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This FAA file, released through The Black Vault, collects correspondence and memos about the Japan Air Lines flight 1628 UFO report over Alaska on November 17, 1986. It includes Philip J. Klass's 1987 Skeptical Inquirer article, which attributes the sighting to Jupiter, Mars and moonlit ice clouds, and FAA Alaskan Region public affairs memos on the premature release of investigation material. It also contains Richard F. Haines's request for the case file and Paul Steucke's reply explaining the radar returns as uncorrelated targets.
Mr. Paul Steucke Public Affairs Officer Fed. Aviation Admin. PHILIP J. KLASS 404 "N "' ST . SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON. D . C . 20024 C202 l 15!54·15901 701 "C" St., Box 14 Anchorage, Alaska 99513 Dear Paul: R~+-c.lh. -2L, 1987 t L t. I \ r .. Your package of JAL-UFO goodies was waiting for me on my return from a ski vacation with friends in Switzerland, and I found it most interesting. Especially that Capt. Terauchi had two previous UFO sight- ings, which makes him a "UFO Repeater" and which automatically makes any of his UFO reports suspect to an experienced UFO investigator--even many of the "believers". Multiple UFO sightings (by one person) are sort of like multiple divorces. One is OK. (Even Jimmy Carter had one which turned out to be Venus.) Two makes one a bit cautious. But three or more--as in baseball--you're "out." (And, as we both know, Terauchi reported two more UFO sightings on Jan. 11, giving him a grand total of five--unless he has added to that figure since Jan. 11.) (And unless JAL has chastened him severe- ly, I would predict that Terauchi will see many, many more UFOs in the coming years, while most folks are not privileged to see even one.) A question: In Terauchi's own report on the incident (submitted to the FAA on Jan.2), he says that his original flight plan called for him to fly J-529 to Ft. Yukon, then J-125 via Nenana, and on to Talkeetna. But Terauchi th e n say s that "Anchorage orde r e d (authori zed) us to fly direct to Talkeetna." This would seem logical because of the very light traffic situation, and the fact that the JAL-747 was equipped with inertial nav systems and could save a little fuel by flyin g direct from Potat. However, the fl i ght path you shown on your ma r ked-up a e ro c har t shows the original route via VOR airways. QUESTION: Which is the correct flight path? I ncid enta lly, 20+ y e ars exp e ri e nc e in inve stigating UFO reports has shown tha t a witness obs e rving one "trigger-mechan- ism," whi ch disappears , can r eadi ly "glob" onto anoth e r light sourc e a nd believe it to be the same "UFO."
Document, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 41 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.