by Charles Lear, author of “The Flying Saucer Investigators.”In Part I of this blog, we looked at a case from 1968 that involved sightings of a UFO on October 24, 1968, by ground observers stationed at the ICBM missile complex surrounding Minot AFB in North Dakota. A B-52 was flying in the area and the pilot was requested to change course and investigate. The result was a UFO encounter that was caught on photographs of the B-52 radarscope and the pilot, Maj. James A. Partin, and co-pilot, Captain Bradford Runyon, reported that they’d had a visual sighting of the object when it was on the ground. In addition to the sightings, it was reported that the outer and inner perimeter alarms of the missile site designated Oscar-7 went off and that a padlocked entry hatch there was found open with a plug-style gate secured by a padlock removed from it. The case was officially examined by the officer in charge of UFO investigations at the base, Lt. Col. Arthur Werlich. He provided details and evidence to Project Blue Book, and they concluded that what was seen was possibly a combination of “anomalous propagation” of radar returns, a plasma ball, and celestial bodies. They also concluded that the break-in was unrelated. The case lay dormant for 30 years until Runyon contacted the Center for UFO Studies and filled out a sighting report form. The case caught the interest of members of the newly formed Sign Historical Group and they did a thorough investigation that included many interviews with witnesses. They’ve made material they gathered available as part of the Sign Oral History Project on a website devoted to the case. In Part II, we’ll look at the key elements of the case that they uncovered. Read more →