Coming in from the Cold

In 1947 Kenneth Arnold, a salesman from Boise, Idaho, was flying over Washington State in a private plane. Sometime around 3 p.m., Arnold saw a series of bright flashing lights and a group of nine flying objects moving in formation. He said the objects moved as though “skipping on water.” The media took the image and ran with it. The term “flying saucers” was born. This was the beginning of a wave of UFO sightings. During the following month, newspapers covered more than 850 UFO cases in over 90 cities across the U.S. and Canada. These reported sightings alarmed the U.S. national security establishment. Just what was going on in the skies over North America? Guests Ken Gause and Ralph Espach join Bill to discuss this wave of UFO sightings and the response of the U.S. Government.