22+ Witnesses Observe a UFO Larger than a Football Stadium
Yukon Territory, CanadaInvestigated by Martin Jasek, M.Sc., P. Eng.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Added to report - January 2000
Why has it taken almost 3 years for this case to be made public?Actually, two of the witnesses (FOX2 and FOX3) did approach a local radio station (CHON FM) the day after the event (Dec 12, 1996) and their interviews did get on the air. However, that is as far as it went. The author was not aware of this broadcast at the time.
In 1998, witness CRM1 placed an anonymous call to Lorraine Bretlyn, another Yukon UFO investigator and mentioned that his sighting in Carmacks occurred the same evening as the Fox Lake sighting that he heard described on the radio. This was our first clue that a large UFO was seen, by multiple witnesses, and in multiple locations. However, all we knew at that point in time was that the incident occurred in the last few years and in winter conditions.
On January 28th, 1999 FOX2 called us to describe his sighting at Fox Lake. The call was spurred by a local news paper article describing some unrelated UFO cases. He mentioned that many of the Fox Lake witnesses had stopped in at Braeburn Lodge and described their sighting to lodge owner Steve Watson. Steve Watson was interviewed and he confirmed that fact and was able to give us about three additional witness names. These witnesses were contacted and they in turn provided additional witness names, etc until we had a total of 22.
The time period between January and October 1999 was used to locate these other witnesses, interview them, obtain their drawings, and put this report together. This was complicated by the facts that most of the witnesses live a 2 to 3 hours' drive from the City of Whitehorse where the investigation is based and some of the witnesses did not posses telephones.
Why are the drawings and descriptions of the UFO different? Did the witnesses see the same UFO or maybe different ones?
Yes we agree many of the drawings do look different. It could have been different UFOs but there could be other reasons for the differences in the drawings and descriptions:
1. It was two to three years ago from the time the sighting occurred to when the witnesses were asked to make their drawings. Memories do change.
2. Perhaps witnesses at different locations saw different sides of the UFO that may have had a different number/configuration of lights. The distance to the UFO also varied so those further away would not see certain details.
3. Different witnesses spent different amount of time on their drawings.
Some paid a lot of attention to detail while others just provided a quick sketch. Some drawings were constructed in just seconds while others and one in particular probably over 5 minutes. Artistic talent varied.
4. The UFO may have had certain lights turned off and certain lights turned on during that evening. It may have varied the "on lights" and "off lights" between the times when various witnesses observed it.
Note: Drawings by FOX2, FOX3, FOX4 and FOX5 were very similar with the minor differences that could easily be attributable to points 1, 2 and 3 above. All these witnesses were aware of the time that their sighting took place and it has therefore been established that these four were observing the same UFO at the same time. The differences in drawings of PEL2 and PEL3 could be mostly attributable to points 1 and 3. The differences between the drawing of PEL1 and the other Pelly witnesses may be attributable to points 2 and 4.
5. Points 2, 3 and 4 do not explain the differences in drawings by witnesses who were together during the sighting. To provide some explanation for this, one may consider the following. All the witnesses observed the UFO anywhere from one minute to several minutes. During their observation the UFO traversed a considerable distance across the sky thereby changing their perspective view of it. It likely looked much different from the different angles that it was observed. Each witness was asked to draw the UFO. One would suppose that each witness would pluck one image from their mind that corresponded to one of these perspectives. They would likely choose the one image that had the largest impression on them. This may explain the differences between the drawings of CRM1 and CRM2, and also between PEL6 and PEL7.
How do we know that the witnesses are not making it up?
The answer lies in the demeanor of the witnesses in their interviews. Only two witnesses approached the media or a UFO investigator, the remaining 20 had to be sought after. Once found, they were reluctant to talk. However, when they were assured that their identity would be kept from being made public, they opened up. As they were describing their sighting, apprehension was replaced by excitement. It was like reliving the experience with them. This behavior is not consistent with someone making up a story.
If it were an orchestrated hoax by all these people they would not had sat around for someone to show up at their door until two and a half years later. It is not likely that they would have arranged to stop consecutively at Braeburn Lodge and tell a made-up UFO story to the lodge owner.
With some of these witnesses I have met several times, often invited into their homes. I have got to know them fairly well and consider many of them as friends. Among the ones I have met frequently are FOX1, FOX2, FOX3, FOX4, FOX5, PEL1 and PEL2. I can guarantee to you on a personal level that these people are telling the truth as they recall it. Even the ones I only met on one occasion, their demeanor was consistent with that of on honest person confronted with something that they seen that they could not explain in terms of conventional means.
A related question: is the investigator making this story up? This is equally improbable, as I would be risking loosing my credibility as a professional and risking my future employment and livelihood for my myself and my family.
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