The Kinross Incident
A US Air Force interceptor vanished over Lake Superior in 1953 after its radar blip merged with that of an unidentified target.
- Region
- Michigan
- Country
- USA
- Category
- UFO
- Date
- 23 November 1953
- Continent
- North America
The report
On the evening of 23 November 1953 radar operators at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, detected an unidentified target over Lake Superior near the Soo Locks. An F-89C Scorpion from Kinross Air Force Base, flown by Lieutenant Felix Moncla with radar operator Lieutenant Robert Wilson, was sent to intercept it. Ground controllers saw the two blips merge into one, which then disappeared from the screen. Radio contact was lost, and American and Canadian searches found no trace of the aircraft or its crew. The Air Force report concluded that Moncla probably crashed into the lake while intercepting a Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 that had strayed off course, but the Canadian pilot disputed that his aircraft was off course, and the case has remained a popular UFO story.
Sources and further reading
Location
46.5033, -84.35