Five of the Most Important American UFO Cases

UFO phenomenon fascinates us for decades now. In 1947, American Kenneth Arnold became the UFO eyewitness to kick off the term 'flying saucer' itself. Before then however, there were many UFO sightings, and many fascinating ones were reported thereafter. No matter what you think of UFOs, fact is people see them all over the world. UFOs intrigue, baffle, or even disturb those who study them. Though clearly a worldwide phenomenon, here are some of the most important American UFO cases.

The Battle of Los Angeles 1942 - Multiple Witnesses - Military Fired On UFO

Did the U.S. Military violently battle an airborne craft of another world? Nobody can prove it, but on a February evening in 1942, the skies over Los Angeles blazed with anti-aircraft fire targeting a flying object. The guns fired on something, but what? Only a few months after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, thousands of people saw this raging battle. It caused so much shrapnel to be fired into the air, six people died as a result.

Roswell - 1947 - Multiple Eyewitnesses - Army Verified (Later Retracted)

Despite now near mythological status, Roswell remains one of the most intriguing, but thoroughly confusing American UFO cases. It's certainly the most famous, and arguably most important UFO incident in world history. There have been so many players, key witnesses, books, TV shows and movies on the subject. It's a herculean effort to piece together even a basic framework on subject clarity to educate the casual UFO scholar. What's indisputable, and a matter of historical record, is that something crashed, and or exploded over the skies of Roswell, New Mexico. It left a debris field which the United States Army initially stated was a "recovered flying disc", but hours later retracted the statement, claiming it was just a weather balloon.

Betty & Barney Hill - 1961 - Multiple Witnesses - Extraterrestrial Abduction

Alien abduction of Betty and Barney Hill remains one of the earliest and weirdly compelling of any claiming to have had a Close Encounter Of The Fourth Kind - named for scientist Dr. J. Allen Hynek's UFO classification. Husband and wife Barney and Betty, after undergoing hypnosis, reported they encountered a space craft, while driving home from vacation one night on a lonely road. That it was a multiple witness case, in which parties involved were respected members of the community - Barney, a postal worker, and Betty, a social worker - is convincing enough. However, what may be most persuasive, and certainly disturbing, are audio tapes of the hypnosis sessions. When you hear Barney Hill scream so emotionally, as he relates watching "creatures" coming for him and his wife, it's an unforgettable experience.

Lonnie Zamora - 1964 - Police Officer Witness - Physical Evidence

We trust our respected law enforcement officers. So it's not a surprise that when New Mexico Officer Lonnie Zamora reported a weird craft blasting off into the sky - right in front of him - people took notice and listened to him. During a car chase after a speeder, Zamora encountered an oval shaped craft, with two small adults or 'children' nearby. Zamora remembered that one of these 'children' became alarmed once it saw him, and soon after the craft roared up into the heavens, a bluish flame blasting out from its underside.

Cash-Landrum Incident - 1980 - Multiple Witnesses - Health Related Injuries

Driving home from dinner, friends Betty Cash and Vickie Landrum, along with Landrum's 7 year old grandson Colby, claim to have encountered a huge "diamond" shaped flying craft, which spewed plumes of fiery radiation down upon them. Later, all witnesses suffered physical ailments; including skin blisters, Cash's hair fell out in clumps, and Colby felt nausea, and intense thirst immediately following the weird incident. They were so adversely affected, they even sued the U.S. Federal Government, but weren't successful in a legal pursuit for answers to the night's highly troubling encounter.

Honorable Mention: Travis Walton - 1975 - Multiple Witnesses - Alien Abduction

Fire In The Skyis a feature film based on Travis Walton's book, The Walton Experience, claiming he was abducted by aliens in Arizona. Though co-workers claim to have seen Walton taken, his UFO experience happened alone, aboard a ship full of odd creatures.

http://www.ufocasebook.com/Zamora.html

http://www.ufocasebook.com/battleoflosangeles2.html

http://www.ufocasebook.com/Hill.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash-Landrum_incident