Lights dancing above Kingman (credit: Michael Baca)

According to the Daily Miner, Baca forwarded his photos to local historian Rob Chilcoat of the Kingman Army Airfield Museum, who, upon seeing the photos, was immediately reminded of the Phoenix Lights incident of 1997.

After reviewing the photos, Chilcoat said the Kingman lights could have been from an F-22 or F-35. But he further stated that those aircraft would have created audible jet noise, and, according to Baca, whatever he photographed Thursday night was completely silent.

The sighting was reported to the National UFO Reporting Center. There is no word yet on how many people observed this series of dancing lights above Kingman.

The most famous image of Phoenix Lights.

On March 13, 1997 thousands of people saw UFOs over Arizona, from the border with Nevada all the way down to Tucson. Most of you are probably familiar with the story of the Phoenix Lights, if not you can catch up here.

The vast majority of the UFO reports are unexplainable. However, there has been a lot of debate over the last sightings of the day over South Mountain. Most of the pictures or videos, including the most famous one, are of this event at around 10 p.m. The Air National Guard had claimed that these lights were due to flares being dropped over the Barry Goldwater Range, which is used for military exercises and is about 40 miles southwest of Phoenix.

When I moved here and saw the distances and mountains between Phoenix and the Goldwater Range, I thought there was no way that they could have seen flares from that far. Then I bought a house in Maricopa, a small town in the desert between Phoenix and the Goldwater Range. This even further solidified my opinion. I didn’t think they could see flares dropped over Maricopa in Phoenix. That was until Tuesday evening, May 3, when I saw flares over the Goldwater Range for myself.

Google map of the area.

On my way home across the Gila River Indian reservation, headed toward Maricopa just out of Phoenix, I saw two bright lights in the sky, I had seen a similar light before. On the previous sighting, I thought it might be a helicopter hovering over the city but then it faded out. This time, I could see these lights were dropping, I knew they were in the direction of the range, so I figured they were flares. I was surprised how bright they were, and how high they were dropped. They fell slowly, but you could see they were falling, up until a certain point when their decent slowed until they appeared to be hovering.

These days I keep a small camera in the glove box of my car at all times. I got it out and snapped a couple of pictures, but I was on a highway. I figured I would snap more with my DSLR camera when I got home, but they were gone by then. However, to my surprise these were lights that could be seen from Phoenix, over South Mountain, especially if you were elevated like the person who took the famous video.

The next night flares were dropped again. This time I put my zoom lens on my camera got to the backyard and got some video. Again, they seemed to be hovering. In a story about the National Guard pilots who were responsible for dropping the flares that were filmed at 10 p.m. on March 13, in 1997, the Arizona Republic newspaper wrote, “They seemed to hover because heat from the flare rose into the parachute, as if each were a tiny hot-air balloon.”

Picture of flares from May 4, 2011. (image credit: Alejandro Rojas)

Close-up of flares from May 4, 2011. (image credit: Alejandro Rojas)

Another picture of flares from May 4, 2011. (image credit: Alejandro Rojas)

Picture of flare behind light pole from May 4, 2011. (image credit: Alejandro Rojas)

I contacted the Barry Goldwater Range to confirm that what I saw was flares, this was their response:

Mr. Rojas, the Barry M. Goldwater Range is a 1.7 million acre expanse across southwestern Arizona. On the Air Force side alone, which consists of 1.1 million acres, there are 22 regular users and many others on an intermittent basis.

I can confirm that the range was being used by scheduled users on Monday and Tuesday, May 2 and 3 during the evening.

Though it’s difficult to give you any specific information about what you saw, I feel confident in saying that what you saw were flares. Flares are a standard training tool, particularly at night and pilots are required to use them constantly. They are used for target illumination and some types burn with as much as 1 million candlepower. Range users also employ self-protection flares.

Thank you,
Teresa Walker
Public Affairs Specialist
56th Range Management Office
7224 N. 139th Drive
Luke AFB Arizona 85309

Although I am now finally convinced that the 10 p.m. Phoenix Lights sighting could have been flares, upon moving to Phoenix a couple of years ago, I was floored at how many people had seen mysterious lights that day. I had interviewed city council woman Francis Barwood, and had seen Lynne Kitei’s documentary on the lights, in which Barwood said she had spoken with hundreds of witnesses. However, when I heard from so many locals and co-workers who had also seen them, I realized the witness count was much higher than I had previously thought which I was already impressed with.

There are still no answers for the giant triangular craft that people reported flying over their heads earlier in the day. Fife Symington, then the governor, witnessed the lights and now says he thinks the craft he saw was too advanced to be made by people on this planet.

Video of the flares on May 4, 2001:

Christine Tulk, granddaughter of Sheriff George Wilcox.

Open Minds was recently able to get an exclusive interview with Christine Tulk, the granddaughter of Sheriff George Wilcox, who was one of the first to see the Roswell UFO crash debris in 1947. She shares her views on the events and how it affected her family.

Sheriff George Wilcox

Wilcox was the Chaves County sheriff with an office in the town of Corona near the Foster Ranch were the debris was found. Mac Brazel who worked on the ranch found the debris and brought it to Corona to show the sheriff. Wilcox then contacted the Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF) who sent out intelligence officer, Major Jesse Marcel, along with Captain Sheridan Cavitt with the Counter Intelligence Corps (CIC).

Christine says she never knew her grandfather because he had passed two years before she was born. She also didn’t have an interest, nor did she know much about the Roswell events. Things changed when she was able to attend an event sponsored by the Prince of Liechtenstein, Hans Adam. He had an interest in UFOs and had sponsored UFO research, including an event to gather the best Roswell witnesses. Christine’s mother and her mother’s aunt were invited to attend, and Christine wanted to go along for the ride to do some sightseeing. It was at this conference that her eyes were open to the amazing events that took place in 1947.

Hans Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein

She says it was very moving for her to meet other witnesses and hear what they had to say. She says her family were “salt of the earth people”, and it saddens her because she believes they were threatened by the government to remain silent about the Roswell events. She says, “It is sad because you take stellar individuals and you put them in a situation where they are afraid.”

Christine believes that the events also had a big impact on her grandfather. She told Open Minds, “My whole family’s belief is that this affected him and he never got over it.”

Christine has since had a UFO sighting of her own. She now lives in the Phoenix area, and her sighting was similar to the famous Phoenix lights sightings in 1997. Christine says in 2007 she saw a row of five orbs perfectly lined up. The fifth one was “bobbing” around.

After her sighting, and learning of her family’s ordeal, she is a firm believer that UFOs are out there.

The June/July 2011 issue of Open Minds magazine, which will be out soon, features the Roswell events, including articles from the original researchers and startling witness testimony of a possible ET survivor.

Watch the video of the interview below.

Here is a sample of the 2011 International UFO Congress media coverage:

http://uk.ibtimes.com/articles/116278/20110225/international-ufo-congress-alien-fort-mcdowell-resort-phoenix-lights-arizona-ufo-sightings.htm

http://www.demotix.com/news/607915/2011-ufo-congress-phoenix-arizona

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/02/ufo_convention_brings_skeptics.php

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/02/21/at-ufo-congress-alien-technology-government-cover-ups-and-cre/

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_northeast_valley/scottsdale/ufo-conference-heads-to-valley-this-week

http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/2011/02/22/20110222fort-mcdowell-UFO-conference.html t

http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110223/UFOs-are-talk-of-the-town-in-Fountain-Hills

http://www.kpho.com/news/26973223/detail.html (removed by source)

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/entertainment/travel/visitors-pump-millions-into-local-economy-02252011

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1360737/I-believe-UFOs–Ive-seen-says-ex-defence-minister-Paul-Hellyer.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/offbeat/skywatchers-on-the-lookout-for-ufos-2-25-2011

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/02/24/ufo-convention-celebrates-20th-anniversary/

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2011/02/25/20110225scottsdale-international-ufo-conference.html

http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/2011/02/22/20110222fort-mcdowell-UFO-conference.html

http://www.kpho.com/news/26973223/detail.html

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_northeast_valley/scottsdale/ufo-conference-heads-to-valley-this-week

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_northeast_valley/scottsdale/Former-military-officials-present-evidence-of-UFOs-at-Valley-conference

Tucson Lights (credit: Sheila Martin)

Tucson resident Sheila Martin was able to capture video of the mysterious lights, and she described seeing at least four lights moving from south to northeast in a boomerang formation. KGUN9, the local ABC affiliate, interviewed Martin, as well as others who witnessed the lights. One witness claimed to have seen as many as sixteen lights in the formation at one point. Another witness saw the lights in what he described as a trapezoid formation.

As they have done with UFO sightings in the past, KGUN9 consulted astronomer James McGaha to get his opinion on the latest lights in the sky. McGaha quickly concluded that the lights must have been flares in the sky, and certainly not a UFO or UFOs. But can his reasoning hold up to scrutiny? He explained to KGUN9, “You have to ask the question: if an alien spacecraft is going to fly here through thousands of light years to get here, are they going to turn their lights on at night?” A reasonable answer to this posed question is, “Why not?” Humans put lights on air ships. Why would distance traveled have anything to do with whether or not lights are on a space ship?

Regardless of whether extraterrestrials do or do not utilize lights on their craft, McGaha’s theory is weakened further by the fact that a spokesperson from Davis Monthan Air Force Base told KGUN9 that they did not launch any flares at the time the mysterious lights were in the sky, nor did they have any idea what the lights were.

Could the lights have been flares? Sure. Could the lights have been from a UFO or multiple UFOs? Also a possibility.

Watch for yourself.

The Phoenix Lights

A spokesperson for the fire department said the lights were parachute exercises, possibly including pyrotechnics. But this spokesperson did not know what group was performing the exercises. It seems odd for the fire department to claim knowledge of the alleged exercises and possible pyrotechnics usage, but not know the responsible party, especially in a dry area like Phoenix where fire risk is high, and fires and pyrotechnics are usually restricted or heavily regulated.

Later, an alternative explanation was offered by the U.S. Air Force – flares. The Air Force alleges that the lights were simply flares from the Barry Goldwater Range – the same explanation given for the Phoenix Lights of 1997.

Witnesses aren’t buying either of the explanations.

Growing up, I lived in the wide-open desert, known as Phoenix’s far-west valley. My family’s house was technically located within the city limits of Buckeye, Arizona, but we lived in a sparsely populated region of Buckeye called Rainbow Valley that was several miles removed from the actual “city” of Buckeye. Needless to say, on our 1.25 acres of desert land, the view of the night sky was always breathtaking. Away from Phoenix’s light pollution, every single star in the sky was always vibrantly visible.

At the time, I was an artistic 17-year-old who loved to videotape everything. I always had my parents’ Sony Digital 8 camcorder in my hand, shooting anything and everything I thought was interesting. The night of March 13th, 1997 was no different. I was sitting on the front porch when I noticed several bright, motionless lights in the sky, almost directly overhead. They were all in a line, slightly curved, and white in color.

I was used to seeing all sorts of objects in the sky, including frequent military aircraft from Luke Air Force Base and the Barry M. Goldwater Range. It was quite clear to me that these lights were not military craft (not publicly-known military craft, that is). I was also used to seeing flares in the night sky, dropped by A-10s out at the Goldwater Range. These lights were not flares.

Intrigued by these lights, I began recording them with the video camera. I cannot recall how long I watched the lights, but at the time, it seemed like the lights remained overhead for a long duration of time. I kept recording until I lost interest.

I remember going inside to watch TV, and being surprised at how every news station was mentioning the strange lights. I also remember watching the awkwardly bizarre press conference on TV that then Governor Fife Symington delivered to address the flood of inquiries his office received from witnesses who wanted an explanation. He put on a public show to make light of the incident, but, both before and after this press conference, Symington voiced his personal feelings that the lights were from an alien spacecraft.

Frances Barwood, a friend of Symington’s, and a member of the Phoenix City Council at the time of the Phoenix Lights, took the sighting seriously, and fielded hundreds of calls from witnesses. She also personally returned calls to everyone who left messages seeking information about the Phoenix Lights.

It was a unique experience, observing the UFO phenomenon being taken (somewhat) seriously by the local media and government officials.

So where is the footage of the Phoenix Lights I managed to record with my parents’ video camera? I have absolutely no clue. I am sure it was thrown into the sea of video tapes I had back then, and most likely, the contents were recorded over multiple times with soccer games, high school graduations, and family vacations.

At the time, I certainly did not think much of the incident, but now, I consider myself lucky to have been among the thousands who witnessed the Phoenix Lights.

To celebrate the 13th anniversary of the Phoenix Lights, the Harkins Shea 14 Theatre in Scottsdale, AZ will be screening Dr. Lynne Kitei’s documentary about the lights on March 14th at 1 PM and 4 PM. Dr. Kitei will be present to introduce the movie, and her newly expanded Phoenix Lights book.