Date of sighting: Nov 23, 1953
Location: Lake Superior, Michigan, USA
On Nov 23, 1953 A USAF Jet Disappears intercepting a UFO Sighting over Lake Michigan.
"The Disappearance of Lt. Felix Moncla"
The channel that connects Lake Superior with the other Great Lakes flows through the Soo Locks near Saulte Ste. Marie, Michigan. On one side of the channel is the U.S., and on the other side is Canada. The fact that this area is on a U.S. national border makes it a restricted airspace. As such, it was monitored by the Air Defense Command in 1953.
On the evening of 23 November 1953, an Air Defense Command Ground Intercept radar controller at Truax AFB became alerted to an "unidentified target" over Soo Locks. He sounded the alert, and an F-89C Scorpion jet was scrambled from nearby Kinross Field. The jet was piloted by 1st Lieutenant Felix Moncla, Jr., with 2nd Lieutenant Robert Wilson in the rear seat as radar operator.
Ground Control vectored the jet toward the target, noting that the target changed course as the F-89 approached it at over 500 mph. Lt. Wilson had problems tracking the target on his onboard radar, so ground control continued to direct the jet to the target. For thirty minutes, the jet pursued the radar blip and began to close the gap as the UFO accelerated out over Lake Superior.
As Ground Control watched, the gap between the two blips on the radar screen grew smaller and smaller until the two blips became one blip. Ground Control thought that Moncla had flown over the target and that the two blips would separate again as he moved past it.
That didn't happen. Suddenly, the single blip flashed off the screen and the radar screen was clear of any return at all.
Frantically, Ground Control tried to contact the F-89 by radio. There was no response. Marking the last radar position, Ground Control dispatched an emergency message to Search and Rescue. That last sighting was about seventy miles off Keweenaw Point in upper Michigan, at an altitude of 8,000 feet, approximately 160 miles northwest of Soo Locks.
After an all night air/sea rescue search, not a trace of the plane or the men was ever found. No debris, no oil slick, nothing was ever found.
Officials at Norton Air Force Base Flying Safety Division issued a statement that "the pilot probably suffered from vertigo and crashed into the lake." However, this was merely speculation and was based on hearsay reports that Moncla was prone to vertigo.
The Air Force explained the unknown radar target at first as a Canadian DC-3, then later as a RCAF jet. Canadian officials responded that there were no Canadian aircraft in the airspace over the lake at any time during the chase. The Air Force finally stated that the F-89 had exploded at high altitude, ignoring the fact that this would have left a lot of debris on the lake surface.
NICAP investigators found that mentions of Moncla's mission - chasing an unidentified target - had been obliterated from official records. Project Bluebook files simply listed the case as an "accident."
Off the record, those that were present in the Ground Control radar room that day have expressed other opinions. They think that whatever the F-89 was chasing directly caused the disappearance of the jet...
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The Disappearance of Lt. Felix Moncla: A Mysterious Encounter Over Lake Superior
The Scene Unfolds
The date was November 23, 1953. It was an ordinary day at the Air Defense Command in the United States, a day that would soon turn into one of the most perplexing mysteries in the annals of aviation history. The location was near the Soo Locks, the critical point connecting Lake Superior with the other Great Lakes. The narrow passageway splits the border between the United States and Canada, making it a strategically significant location for air defense.
On this evening, the radar operators at Truax Air Force Base in Wisconsin were performing their routine surveillance of the restricted airspace. The area was closely monitored due to its proximity to the international border, and any unidentified aircraft could pose a potential threat. At around 6:00 PM, an unidentified radar blip appeared over the Soo Locks. The radar signature was erratic, not following any typical flight pattern, and the operators quickly realized this was not a scheduled flight.
The decision was made to scramble an F-89C Scorpion jet from Kinross Air Force Base in Michigan to investigate. The jet was manned by 1st Lieutenant Felix Moncla, Jr., a skilled pilot with over 800 flying hours, and 2nd Lieutenant Robert Wilson, who served as the radar operator. Little did they know, this would be a flight from which they would never return.
The Intercept Mission Begins
As the F-89C Scorpion lifted off from Kinross Air Force Base, it headed towards the unknown target at over 500 mph. Ground Control vectored the jet towards the UFO, guiding Moncla and Wilson through a series of course corrections to intercept the mysterious object. The unidentified blip seemed aware of the jet’s approach and changed its course multiple times. Each time the jet closed in, the object would alter its trajectory, maintaining a constant distance.
The ground controllers noted that the object’s movements were unconventional, not typical of any known aircraft. Lt. Wilson struggled to get a clear radar lock on the object from within the F-89. It was a tense cat-and-mouse game, as the jet pursued the target over the frigid waters of Lake Superior. Despite the challenges, the jet was slowly but surely closing the gap.
The Final Moments
The situation took a dramatic turn as the radar blips of the F-89 and the unidentified object converged. The operators on the ground watched as the two radar signals merged into one, a phenomenon that was both puzzling and alarming. Initially, they thought that Lt. Moncla had simply flown over or under the target, causing the signals to overlap. They expected the two blips to separate again as the jet continued past the object.
However, this never happened. Moments after the radar blips merged, the combined signal disappeared entirely from the radar screen. The room fell silent as the ground controllers processed what had just happened. They had lost all contact with the F-89. Desperate attempts were made to reestablish radio communication, but there was no response. The jet, along with its two crew members, had vanished without a trace.
The Aftermath
The last known position of the F-89 was approximately 70 miles off Keweenaw Point in upper Michigan, at an altitude of 8,000 feet. A massive search and rescue operation was launched immediately. Throughout the night, aircraft and ships scoured the area, but no trace of the jet or its crew was found. There was no wreckage, no oil slick, no evidence that an aircraft had even crashed. It was as if the F-89 had been swallowed by the dark, icy waters of Lake Superior.
The Air Force’s initial explanation was that Lt. Moncla had suffered from vertigo and inadvertently crashed the jet into the lake. However, this theory was quickly dismissed. Moncla was an experienced pilot with a strong record of service, and while vertigo could affect any pilot, the sudden and complete disappearance of the aircraft didn’t align with this theory.
The Air Force then suggested that the unknown radar target was a Canadian DC-3 aircraft. However, Canadian authorities confirmed that there were no Canadian aircraft in the area at the time. This contradiction further deepened the mystery. The final statement from the Air Force suggested that the F-89 had exploded in mid-air, but no debris was ever found, and an explosion would have left some trace on the water’s surface.
Investigations and Theories
The disappearance of the F-89 quickly attracted attention from various investigative bodies, including the National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena (NICAP). NICAP, a civilian UFO research group, took a keen interest in the case. Their investigation revealed that crucial details about the mission, including the pursuit of an unidentified target, had been removed from official records. The case had been labeled as an "accident" in Project Blue Book, the Air Force’s official investigation into UFO sightings, with no mention of the strange radar target.
This censorship led many to speculate that the Air Force knew more than they were willing to disclose. Some witnesses from the Ground Control room at Truax Air Force Base later stated, off the record, that they believed the F-89 had encountered something extraordinary, something not of this world. The idea that a UFO might have caused the jet’s disappearance was both tantalizing and terrifying.
Unanswered Questions
The disappearance of Lt. Moncla and Lt. Wilson leaves many questions unanswered. What was the object they were chasing? Why did their radar signature merge with the unknown object? And why did the Air Force's explanations shift so drastically, from a DC-3 aircraft to a mid-air explosion?
The possibility that Moncla's jet collided with a UFO has been considered, but there is no concrete evidence to support this theory. The only certainty is that something unusual happened that night over Lake Superior, something that defies conventional explanations.
The UFO Connection
Over the years, the disappearance of the F-89 has become one of the most discussed cases in the UFO community. Some researchers believe that the incident was a classic case of a military aircraft being involved in a close encounter with a UFO. The sudden disappearance of the jet, with no trace of wreckage or bodies, is often cited as evidence that the aircraft could have been taken by an unknown force.
There are other accounts of strange occurrences over the Great Lakes region. Pilots have reported seeing mysterious lights in the sky, and there have been multiple cases of radar operators tracking unidentified flying objects in the area. The region has even been referred to as the “Michigan Triangle,” akin to the Bermuda Triangle, due to the number of unexplained disappearances and anomalies.
Alternative Explanations
While the UFO theory is popular, there are other possible explanations for the disappearance of the F-89. One possibility is that the jet suffered a catastrophic mechanical failure, causing it to crash into the lake. However, the lack of debris is difficult to reconcile with this theory.
Another possibility is that the F-89 may have been involved in a secret military operation, and its disappearance was covered up for security reasons. This would explain the Air Force's contradictory statements and the removal of details from official records. However, no evidence has ever surfaced to support this idea.
A Legacy of Mystery
The disappearance of Lt. Moncla and Lt. Wilson remains an enduring mystery. Despite numerous investigations, official and unofficial, the case has never been satisfactorily explained. The families of the two men were left without answers, and the incident became a footnote in the history of Cold War-era aviation, overshadowed by the more publicized cases in the UFO phenomenon.
In the decades since, the story has been the subject of books, documentaries, and countless discussions among UFO enthusiasts and skeptics alike. The case has become a symbol of the unknown, a reminder that despite our advanced technology and understanding of the world, there are still events that defy explanation.
The Search for Answers Continues
As of today, the fate of the F-89 Scorpion and its crew is still unknown. Every few years, new theories emerge, and renewed interest in the case prompts further investigation. Advances in technology have allowed researchers to revisit the incident with new tools, but the outcome remains the same – a mystery frozen in time.
For those who seek to understand the universe and the possibility of extraterrestrial life, the disappearance of Lt. Felix Moncla serves as both a cautionary tale and a source of inspiration. It challenges our perceptions of reality and reminds us that there are still frontiers to explore, both in the skies above and in the depths of our own history.
The skies over Lake Superior are calm today, but the story of what happened there in November 1953 continues to ripple through the decades. It is a story of two men who vanished without a trace, a story that asks more questions than it answers, and a story that will likely remain a mystery for generations to come.
