MAJOR DONALD E. KEYHOE U.S. Marine Corps, Retired FLYING SAUCERS FROM OUTER SPACE Is there evidence of an actual conspiracy in Washington to suppress the facts concern- ing flying saucers? THE FLYING SAUCER CONSPIRACY Major Donald E. Keyhoe, U. S. Marine Corps, Retired In 1953, when Major Donald E. Keyhoe wrote Flying Saucers from Outer Space, he hoped that the govern- ment's information on mysterious fly- ing objects would soon be made public. Instead, by a curious reversal of policy, official secrecy was increased. How this secrecy is enforced the methods by which startling new developments are concealed is the subject of THE FLY- ING SAUCER CONSPIRACY. Since 1953, saucer reports have mul- tiplied; thousands of sightings have been confirmed by veteran pilots, radarman, and trained ground observ- ers. Government investigation has been intensified; prominent engineers and scientists have been brought in to help Air Force Intelligence evaluate the in- disputable facts. Yet the Air Force has refused to release a single official report concerning flying-saucer encounters. Major Keyhoe believes that this pol- icy of censorship is sponsored by only a few individuals: men whose motive is (continued on back flap) Jacket design by Ben Feder, Inc. (continued from front flap) to protect the public from possible hysteria. But he finds this censorship inimical to the democratic way of life: man has a chance to act wisely only if informed of all the facts. It is the policy of silence not the "silence group"which Major Keyhoe deplores. To counteract this censor- ship, he boldly provides clear informa- tion on more than one hundred recent authentic saucer sightings. These new cases, along with scores of earlier re- ports he also discusses, prove conclu- sively that there is far more to the saucer sightings than meets the eyes of the public. Major Keyhoe's reputation for accu- racy and thoroughness is unsurpassed among saucer writers. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy, a retired Marine officer and pilot, he has made an intensive investigation of un- identified flying objects. His conclu- sions that saucers are machines from outer space, far superior to any planes or missiles developed on earth are widely shared and respected. Major Keyhoe lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with his wife and eleven-year- old twin daughters. Besides THE FLY- ING SAUCER CONSPIRACY, he is the au- thor of several other books and has contributed to the Reader's Digest, Saturday Evening Post, and other na- tional magazines. Henry Holt and Company, Inc. 383 Madison Avenue, New York 17, N. Y. Praise for Major Donald E. Keyhoe ig Saucers from Outer Space "T jst persuasive and influential of all the saucer- writers is Jonald E. KeyliQe, a retired U. S. Marine Corps major, who is convinced that outer-space beings exist, that their crafts are navigated .by radio astronomy, that they understand our own radio transmissions, and that they are keeping our world under constant surveillance. ..." SATURDAY REVIEW "Major Donald E. Keyhoe's Flying Saucers from Outer Space [is] to my taste the only rational entry in the year's books on either side of the saucer controversy." New York HERALD TRIBUNE 'One of the most fascinating books ever written." Edwin C. Hill "These are facts, not theories. . . . This new evidence will seem well-nigh irrefutable." Los Angeles MIRROR "As fiction, Major Keyhoe's book would be entrancing; as documented fact, it is to say the least sobering." OREGON JOURNAL The Flying Saucer Conspiracy Major Donald E. Keyhoe u. S. Marine Corps, Retired HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY By the Same Author: Flying with Lindbergh The Flying Saucers Are Real Flying Saucers from Outer Space A3V'HldSN03 'H3:3fiVS !:>NIA'l.i 3:H~ Copyright 1955 by Henry Holt and Company, Inc. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce book or portions thereof in any form. In Canada, George J. McLeod, Ltd. First Edition of Congress Catalog Card Number: 55-7918 Printed in the United States of America ll!Q mOL .w!l Since 1953, when I wrote Flying Saucers from Outer Space sightings of the so-called Unidentified Flying Objects multiplied. In practically every country this increased saucer surveillance has been confirmed by pilots, radarmen, or trained ground observers. From the details of these world wide reports it is evident that the saucers have moved into a new phase of operations-one that may change the lives of everyone on this globe. Here in the United States, the official investigation has been greatly intensified. Scores of prominent scientists and engi neers are now working behind the scenes, helping to evaluate the facts. of the public is unaware of these developments, for since December, 1953, the Air Force has refused to release any official reports of flying-saucer encounters. In revealing this censorship, I am not attacking the Air Force as a whole. Most of the officers and officials I have en countered are simply obeying orders. Nor do I attribute un patriotic motives to the "silence group" members who originate these orders. Undoubtedly they are actuated by a high motive-the need, as they see it, to protect the public from possible hysteria. Nevertheless I believe that this censorship is dangerous. The thousands of UFO reports by veteran observers prove beyond question that the saucers are machines from outer space. The Air Force's insistence that it has no answer only heightens the possibility of hysteria. If the public is not informed of all the facts, fear of the un known may prevail. That can lead to the most dangerous kind of panic. In The Flying Saucer Conspiracy I have covered, as far as the important developments of the past two years. I have received help from more than 300 sources: pilots, sci entists, radar experts, airport tower operators, flying-saucer investigators, and many others, both here and abroad. In par ticular, I should like to thank the following either for new information on UFO's or valuable opinions on this subject:1 Air Chief Marshal Lord Dowding, of England; Professor Hermann Oberth, world authority on space-travel plans; Ad miral Delmar Fahrney, USN, Retired, former head of Navy guided-missile development; Admiral Calvin Bolster, USN, Retired, formerly Chief of Naval Research; Captain Edward J. Ruppelt, USAF Reserve, former chief of Project Blue Book, UFO investigating agency; Frank Edwards, noted radio and television news commentator; Robert J. Stirling, Chief of the Washington Bureau, United Press radio; Douglas Lar sen, N.E.A. feature writer; Larry Cates, Washington repre of the Air Line Pilots Association; John Du Barry, formerly associate editor of True magazine; Miss Isabel Davis, researcher for Civilian Saucer Intelligence, New York, Ted Bloecher, president of Civilian Saucer Intelli New York, N. Y.; Mrs. Coral Lorenzen, director of APRO; Leonard H. Stringfield, director of CRIFO. I wish also to thank Captain Robert White, USAF spokes man on flying saucers, for his courteous discussions, and Lieu tenant Colonel Joseph Bloomer, of the Air Force Directorate of Intelligence, who helped to correct a false report on Flying Saucers from Outer Space. For editorial advice and assistance in preparing The Fly ing Saucer Conspiracy, I am deeply indebted to Robert Lescher, whose cooperation during the final revision was in Finally, I wish to thank the readers of Flying Saucers from Outer Space and The Flying Saucers Are Real for their thou of helpful letters. Though it has been impossible to answer' each one personally, I greatly appreciate the interest shown and the many confirmed UFO reports. DONALD E. KEYHOE Major, U. S. Marine Corps, Retired October 4, 1955 1. Blackout 2. The First Clue 3. The Silence Group Strikes Unknown Worlds Enigma on the Moon 6. The Hidden Orders 7. Cover-up at Quantico 8. Satellite Search 9. Mystery on Mars "Ground All Planes!" 11. Breaks in the Blackout 12. "Shadowed from Space" 13. The Wilmington Expose The Burning Road The Invisible Saucers 16. "Angel's Hair" Oberth and the G-Field 18. Redell Explains a Riddle The Vanishing Planes .i\:)VlIIdSNO:) ll3::)[}VS -DNI.i\'J& 3:H~ For several years the censorship of flying-saucer re been increasingly tightened. In the United States this top-level blackout is backed by two strict orders. I learned of the first order, a Joint-Chiefs-of-Staff docu in the fall of '53. Know.n as JANAP 146 Uoint-Army Navy-Air Publication), this order sets up a top-priority radio system for the most urgent Intelligence reports. Pilots are directed to report Unident1ed Flying Objects (UFO's) im mediately from all parts of the world, using this emergency system-and to keep these sightings secret. Under Section III any pilot who reveals an official UFO report can be imprisoned for one to ten years and fined up to 10,000 dollars. (Title 18, U. S. Code, 793.) Three months later, in December, 1953, I discovered the second order, which carries court-martial penalties. For sev eral days I had been checking on a strange story from Kim Air Force Base, near Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan. The facts had been hurriedly covered up, after a brief Air Force It was the evening of November 23, and wintry darkness had settled over Michigan. At an isolated radar station Air Defense operators were watching their scope in a routine guard against possible enemy attack. the "blip" of an unknown machine appeared on The Flying Saucer Conspiracy the glass screen. The Ground Control Intercept officer took a quick look. The "unknown" was flying over the Soo Locks and no aircraft was scheduled near that important target. Whatever it was, it had to be identified swiftly. In less than two minutes an F-89 from Kimross Field was streaking toward the locks. At the jet's controls was Lieuten ant Felix Monda, Jr., a veteran at 26. Behind him was Lieu tenant R. R. Wilson, 22-year-old Oklahoman, acting as radar observer. Guided by Ground Control, Monda dimbed steeply toward the "unknown." Back at GCI, the controller watched the jet's blip on his glowing radarscope. As it moved toward the UFO's blip, the strange craft changed course. The controller called Monda, gave him the new bearing. From the scope he saw that the F-89 was now over Sault Sainte Marie, though to the crew the city's lights would be only a blur, quickly lost behind. The UFO, flying as fast as a jet airliner, was heading to ward Lake Superior. At over 500 miles per hour the F-89 after it, out across Whitefish Bay. Nine more minutes ticked by in the tense quiet of the GCI radar room. Gradually the F-89 cut down the gap. By now, the controller knew, Wilson should have spotted their quarry on the fighter'S short-range radar. Watching the chase, he cut in his microphone and called the flight's code "Target should soon be visual. Still bearing-" He broke off, staring at the scope. The two blips had suddenly merged into one. Whether the strange machine had abruptly slowed or Moncla unaccountably had put on full power, no one in the room could tell. But one thing seemed grimly certain: the two machines were locked together, as if in a smashing collision. For a moment longer the huge, ominous blip remained on the glass. Then it quickly went off the scope . Marking the pOSitIOn, the controller flashed word to Search and Rescue. Monda and Wilson might have bailed out in time. Both had life jackets and self-inflating rafts; in the icy water they might survive for a little while. The mystery craft and the F-89 had come together far off shore, about 100 miles from Sault Sainte Marie and 70 miles from Keweenaw Point. As quickly as possible, search planes with flares were roaring over Lake Superior. After a fruitless night search, boats joined the hunt as American and Cana dian flyers crisscrossed a hundred-mile area. But no trace was ever found of the missing men) the F-89 -or the unknown machine. My first word on this mystery came from an old friend in Detroit, a former Army Air Corps navigator I'd met in ear lier days, when I was aide to Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh. The night the jet vanished, he called me at my home near Alexandria, Virginia. "This may be just a wild story," he said, "but there's a rumor out at Selfridge Field thatan F-89 from Kimross was hit by a flying saucer. All I know lS that the plane's missing. think there could be any truth in the UFO angle?" "It's possible," I answered, "but most of those 'saucer collision' stories turn out to be ordinary crashes." hope this is too. I'd hate to think that the saucers are hostile." "Even if it did happen, it could have been an accident. But thanks for the tip. I'll check with the Pentagon." Next morning I called the Air Force Press Desk and got First Lieutenant (now Captain) Robert C. White. A 34-year old bomber pilot, White was serving as a PIO (Public In formation Officer). He admitted the F-89 was missing and gave me the names of the crew. "It's obvious," he added, "they had engine trouble and crashed in the lake." "Why were they out there?" I asked. 16 The Flying Saucer Conspiracy "Intercept mission---checking on an unknown." "Did they identify it?" ''I'm not sure. Let me call you later." "I'm about to take off for Des Moines," I said. ''I'll phone when I get back." driving to Washington Airport, I called radio com mentator Frank Edwards-we had exchanged flying-saucer reports since 1949. Frank whistled at the Kimross tip. "If it's true, this thing's getting seriousI Kimross probably won't talk, but I'll give it a try. Right now I'm waiting for a Wisconsin call on that Truax crash." "What was that?" "A jet from Truax Air Force Base crashed near there yes at Madison. Several witnesses said a saucer flew near the plane, just before it dived into a swamp. It may be just bunk, but I'm checking on it." "How soon can you phone Kimross?" I asked. ''I'll try to rush it. Call me before you take off." Thirty minutes later I phoned from the airport. "Don," Frank exclaimed, "your Detroit man had it dead right! Truax Field just made an official statement on the Kimross jet." "Admitting the collision?" I said incredulously. "Listen to this: 'The plane was followed by radar until it merged with an object 70 miles off Keweenaw Point in upper Michigan.' That's the statement they gave the Associated "That's amazingl You sure Truax really said it?" "Absolutely. I made a fast check. It's already on the AP wire at Sault Sainte Marie." "You said Truax-" "Here's what happened. An AP man at Sault Sainte Marie queried Kimross. They told him to clear with the OPI for the area, at Truax. He did-and got that official answer." Blackout 17 "It's incredible-their releasing it. I knew some PIO's were against the blackout, but to let this out-" "It certainly raised the devil at the Pentagon," said Frank. "I just called there. At first they said it was some silly ru mor, but when I told them Truax gave it to the AP, they hit the ceiling. I'll bet they're burning up the wires right now." "Can they make the AP kill it?" "I don't know. But they can say it was a mistake and ask them to run a correction. To avoid that the AP will yank it, if there's time." In a few hours I had a hint that Frank was right. At Chi where I changed planes, there was no sign of the AP story. Later I learned it had appeared in the early edition of the Chicago Tribune) headed "Jet, Two Aboard, Vanishes Over Lake Superior." It was deleted from all other editions. of a late Des Moines landing I missed Frank's broadcast, and during my Iowa trip I heard no more on the mystery. The night I returned, I called the Mutual station in Washington, but Frank had left 01::. New York after his ten o'clock program. I Next morning, after trying to reach 'White, I went in to the Civil Aeronautics Board to see Arthur Caperton, one of the CAB's senior crash investigators. A quick, decisive man, square-jawed and ruddy-faced, Caperton had been, like my Marine Corps pilot. Later he had become an airline captain, flying DC-6's before joining the Board. In my case, an injury from a night crash at Guam had put me out of uniform until World War II, though I'd flown nonmilitary planes while writing on aviation. Meanwhile I'd drawn several good-luck assignments which gave me valuable contacts all over the country. As chief of infonnation for Civil Aeronautics, I had made an air tour with Floyd Ben nett, Admiral Byrd's pilot on the historic North Pole flight. The next year, by another lucky break, I flew as Colonel Lindbergh's aide on a 48-state tour, after his famous "Lone 18 The Flying Saucer Conspiracy Eagle" flight to Paris. Many of the pilots and aviation ex perts I met on these tours were later to give me important UFO reports. Caperton and I had talked about the saucers before, and I knew that the Board and the Air Force often exchanged unusual crash reports. "What do you know about a flying saucer hitting an F-89 on November 23?" I asked him. Caperton stared. "An actual collision? It must be under wraps. I haven't heard a thing." I told him what had happened. "Good Lord!" said Caperton. "If Truax said that, it must be true. Those Ground Control operators are tops." "The question is, was it accidental?" or not, it's a real jolt." Caperton shook his head. "I think it's dangerous, ordering jet pilots to chase the sau Of course, they don't often get close-the UFO's run away from them." That noon at the Press Club Caperton and I got a new slant on the Kimross case. It came from an airline pilot, Captain Ed Stone, a sober-faced six-footer with prematurely gray hair. (Since his company, like most lines, asks its pilots to avoid saucer publicity, I have changed his last name.) Stone said he had not heard of the F-89 disaster. "But that must be what Frank Edwards was talking about the other night," he added. "He said two Canadian pilots denied being over the Soo Locks or seeing an F-89. I missed the first part, so it was Greek to me." The Canadian angle was new, and as we were leaving I the Pentagon from a Press Club booth. This time I caught White at his desk. "The unknown in that case was a Canadian DC-3," he told me. "It was over the locks by mistake." started to repeat the Canadian pilots' denial, then changed my mind. Blackout 19 "Let me get this straight," 1 said. "Obviously the F-89 didn't collide with a Canadian airliner-there'd have been a big row in the papers. So what did it hit?" "It didn't hit anything," White said emphatically. "Then what happened to it?" "Probably engine trouble, as I said before. They must have bailed out-or ditc