Quick Info
On the morning of July 17, 1957, a U.S. Air Force RB-47 electronic reconnaissance jet was followed for over 700 miles and more than an hour and a half by an unidentified object. The crew saw it visually as a bright light, tracked it on airborne radar, had it picked up by ground radar, and watched it jam their electronic countermeasures equipment. It’s still considered one of the strongest and best-documented military UFO cases on record.
“We were all in agreement. This was not a star, not a planet, not another aircraft. It was something intelligent and under control that was pacing our plane for over an hour.”
- Crew statement after the event.
Six highly trained officers were on board. The object performed maneuvers no known aircraft could do at the time, and the entire encounter was backed up by multiple independent radar systems.
The Flight Begins
The RB-47E Stratojet took off from Forbes Air Force Base in Topeka, Kansas, on a routine training mission. The crew of six included pilot Major Lewis D. Chase, co-pilot Captain James H. McCoid, navigator Captain Thomas H. Hanley, and three electronic warfare officers: Captains John J. Provenzano, Frank B. McClure, and Walter A. Tuchscherer. Their job was to practice detecting enemy radar signals while flying a long route over the Gulf of Mexico and back across the southern United States.
First Contact Over the Gulf
Everything was normal until they were flying over the Gulf Coast. One of the ECM officers, Captain Frank McClure, picked up an unusual radar signal on his equipment. It was coming from an airborne source, something that shouldn’t have been there.
“The signal was definitely coming from an airborne source. It was unlike anything we had ever seen before. At times it would jam our equipment completely.”
— Captain Frank McClure, ECM Officer.
The Long Chase Across Multiple States
What followed was remarkable. For the next hour and a half, the object stayed with the RB-47 as it flew from Mississippi through Louisiana and Texas and into Oklahoma, a distance of more than 700 miles. The UFO would sometimes race ahead, sometimes drop behind, and at times circle the plane.
“It was moving at tremendous speed... It would go from our right to our left in what seemed like no time at all. Then it would stop and hover. No aircraft I know of could do that.”
— Major Lewis D. Chase, Pilot.
The crew described the object as a bright white or red light that occasionally appeared to change shape or intensity. At several points it came so close that the cockpit crew could see it clearly with the naked eye. Ground radar stations, including the one at Duncanville, Texas, also picked up the object and confirmed its position matched the airborne radar returns.
The Object Interferes with the Plane
Even more disturbing, the UFO began interfering with the RB-47’s sophisticated electronic countermeasures equipment. It would jam the signals or mimic them in ways the crew had never seen before.
Timeline of the Encounter
Here’s how the event unfolded according to the crew reports and official records:
- Between 3:00–4:00 a.m. – RB-47 on training mission over the Gulf of Mexico.
- Around 4:10 a.m. – First visual sighting of bright blue-white light racing toward the aircraft.
- 4:10–5:40 a.m. – Object paces the plane for over 700 miles across Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and into Oklahoma.
- Multiple times – Object performs rapid accelerations, sudden stops, and circles the RB-47.
- Throughout the event – Object appears on airborne radar, ground radar, and is seen visually by the cockpit crew.
- At Around 5:40 a.m. – Object finally breaks off and disappears near Oklahoma.
Project Blue Book’s Investigation
The Air Force investigated the case through Project Blue Book. At first they tried to explain it as an American Airlines flight, but that theory fell apart quickly, the timing, speed, and maneuvers didn’t match any known airliner. The case was ultimately left as “unidentified.” Later reviews by scientists like Dr. James McDonald called it one of the strongest cases in the Blue Book files because of the multiple independent detection methods.
Great video on this event from @ufob on YouTube
More videos from @ufob on YouTube
Why This Case Is Still Considered One of the Best
What makes the RB-47 incident so powerful is the combination of evidence: six highly trained military officers, simultaneous visual sightings, airborne radar returns, ground radar confirmation, and electronic interference, all happening in real time over a long distance. It’s one of the rare cases where the object was tracked by multiple independent systems and the witnesses were credible professionals who had nothing to gain by coming forward.
What Do You Think?
After reading all the details of this encounter, what’s your take? Do you think the RB-47 crew really encountered something unknown and highly advanced, or is there a more conventional explanation? If it was truly something extraordinary, why do you think the Air Force was never able to explain it? I think we all know the answer by now, but I’d love to hear your thoughts on this classic case.
