THE PHOENIX LIGHTS

THE PHOENIX LIGHTS: INVESTIGATING THE 1997 UFO PHENOMENA

He strolled down the deserted Arizona road, the desert air was still and cool, the stars above scattered like distant embers. A strange hush fell over the night, even the usual chirping of crickets seemed to vanish. Then, he saw it—a silent, massive triangular craft gliding across the sky, its black surface blending seamlessly with the darkness, save for numerous faintly glowing orbs that lined its edges and underside. It moved with eerie precision, blocking out the stars as it passed overhead. The sheer size of it made his stomach churn; it was unlike anything he could imagine as man-made. He stood rooted to the spot, every hair on his body standing on end, as a low, almost imperceptible hum vibrated through his chest. Within moments, the craft disappeared beyond the horizon, leaving the night eerily silent once more. Left with a racing heart, he felt a paradigm shift within him and he asked himself "Were there secrets in the stars that humanity was never meant to uncover?"

The Phoenix Lights incident is one of the most famous and well-documented mass UFO sightings in modern history. It took place on the night of March 13, 1997, and has been a subject of intrigue, controversy, and debate ever since.

THE INCIDENTS

On the evening of March 13, 1997, residents across Arizona (and parts of Nevada and northern Mexico) reported seeing two distinct phenomena:

Phenomena 1: A Large Triangular or chevron shaped craft

Around 7:30 PM, witnesses began reporting a series of lights in a triangular, chevron or V-shaped formation. What appeared to be a massive craft, was seen moving slowly and silently across the sky. It was described as being as large as multiple football fields. The lights on the craft were uniform, and the object was either completely silent or made a faint hum, depending on the witnesses. The formation was reported by thousands of people, including both civilians and military personnel, and spanned over 300 miles from Nevada, across Arizona, and into Mexico.

Phenomena 2: A Series of Stationary Lights

Later in the evening, around 10 PM, another series of lights appeared over Phoenix itself. These lights, which appeared to hover in a straight line, were seen for several minutes before they seemed to slowly fade out.

Many reported feeling a sense of awe, calmness, or even fear during the sighting or sightings. Given the number of credible witnesses, including law enforcement and military personnel, this sighting is considered one of the most credible UFO incidents in history.

NOTABLE WITNESSES

Dr. Lynne Kitei

Dr. Kitei is a physician based in Phoenix, Arizona. At the time of the sighting, she was a respected family doctor with a long career in the medical field. Before the famous 1997 incident, she had already witnessed unexplained lights in the Phoenix area as early as 1995 and had been documenting similar phenomena through photography and video.

On the night of March 13, 1997, Dr. Kitei witnessed the lights from her home in Phoenix and described them as massive, silent, and otherworldly. . Following the sighting, she became deeply interested in the phenomenon and started researching and speaking out about it. She later shared her account publicly.

Dr. Kitei later authored a book titled "The Phoenix Lights: A Skeptic's Discovery That We Are Not Alone", where she detailed her experiences with the sightings and the research she did afterward. She also produced a documentary, "The Phoenix Lights: We Are Not Alone", which explored the events and interviews with other witnesses, making her one of the key public figures in bringing awareness to the event. Dr. Lynne Kitei’s involvement gave the Phoenix Lights sighting an additional layer of credibility, as her professional status and earnest documentation of the events resonated with people who might otherwise have been sceptical.

Fife Symington

Fife Symington, the former governor of Arizona, played a significant role in the public perception of the Phoenix Lights incident. His involvement is marked by a surprising shift from initially downplaying the event to later revealing that he, too, witnessed the phenomenon and believed it to be something extraordinary.

Initial Reaction

At the time of the Phoenix Lights incident in 1997, Symington was serving as the governor of Arizona. On March 13, when thousands of residents, including law enforcement officers and military personnel, reported seeing the strange V-shaped lights over Arizona, Symington’s office received numerous calls and inquiries from concerned citizens. However, Symington initially took a sceptical stance on the incident. In the weeks that followed, as the media picked up the story and public interest surged, he held a press conference to address the growing fascination and concern.

The Infamous Press Conference (March 19, 1997)

In what became a notorious press event, Symington attempted to use humour to downplay the Phoenix Lights phenomenon. He called a press conference and announced that the mystery behind the lights had been solved. To everyone's surprise, Symington brought out a staffer dressed in a ridiculous alien costume, handcuffed and "arrested" as the supposed culprit behind the lights.

The press conference was intended to be a light-hearted way of relieving the public’s anxiety and calming down the media frenzy. Symington, later reflecting on it, admitted that he was trying to offer some comic relief in a situation where people were becoming increasingly anxious about the idea of alien visitation.

For many, however, this stunt backfired. Residents who had witnessed the lights and taken the event seriously were outraged. They felt that Symington was mocking their experiences and avoiding providing a real explanation.

Years Later: A Surprising Admission (2007)

In 2007, a decade after the Phoenix Lights incident, Fife Symington made a surprising revelation. In an interview with CNN and later in the Out of the Blue UFO documentary, Symington admitted that he had actually witnessed the Phoenix Lights himself on March 13, 1997. His account was consistent with those of other witnesses who described seeing a massive, silent, V-shaped craft moving slowly across the sky.

Symington described the object as "otherworldly" and admitted that it defied explanation. He also stated that, despite being governor at the time, he had no access to any official information that could explain what he had seen.

Why He Didn’t Speak Up Initially

Symington explained that he didn’t reveal his own sighting at the time because he didn’t want to cause panic and believed it was not his place as a governor to add to the hysteria. He felt the need to be cautious with what he said publicly, especially given the nature of his role and the situation.

Over time, Symington said he realised the significance of what he had witnessed. He came to believe that the government should be more transparent about UFO sightings and phenomena. He expressed his support for a more serious investigation into the incident and encouraged the public to keep an open mind about the possibility of extra-terrestrial visitation.

Impact of Symington's Admission

Symington’s admission in 2007 was a pivotal moment for those who believed that the Phoenix Lights represented something more than flares or military activity. As a former governor and someone who was in office at the time of the event, his testimony gave the sighting greater credibility.

For many UFO enthusiasts, Symington's shift from scepticism and mockery to openly acknowledging that he had witnessed something inexplicable was seen as a significant endorsement of the idea that the Phoenix Lights were not just a mundane event.

His involvement also raised questions about whether there was more information that the government or military might have had about the Phoenix Lights that was not being shared with the public. Symington, even though he was the governor, claimed to have no more knowledge about the official explanation than anyone else, which further fuelled speculation about a cover-up.

Symington’s Legacy in UFO Discussions

After coming forward with his sighting, Symington became a prominent figure in the UFO community. He appeared in documentaries and interviews where he continued to speak about the Phoenix Lights and the broader question of UFOs and government transparency. His transformation from a governor who mocked the event to one of the most high-profile witnesses to admit to seeing the lights is a testament to the complexities of how UFO phenomena are handled by public officials.

Kurt Russell (Actor and Pilot)

Kurt Russell, the well-known actor, later revealed that he had seen the Phoenix Lights while flying a private plane into Phoenix on the night in question. At the time, he was flying his son to see a friend and was serving as the pilot. Russell noticed six lights in a V-formation and reported them to air traffic control, though no one else on the radar detected anything unusual.

He didn’t think much of the incident until years later when watching a documentary on the Phoenix Lights, he realised that what he had seen was the same event that thousands of others had witnessed. His story gained significant attention due to his fame and the fact that he reported the lights in real-time while flying.

Law Enforcement Officials

Several police officers across Arizona also reported seeing the lights, and their testimonies are often considered particularly reliable because of their professional training. Some officers in places like Phoenix, Glendale, and Prescott Valley made official reports about the sighting.

Law enforcement's involvement helped to add credibility to the event, as they provided detailed and consistent descriptions of what they saw that night.

Although the military later explained part of the event as flares dropped during a training exercise, some former military personnel and pilots have since come forward to challenge the official narrative.

Mike Fortson

At approximately 8:30 PM on March 13th, Fortson was walking down his hallway when he noticed that the window was open. The weather was pleasant that evening, with a temperature of 23 degrees Celsius, clear skies, and no wind—a typical Arizona spring night, as confirmed by the local weather forecast.

As he moved to close the window, something outside caught his attention: three enormous, bright white lights angled downward, hovering unusually close to the ground. His first thought was that a plane was crashing—there was no way an aircraft could recover from such a low altitude or steep angle. The entire process, he later estimated, took no more than 8 to 10 seconds.

Instead of the plane crash they anticipated, Fortson and now with his wife present, were met with the sight of a colossal, silent object slowly gliding southward. The craft, shaped like a massive V or boomerang, appeared solid and unmistakable against the backdrop of the illuminated Phoenix metro area. Its sheer size and proximity to the ground were overwhelming, Fortson vividly remembered saying, "What the hell is that?"

As the craft moved closer, a commercial 737 jetliner on a landing approach crossed directly overhead. The plane was flying from west to east, seemingly unaware of the immense V-shaped object passing beneath it. The jet continued its descent undisturbed, as if neither the pilot nor the aircraft’s systems detected the enormous object below.

The couple stood in awe, watching the silent, slow-moving craft disappear into the distance. The experience left them deeply shaken and puzzled, as the mysterious object defied any conventional explanation.

Fortson strongly rejected the official explanation offered later, which attributed the phenomenon to military flares dropped during training exercises. He maintained that what he saw was not flares or lights behaving independently but a structured craft with advanced technology far beyond anything known to humanity at the time.

The sighting left a lasting impression on Fortson, who described it as extraordinary and life-changing. His consistent and detailed testimony remains one of the most credible accounts of the Phoenix Lights event, aligning closely with the experiences of many other witnesses that night.

Mitch Stanley

Mitch Stanley, a 21-year-old amateur astronomer from Phoenix, observed the lights through a powerful telescope on the night of March 13. According to Stanley, what he saw were not alien craft but rather a formation of planes flying in a V-shaped pattern. Stanley said that through his telescope, the lights appeared to be attached to planes with visible wings and engines. He reported that what appeared to many as a single, large V-shaped object was actually a formation of individual airplanes. Through his telescope, Stanley could clearly see that each light was paired, positioned on the squarish wings of each aircraft. He noted that the planes seemed small, similar to light private planes, and observed them for about a minute before turning his attention elsewhere.

His testimony is often cited by sceptics as evidence that the Phoenix Lights may have had a conventional explanation, although his view was not corroborated by others who witnessed the event without magnification. His claim, however, mostly relates to the early sightings and not the stationary lights seen later that night.

EXPLANATIONS AND THEORIES

The Flare Explanation

The U.S. Air Force, after several months of public speculation, eventually stated that the lights seen in the later part of the night, particularly those hovering over Phoenix, were flares dropped by military aircraft during a training exercise. This training exercise took place at the Barry M. Goldwater Range, a large military bombing range southwest of Phoenix.

The flares, according to the Air Force, were dropped by A-10 Warthog aircraft from the Maryland Air National Guard's 104th Fighter Squadron. The flares were part of a routine training mission and were dropped at high altitude over the range, which is approximately 80 miles from Phoenix. The explanation suggested that atmospheric conditions caused the lights from the flares to be visible over such a long distance and appear stationary to observers.

Key Points of the Military Flare Explanation

Type of Flares

The flares in question were LUU-2B/B illumination flares, which are designed to light up large areas during night-time military exercises. These flares are attached to small parachutes to allow them to descend slowly, extending their burn time in the air. They can illuminate wide areas for several minutes before extinguishing.

Location and Distance

The military stated that the flares were dropped over the Barry Goldwater Range, southwest of Phoenix. Although this is about 80 miles away from the city, the military argued that the flares could have been visible due to the clear skies and the desert landscape, which lacks obstructions like mountains or tall buildings that might block the view.

Behaviour of the Lights

Witnesses reported that the lights hovered in a formation for several minutes before slowly disappearing one by one. The Air Force explained that this was consistent with the behaviour of flares, which would burn for several minutes while slowly descending. As they drifted down, they would eventually drop below the horizon or become obscured by mountains in the distance, giving the appearance that they were "fading out."

Visibility

Atmospheric conditions, such as clear skies and the dry desert air, were said to have contributed to the visibility of the flares from as far away as Phoenix. The explanation is that the lights appeared in a straight line because they were dropped in sequence by the planes, and the distance made them appear closer together and stationary.

Controversy and Criticism of the Flare Explanation

While the flare explanation may address the lights seen later in the evening, many witnesses and researchers have criticized this explanation, particularly regarding the earlier sightings of a massive V-shaped craft. Here are some of the key criticisms:

Timing

The flare explanation only addresses the lights seen at 10 PM. However, many witnesses reported seeing the large, V-shaped craft much earlier in the evening (around 7:30 to 8:30 PM), long before the flares were reportedly dropped. These earlier sightings involved a structured object that blocked out stars and moved slowly and silently over a large area. The flare explanation does not account for this part of the event.

Movement and Behaviour

Flares typically drift and fall, whereas the lights seen earlier in the evening were described by witnesses as moving in a structured formation, sometimes at low altitudes, across the state of Arizona. Many witnesses reported that the lights were attached to a solid, massive craft, and some even stated that they could see a dark shape blocking out the stars as the object passed overhead. Flares would not exhibit this kind of behaviour.

Sound

Witnesses also noted that the lights or object they saw made little to no noise. Flares dropped by military aircraft would be accompanied by the sound of the planes, yet many witnesses described the event as eerily silent. This is particularly notable given the sheer size of the object reported by many.

Shape and Structure

The V-shaped formation of lights seen earlier in the night was described as a solid craft by many. Some witnesses reported seeing a distinct triangular or boomerang-shaped object. In contrast, flares are individual points of light with no connection to a larger structure. The flare explanation doesn't account for this part of the sighting.

Duration

While flares can remain visible for several minutes, they would not remain stationary for the prolonged periods described by witnesses. The lights observed later in the evening seemed to hover in place for an extended time before disappearing, which some argue is inconsistent with the behaviour of drifting flares.

Witness Credibility

Many witnesses, including trained military personnel, law enforcement officers, and civilian pilots, rejected the flare explanation. These individuals were experienced in identifying aircraft and other aerial phenomena, and they argued that what they saw was not consistent with military flares.

The flare explanation provided by the U.S. military has been accepted by some as a plausible explanation for the second set of lights seen around 10 PM. However, it does not account for the earlier sightings of the large V-shaped craft seen by many witnesses across Arizona, which remains unexplained to this day.

Sceptics argue that the flare explanation covers part of the event, but believers in the extra-terrestrial hypothesis view it as a partial or dismissive explanation that doesn’t address the more extraordinary aspects of the sightings earlier in the evening. This has led to continued debate and speculation over what really occurred in the skies over Arizona on that night in 1997.

The most popular theory among UFO believers is that the Phoenix Lights represented a massive extra-terrestrial spacecraft. The size, shape, and behaviour of the object, combined with the military's inability to offer a clear explanation for the earlier sighting, have led many to believe that it was not of human origin.

Some sceptics and UFO researchers suggest that the object might have been an experimental aircraft, possibly a prototype for a large stealth craft or a classified military project. The lack of sound and the advanced flight characteristics of the object have led some to speculate that it was a government project being tested in secret.

ANALYSIS AND IMPACT

The Phoenix Lights are unique due to the sheer number of credible witnesses and the geographical range of the sighting. This was not an isolated incident witnessed by a few individuals but a mass sighting seen by thousands. Despite the military's explanation of flares for part of the sighting, the V-shaped object remains unexplained, leading to decades of continued investigation and interest.

From a cultural perspective, the event solidified Phoenix as a hot spot for UFO activity and increased public interest in the UFO phenomenon. It also became a symbol for those seeking more government transparency about the existence of UFOs and potential extra-terrestrial contact.

In terms of the broader UFO community, the Phoenix Lights added weight to the argument that governments may be withholding information about UFOs. The incident is still frequently cited by believers as one of the most credible UFO sightings in modern times.

The Phoenix Lights incident remains a significant mystery in UFO history. While some aspects of the event have been explained, such as the military flares, the larger, more dramatic sighting of the V-shaped craft is still the subject of speculation. Whether it was an extra-terrestrial craft, a secret military project, or something else entirely, the Phoenix Lights continue to captivate the imagination and fuel the debate over the existence of UFOs and alien life.

THE PHOENIX LIGHTS: INVESTIGATING THE 1997 UFO PHENOMENA: SCPUK CONCLUSION

Here at South Coast Paranormal UK, we feel the Phoenix Lights incident remains one of the most compelling UFO events in modern history. While some aspects, such as the stationary lights, may have plausible military explanations, the earlier sightings of a massive, silent, V-shaped craft defy conventional understanding. The sheer volume of credible witnesses, including professionals and public officials, adds significant weight to the mystery.

As we explore phenomena like this, it's crucial to remain open-minded. While extra-terrestrial hypotheses inspire awe and curiosity, alternative possibilities, such as advanced military technology cannot be dismissed outright. Whether the Phoenix Lights were a glimpse of alien life, cutting-edge human innovation, or something else entirely, they serve as a reminder of how much we still have to learn about our universe.