Revisiting The 1994 Nellis Air Force Base UFO Video

For a while now, the 1994 Nellis Air Force Base UFO video has interested me.

Some recent commentary from ATS members got me thinking about this again & I can’t find much recent commentary out there regarding this video.

I am very interested to know the current thoughts of ATS members who might still be giving some thought to this.

It appears to be one of the very few videos that withstands some level of scrutiny.

A recent comment from a member that it is obviously "a bug filmed at night", with reference to the time stamp got me thinking......

Another member claiming to be a "trained observer" stated it is "obviously" a helicopter......

Here’s a well known version of the video:




Here's a well known report written about this video:

homepage.ntlworld.com...

homepage.ntlworld.com...

homepage.ntlworld.com...

Should I also consign this video to the "trash bin" of ufology?

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not



[edit on 3-1-2010 by Maybe...maybe not]


MOD EDIT:
Added video per OP's request.


[edit on May 8th 2010 by greeneyedleo]

[edit on 7/31/2010 by semperfortis]

I had forgotten about this video.

I dont think it is a helicopter. Although, you never know. I wish I had more technical knowledge when it came to video like this.

Great post!!

(add: And of course, its out in the desert somewhere!)

[edit on 3-1-2010 by InertiaZero]

Hi Maybe...maybe not,
congratulations on your first thread.
Thank you very much for the cool links in your op, they are a good read.
I`m curious how this thread will pan out.

Good luck and hopefully many replies.

derpif

reply to post by Maybe...maybe not


The video is odd for sure. I can also see in some frames where the 'trained observer' might think that it was a helicopter. But more frames than show a far different craft.
Interested in looking to see if the base has had additional activity as the UFO hovering experiences seem to continue in these areas over and over.

I was hearing some time ago that it may have been something to do with lasers or some sort of directed energy beam that terminates in plasma ball. In fact, I may have read about it on ATS wwaaaaay back when ATS had the topic boards where you can go through all the interesting pages and stuff. Does ATS still have those library sections?

Originally posted by InertiaZero
I had forgotten about this video.

I dont think it is a helicopter. Although, you never know. I wish I had more technical knowledge when it came to video like this.

Great post!!

(add: And of course, its out in the desert somewhere!)

G'day InertiaZero

It doesn't look much like a helicopter to me, either.

As I recall:

According to the "trained observer", the "sunlight reflecting off the rotor" accounted for the weird visual effects.

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not

Originally posted by GenRadek
I was hearing some time ago that it may have been something to do with lasers or some sort of directed energy beam that terminates in plasma ball. In fact, I may have read about it on ATS wwaaaaay back when ATS had the topic boards where you can go through all the interesting pages and stuff. Does ATS still have those library sections?

G'day GenRadek

Thanks for your interesting reply.

I recall the "lasers combusting atmospheric air" explanation being offered in a few different UFO cases.

I don't think the appearance of the object in the video supports this explanation. It looks a little too "solid" for that.

I am also unaware of any strongly referenced material that supports the existance of that technology.

I'll see what I can find.

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not

This video is definitely one that has stood the test of time these last few years. To this day I have yet to hear an explanation of what the object might be. We know for sure that the object is there and not just some camera artifact, sun glare or something else as the object registers a radar echo return in the video segment.

It's truly fascinating.

Originally posted by Jocko Flocko
This video is definitely one that has stood the test of time these last few years. To this day I have yet to hear an explanation of what the object might be. We know for sure that the object is there and not just some camera artifact, sun glare or something else as the object registers a radar echo return in the video segment.

It's truly fascinating.

G'day Jocko Flocko

That's why I posted my comments regarding the "bug" explanation & the "helicopter" explanation.....those are the only explanations I've heard of.

However, both were not referenced to any source material or discussion.

I'm hoping some of the renowned ATS "heavy hitters" will jump in here with some information & opinions.

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not.

It looks like some of the UAV's they have been testing for on site, high altitude battlefield vision. They are vertical take off vehicles that can hover, move in multiple directions, stay in flight for much longer than you think and don't look like any craft currently used right now.

I saw a show on them not to long ago...and it looks much like what they were showing. Could be a 2nd or 3rd stage prototype of a UAV.

Basically a short range, non armed, vision only version of the Predator Drone they use in the middle east.



[edit on 3-1-2010 by 750Aero]

IMO its the most legitimate video of a UFO ever made public.

However due to its complete lack of sourcing or witnesses who would come forward to attest to its veracity, it will remain forever a curiosity of this subject. A really good curiosity at that, but unfortunately that isn't good enough to lift the veil on this secret.

I can certainly understand the authors of the video not coming forward. Government reprisal would likely be quite swift if a UFO cover-up is actually taking place. I suspect this video has enough identifiable markings on it that the witnesses who recorded it have met with some feedback. Now as to who actually leaked the video, I certainly hope nothing happened to them for performing this public service.


[edit on 3-1-2010 by Frith]

reply to post by Maybe...maybe not


Helicopter, maybe... However it's one of the most maneuverable helicopters I have ever seen and one of the strangest looking.

A Bug? Absolutely not. A bug wouldn't register a radar echo return. It's something solid or metallic to be registering on the terminals radar in such a way.

Originally posted by 750Aero
It looks like some of the UAV's they have been testing for on site, high altitude battlefield vision. They can hover, move in multiple directions, stay in flight for much longer than you think and don't look like any craft currently used right now.

I saw a show on them not to long ago...and it looks much like what they were showing. Could be a 2nd or 3rd stage prototype of a UAV.

G'day 750Aero

One wonders what classified 360 deg / vertical / horizontal maneuverable UAV technology was being tested back in 1994.

Here are some comparative pictures of the object & several recent UAV's, for our mutual pondering.

Object:

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/b3ad9700ca8e.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/6022df594a21.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/d8427ac178f3.jpg[/atsimg]

Recent UAV's:

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/516c2f57be34.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/f6e47dc9930d.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/0722a209989d.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/f60815fc60d9.jpg[/atsimg]

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not

I don't know enough about that video to take any decision, but one thing sure bugs me...

The person who talks about the helicopter seems to forget one thing: the time of filming shows 23:20... There's no sun at that time! Unless of course it is not the correct time.

Originally posted by Jocko Flocko
reply to post by Maybe...maybe not

 

Helicopter, maybe... However it's one of the most maneuverable helicopters I have ever seen and one of the strangest looking.

A Bug? Absolutely not. A bug wouldn't register a radar echo return. It's something solid or metallic to be registering on the terminals radar in such a way.

G'day Jocko Flocko

I agree with you - the echo return (see the picture below) excludes the "bug" option.

I also reconsidered the time issue that I mentioned (i.e. it's a bug at night.....look at the time stamp).

The time stamp shows a time around 2330 UTC (also see the picture below)

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/b3ad9700ca8e.jpg[/atsimg]

However the report states that UTC time converted to local time calculates to 1628 PST, which is about 20 minutes prior to sunset. i.e. it's not night time!

Extract from report posted above:

If this date is correct, the encounter would have taken place about an hour before local sunset, which occurred at 1628 PST.16 The S-13 footage would have been taken about 20 minutes before sunset.

The time & radar issues seem to "kill the bug" option....pun intended

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not

Originally posted by SpookyVince
I don't know enough about that video to take any decision, but one thing sure bugs me...

The person who talks about the helicopter seems to forget one thing: the time of filming shows 23:20... There's no sun at that time! Unless of course it is not the correct time.

G'day SpookyVince

I just covered that time issue in my last post.

I beat you by just a couple of minutes!

Kind regards
Maybe...maybe not

[edit on 4-1-2010 by Maybe...maybe not]

Originally posted by Maybe...maybe not
G'day 750Aero

One wonders what classified 360 deg / vertical / horizontal maneuverable UAV technology was being tested back in 1994.

Who knows what they were testing back then....however given the time frame between what they are testing and what we actually get to see....it's well within the realm of possiblity.

By most peoples accounts there is a 20-30 year difference between the development/deployment of top secret aircraft and other weapons and the time we get to see them.

However....I'm doubting UFO in this instance and putting my money on a UAV.

Originally posted by 750Aero

Originally posted by Maybe...maybe not
G'day 750Aero

One wonders what classified 360 deg / vertical / horizontal maneuverable UAV technology was being tested back in 1994.

Who knows what they were testing back then....however given the time frame between what they are testing and what we actually get to see....it's well within the realm of possiblity.

By most peoples accounts there is a 20-30 year difference between the development/deployment of top secret aircraft and other weapons and the time we get to see them.

However....I'm doubting UFO in this instance and putting my money on a UAV.

G’day 750Aero

The report states this regarding the UAV option as pertains to movement:

The manner in which the Nellis UFO is seen to manoeuvre with 'confidence' suggests that it may have the ability to operate autonomously, i.e. with a built-in level of 'intelligence'. It may even have wandered out of bounds by its 'own' mistake. John Velez likened the Nellis UFO's behaviour to that of a fly, and this is certainly a good comparison when one examines its movement and the way it appears to respond to its environment.9 The physical and behavioural similarity to an insect has much in common with the new generation of 'micro-air robots', some of which are based on the principles of insect flight.

American military UAV projects developed in recent years include Predator, Dark Star and Global Hawk and they are now well known, although they were developed in great secrecy.11 Whilst they are certainly weird looking, they still retain the basic structural components of a typical aircraft - wings, fuselage, etc. Other UAVs, such as the Sikorsky Cypher and the Canadair Sentinel, are unconventional in appearance but are made of conventional materials. The structure of the Nellis object, on the other hand, is far removed from any known aircraft flying today. Its component parts appear flexible and they can activate very rapidly. Put in conventional terms, this 'aerial robot' appears to combine lighter-than-air technology with a unique form of vectored thrust.

Recent articles have claimed that research is currently underway (primarily at Groom Lake) into many new and bizarre sounding technologies. Two such examples are electrochromatic panelling (rendering the object invisible to ground observers by special use of camera projections) and holographic projection (causing distortion of its apparent size to a ground observer).13 The strange, almost luminous nature of the Nellis object suggests that it may involve these or any other combination of new technologies.

According to an official statement by the Pentagon in 1996, "…Some specific activities and operations conducted on the Nellis Range both past and present remain classified and cannot be discussed." If the history of black projects is anything to go by, the truth about the Nellis UFO may not be known for some 20 years or more.

The report states this regarding size:

Any attempts to estimate the object's size are complicated because of the uncertainty of its distance throughout most of the S-30 footage. However, for the purposes of this exercise it is reasonable to assume that the range data is accurate when the object is between 12795m and 11705m from the tracking station. Since this occurs before the camera zooms in, and the width of one degree in azimuth is known, the object's height can be estimated by triangulation, and is found to be 8.7m ± 2.5. The object does not present a clear side or front view during the early period of the footage, so these dimensions were estimated from carefully selected still shots, using the height as a starting point. Its length was found to be 11.6m ± 3.5 and its width was 12.3m ± 3.7.

Here are some tracking charts:

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/7596e46b0a78.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/659f3694b9ff.gif[/atsimg]

Kind regards
Maybe…maybe not

I myself am a helicopter mechanic and here we have hueys, cobras, CH-46's, CH-53's harriers, F-18's, Prowlers, C-130's and UAV's. I have never seen any of the helicopters move like that at all except for 1 occasion where I saw a 46 slide left at a pretty good speed, but it only looks like a 46 for a brief period in the video. At 1:41 you can see its not like any helicopter I've ever seen, but it does looks similar to the UAV pictures maybe... maybe not posted. I haven't seen any of the UAV's here fly or do anything so I can't give a personal opinion on that, but I can tell you 100% for sure thats not a helicopter. Any who has seen a helicopter fly knows theres no way a helicopter flies like that. I'm going to have to say its an early test UAV or a UFO.

Don't you just love how the die-hard skeptics on this forum pick and choose the topics they try and debunk? They always seem to pick the easy ones, the ones most skeptical believers like myself already know through common sense and logic are bogus. Throw one like this amazing incident into the ATS mix and it's completely ignored...