Alien Base: The Evidence for Extraterrestrial Colonization of Earth – MILITARY INTELLIGENCE PREDILECTION
‘After Lt. J.’s crew had taken over,’ said Benton, ‘I proceeded aft and learned that most of the passengers had observed the same thing. Since I was unable to identify the object, I asked Dr M., Commander, US Navy, if he had observed the object. He replied that he had and that he did not look because it was a flying saucer and he did not believe in such things.’
I immediately returned to the cockpit and informed the crew to keep quiet about what we had observed because it might have been our first sighting of a saucer — during those years, when you mentioned you had such a sighting, you were believed to be crazy. Lt. J. informed me that it was too late because he had called Gander airfield in Newfoundland to see if the object could be tracked by radar.
When we landed at Argentia (Newfoundland), we were met by intelligence officers. The types of questions they asked us were like Henry Ford asking about the Model T. You got the feeling that they were putting words in your mouth. It was obvious that there had been many sightings in the same area, and most of the observers did not let the cat out of the bag openly. When we arrived in the United States, we had to make a full report to Naval Intelligence.
I found out a few months later that Gander radar did track the object in excess of 1,800 mph. . . During a two-hour interrogation by US Air Force intelligence officers, the pilots tried to obtain some information about the flying discs. ‘What’s behind all this?’ asked Lt. Cmdr. F.K. ‘Up to now, I believed the Air Force. You people say there aren’t any flying saucers. After a scare like that, we’ve got a right to know what’s going on.’
‘I’m sorry,’ replied the captain in charge of the interrogation, ‘I can’t answer any questions.’ The completed intelligence reports were flashed to four commanders, with an information copy to the Director of Naval Intelligence (DNI). After the aircraft reached its final destination at Patuxent Naval Air Station, Maryland, the crews were interviewed again, at the request of the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI).
Five days later, Benton received a phone call from a scientist in a government agency, asking for a meeting to discuss the sighting in more detail. Benton agreed. The following day the scientist turned up, showed his credentials, and listened intently to the pilot’s report. He then unlocked a dispatch case and took out some photographs. ‘Was it like any of these?’ he asked. At the third photo, Benton recognized the same type of craft he and the other crew members had seen. ‘That’s it,’ he said. ‘Somebody must know the answers, if you’ve got photographs of the things.’ Like the Air Force captain, the scientist apologized for being unable to discuss the matter, and left.
This is a lucid, compelling account by a senior career military aviator. The operational and technical intelligence collection methods described are squarely in line with ordinary practices of that time and later. Interestingly, the account describes how another aviator became alarmed because he was unable to accept the novelty of flying saucers — as many contemporary aviators still do not.