold in the ground and the reason why a supposed extraterrestrial craft had crashed? There is also a section of roadway from Kingman going towards Nevada that it is forbidden even to stop your vehicle and step outside.-

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:05 AM:Roswell alone could be written off. But there were many other claims of sightings at that time in different parts of the world. Google "UFO" finds over 16 million hits. 2 million Google hits result from UFO England. One of the most convincing that I have read about is Kendlesham Forest in England, Dec 27, 1980. The site of ground activity was near two Air Force Bases, one British and one American. Every one at all interested should read about this event. -

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:12 AM:My UFO Story #1, chronologically 1. In 1945 I was working for a small newspaper. The phototographer showed me a photo he made for the paper of a flying saucer over Alhambra CA. He was proud to have the photo. He told me it was a fake composite he had made in the photo dark room. It looked very real. The editor decided to not print the story and photo.-

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:20 AM:My own UFO story #2. In 1948, still a teenager. There were lots of UFO stories in the news. I was outside in my yard and looked at the night sky. I thought I saw in the distance a group of lights moving in formation. I stood very still was decided they really were moving. I was just about to run around to all the neighbors yelling to come see UFOs. Then I checked by sighting on some stars and found they were moving th esame way as the I was relieved they were not UFOs and relieved I had not called out the neighbors. -

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:30 AM:MY own UFO story #3, 1949. I went for a hike in the Mountains above Los Angeles one night. It was moonlight enough to see on the dirt firebreak road we were hicking on. We rounded a bend, and right there it looked like a UFO. I froze, my heart pounding,almost trying to leap out of my chest. My mounth went dry. I fully expected to see little men come out of it and take us inside. However nothing happened and our eyes got more used to the scene. We realized it was a round concrete storage tank for water with a large saucer shaped thing on top with a larger diameter for catching the water, which had been built since the last time we had been there. Nevertheless I feel like I have experienced what it would feel like to actually see one from a hundred feet away.-

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:41 AM:In 1952 I worked at one of those military bases out in the desert where you had to have a secret clearance. There were no flying saucers in my building. I am pretty sure there were none on that base. There were other interesting projects pushing the known technology at that time. One of the other young engineers told me while he was in Engineering school he and some of his friends made a flying saucer shaped device out or wood framing and covered with canvess. They set it up in the night a few hundred feet off of a rural highway with a lawnmower engine inside so the exhaust would make the device pulsate. They started it up at dawn as a prank to see how much local excitement they could generate. Eventually Sheriff deputies approached it carefully.-

Believer wrote on Oct 2, 2007 2:50 AM:To illustrate the lengths to which the government/military will go to cover up such things, read the book, "Psychic Warrior." Then ask yourself if the Roswell story could be true.-

Charles wrote on Oct 2, 2007 6:11 AM:Aho Kola! Grace Be fearful of the Government that fears it's own citizens.-

Stevie Gee wrote on Oct 2, 2007 10:05 AM:As yet, not one of the investigators have produced any evidence of a UFO crash/bodies that would stand up in a court of law. The Roswell Crash was A Mogul balloon train. The report of gouges in the ground did not appear until years later and where not made by the original witnesses including Major Marcel and Mac Brazel To paraphrase Karl Pfolk: The will to believe results in inconvient facts being ignored.-

Course aliens wrote on Oct 2, 2007 1:00 PM:and not only illegal aliens live among us, look at Jorge, one term he is quite normal, 2nd term completly different man, it isn't jorge I tell you but an alien!

Now you know wrote on Oct 2, 2007 1:41 PM:why you are not to drink and fly a flying saucer! Some aliens have to learn the hard way!

Brian wrote on Oct 3, 2007 4:18 AM:In response to "Charlie", you may want to read the book "Witness to Roswell" (Carey & Schmitt). While many servicemen involved in the cleanup have long since died (the crash happened 60 years ago...), many are only now coming forward with their stories. All the witnesses tell the same stories of being threatened with dismissal, loss of pensions, and much worse, if they were to reveal what happened. Certainly the whole Roswell story has become convoluted over the years, with myth and conjecture mixed in with the facts, but in the end the sheer weight of witness testimony is overwhelmingly in favour of the ET hypothesis.-

Al wrote on Oct 3, 2007 1:27 PM:The rest of us do not need the stories, biases, opinions about this subject seemingly based on what Humans would report. We need real facts and proof and the only way it seems to obtain this real proof is to give what our tools only allow and that is "Lie Detector Tests". The rest may just be some mass delusional tendency based on Human Concerns due to the state of this Planet and not based on any other Advanced Civilization assumed to Exist in this Universe.

Pappy wrote on Oct 3, 2007 3:56 PM:It's kind of odd that most of these wacky alien existence supporters use "vapor-evidence" to try and prove their cases, yet these same people debunk those who provide similar evidence of God's existence.

TO AL wrote on Oct 5, 2007 4:28 AM:Your comment on Oct 3 at 1:27 PM qbout lie detector tests of people who claim real experiences with UFOs has already been done I think. It could weed out some accounts probably. But all the people who really believe they encountered UFO's or were taken inside and examimed would pass a lie detector test because they believe they are telling the truth.-

Observer_1 wrote on Oct 5, 2007 4:48 AM:Back in the 1945 to 1948 era when there were UFO stories in the news, some people made small fakes as a prank. I remember thenews accounts and th efire and police asking people to stop doing thesepranks. These were like ballons several feet in diameter with candles inside that would make them show up at night floating over town at a hundred feet or so feet, but looking like they were much further away. larger, and moving a lot faster across the sky. Some were more elaborate, built of kite material in the shape of a UFO and held up by an attached ballon with a light or candle inside. The police and fire authorities put a stop to it, because sometimes they started fires when the ballons crashed, and wasted police time with the calls from people reporting a UFO was passing the city.-

sparky wrote on Oct 6, 2007 1:23 AM:The government expects us to believe that hundreds of seasoned Army Air Corps veterans cant distinguish the difference between weather baloons and something else? PLEASE!!! We(the public) are NOT morons. Someday, hopefully, the truth will be made public

Don wrote on Oct 6, 2007 8:59 PM:To all you non UFO believers: You can't help yourself but to deny any proof of aliens & UFOs. Call it fear of the unknown, stubbornness, lack of proof (actually) lack of unbiased research. Does it matter that our satellite defense system has about 1/2 of its armament pointed towards outer space, the thousands of videos on line, the 2005 UFO scare in Washington, pictures, airline pilots, movie videos, police reports, our own astronauts, NASA videos, implants taken out of people who have made testimonies as to being abducted, the Disclosure project where high military brass & scientists have done nothing for their careers, just to tell the truth, Travis Walton case using lie detectors they all passed, all the blacked out pages of evidence in project Blue Book, the Washington post articles in the 50's "Saucers out ran our jets", paintings like the Madonna and many others, thousands of year old cave paintings of UFOs & even aliens wearing breathing equipment, our DNA has junk DNA in it ... huh? How would that happen? Did God or evolution mess up? How come we only have 46 chromosomes our 2nd & 3rd are bonded together. How did that happen? Explain the pyramids when they didn't have logs but just palm trees that wouldn't hold up to one block, the Inca stones, the Nazca Lines in Peru, yeah right, floating candles, hubcaps, swamp gas, and concrete buildings. Okay, I agree, there is fake stuff out there, but who are you kidding? Oh yeah ... you. I've been abducted, lost time, my parents couldn't even talk about it or remember ... it was erased from their memory completely. Just try living & coping with something like that in secret cause lame brains like you non-believers will scoff and say ... our government or news shows wouldn't lie, and we are the only beings in all this universe & beyond cause God said so. Yeah right. You're as backwards as the Salem witch trial idiots, only in today's times, and no amount of any evidence could ever convince you otherwise. It's probably the devil ... red cape, pitchfork, horns and a tail and most non-believers would be more likely to believe that. If ya must know ... there's more proof of UFOs & aliens than there is of any God. Got any pictures, or videos of him ... ever? Is the bible proof of God? Not when the bible says the "earth doesn't move ... but rests on pillars" ... huh ... read the whole bible not just those selected verses ... read the whole damn thing ... then tell me which is the most loony theory.

Lawrence wrote on Oct 7, 2007 5:12 PM:Given the things that I have seen and witnessed and the fact that I've spent a period of time in the military (3rd Marine Air Wing) I can definitely say that what the military calls secret is in many cases true, however, there is another version of their secrets of which is defined as lies, There are too many UFO incidents world wide and Roswell is just one of the many to continue denying, the truth is, is that they do exist.

Frank wrote on Oct 8, 2007 3:25 AM:Working with former military individuals is a blessing. Out of respect, honor, and friendship, I will never divulge the details of what I have been told. However, I do want to express my thoughts about Roswell. One poster talked of the UFO getting tangled up with Project Mogul. Project Mogul certainly played a role in the Roswell incident as evidence of the "hyroglithic" tape used by the company contracted to build Mogul was found at one site, making it clear that a Mogul unit did go down. The two independent crash sites were always a mystery, but one poster has given us an excellent explanation. Mogul would be a pilot's nightmare - a string of multiple targets flying through the air, on no directed flight path, and being randomly displaced by a storm. Put an obviously distressed Mogul unit in the same area as an aircraft, whether military, private, commercial, or alien, and the consequences are pretty clear. Now, some food for thought. Consider after WWII, the best German aero scientists were brought to the U.S. Yes, the same scientists that were testing a German delta-wing craft in the 1940's to attack the U.S. - a craft that obviously became our stealth bomber, only made public a mere 40 years later. Also, consider how advanced we are in robotics. Just look at the surgical procedures of today; even available in minor cities. Imagine how much more advanced our military is. One of the comments says the servicemen who saw the Roswell alien bodies during autopsy stated they didn't have digestive systems and didn't need to eat. Hmmm...got you thinking along the same line as me, didn't it? Although I am not a skeptic, I do need reasonable proof to base my opinion on, and my opinion is this - I fear attacks on American soil by individuals, whether they're terrorists from a foreign country such as 9/11 or American as in Oklahoma City. However, I do not fear any war on American soil as I know we have some absolutely incredible aces up our sleeve.-

Mark A wrote on Oct 8, 2007 9:03 PM:My name is Mark and I am a retired Air Force Officer. From 1979 to 1985 I had Top Secret clearances until I was assigned to an operational unit where TS clearnaces were not required. In the time I had these clearances, it was made clear to me by people of higher rank and than me that UFOs are real and the U.S. Government has known the truth since the early 1940s. So do a number of other governments, including the former USSR, China, Great Britain, Mexico,Brazil all where UFOs have crashed over the last 65 years. I also learned from a close military friend who knew more than I that the Vatican nows also. There maybe one or two other countries that know the truth. Everyone waits for the US government to speak first. It will take a crashed ufo in a major city to force the US to speak the truth. There are several reasons the US gov does not tell the truth, but the biggest 2 of all, are, one it would be presured by the rest of the world to share what it has and knows and has learned, which is alot about alein technology and the greatest fear of all, it will probably result in the Aleins coming out into the open and all of the world would change forever. I do not know if thats what we on earth really want or are prepared for.-

ellis wrote on Oct 9, 2007 10:22 PM:i forgot to mention,,,,that this incident of seeing a ufo by my parents happened between roswell and vaughn,,,in the area of the crashed ufo......makes you think,,,,what were they doing there,,,,perhaps looking for survivors???

esteban wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:07 PM:Mark A....you've seen too many Twilight Zones. You spell like a recruit who got booted out of boot camp. No one believes you. Let me tell something...THERE ARE NO ALIENS>>>ANYWHERE!!!!!!!

esteban wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:16 PM:I didn't realize there were so many whackos around here.'

esteban wrote on Oct 11, 2007 1:24 PM:Earth to people....Earth to all people...YOU ARE NUTS!!!!

Ron wrote on Oct 12, 2007 6:20 AM:It is understandable why the government would want to keep things a bout UFO's quite. They are trying to develop technologies garnered from these flying saucers to keep our country one step ahead of our enemies-

Ramblingly Very Bored wrote on Oct 12, 2007 10:27 AM:1. UFO = Unidentified Flying Object This does not mean instantly its an alien. 60 years until they finally started coming out? After how many stories have they've heard and begun to fabric themself? Roswell is a testing facility for special craft. It still is to this day. The way this whole case was handled was more like the Gov knew about it. A test plane went down. Was it an alien inside? Possibly. We know almost, almost, for a fact that the US Gov has been working with aliens for a long time now. Now ask yourself this. Why would the US Gov coverup any kind of tests? Anything the American General Public is aware of, The World is Aware of. AKA Our Enemies. How many of the stories change? Every single one of them just about, unless the person is making money off of it. You know what the most amusing thing of this is? All these "600" people whop saw the crash site. Yet, not that many were ever around. People come out of the wood work when they see a chance for press. Everyone wants their 15 mins of fame. I believe in Aliens, I am inclined to believe they are working with the Gov in some way. At least one race of them. But Roswell? It's an over hyped pile of garbage thats not even interesting. There's an underground facility which is a testing zone for god knows what. Yes the Gov doesn't want us to know. Guess what? The general public cannot handle the knowledge of some things. If its weapons? I thank the Gov for keeping it a secert. I would rather us whip out some weapons no one has ever seen before when someone finally grows the balls to invade us. As for Conchas New Mexico. The lake has long been a test zone for piolets. 99% of all reports have been explained as that. They were known for skimming the lake, they were known for purposely scaring the cattle, for flying low to the ground. Military brats playing around. This is all knowledge. Go ask around Tucumcar New Mexico, the town right there by it. Everyone in town complains about the airplanes. They are seen day and night. Until recently when the war began. Keep this is mind. If its kept secert from the general populace. Good. You don't need to know because our Enemies don't need to know. As for Aliens. They exist and they are doing something on our planet, but we'll never know for sure since the field of alien study is filled with people who either want to see everything as fact or see everything as false.-

Keef wrote on Oct 18, 2007 10:01 PM:Yes they are real, I have a portion of a doughnut shaped material that wieghs more than lead or possibly other known elements in my garage . A jagged piece about a foot long ,if it was complete it would be 5 or so feet round. when passing a magnet near it electic static sparks jump to the ground. The matiral looks like bake lite hard plastic but is heavy and strong and the magnet will not stick to it's surface. I recived it from a old man "Sandy" in the 1990s (dead now) he was a radio opperator. It is a strange piece of mateirial.

CJ wrote on Oct 27, 2007 8:06 PM:UFOs are real because UFO stands for Unidentified Flying Object, which doesn't always mean alien spacecraft like people tend to believe.

First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, email addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.

Submit Comment[-]

(optional)
   

Advertisement

Videos