Former US fighter pilot claims he nearly collided with UFO in ‘wildest experience' he's ever had
A former US combat fighter pilot claims a UFO encounter he had while zipping around in the sky at 30,000 feet was one of the 'wildest experiences' he's had in his seasoned military career.
Maj. Ryan Bodenheimer, a former ace of the US Air Force Thunderbirds and F-15E combat fighter pilot, recounted on his YouTube channel earlier this month how he came close to almost colliding with a UFO shaped like a 'perfect rectangle' while on a training mission in southern Wyoming.
Bodenheimer alleged that he was flying during the day at about 30,000 feet in the sky, at a speed of 400 knots (460 mph), when a 'bright object' caught his attention off in the distance, 'out of nowhere.'
4 US Air Force Maj. Ryan Bodenheimer, United States Air Force Thunderbirds pilot #2 speaks with JROTC students at Vanden High School, Fairfield, Calif., on May 5, 2017.
U.S. Air Force
However, Bodenheimer realized that the object was on a 'collision course' with his aircraft.
'I put my hand on the control stick, I'm about to turn off the autopilot, and then I realized we weren't going to hit, and all of a sudden it came more into view, and it was a rectangular shape,' he said. 'This was like essentially a perfect rectangle.'
He claims the object appeared to be '30 to 40 feet' high, with 'bright white' along the outside edges that looked to be 'glowing' and a clear center.
'I know it sounds like I'm talking about a delicious pastry, but this was the wildest experience I've ever had,' the former fighter pilot said.
Bodenheimer, for a moment, theorized that the object could be a weather balloon, but he claimed that it didn't look like anything he had ever seen in the sky before.
4 Bodenheimer alleged that he was flying during the day at about 30,000 feet in the sky, at a speed of 400 knots (460 mph), when a 'bright object' caught his attention off in the distance, 'out of nowhere.'
Youtube / Max Afterburner
'There's no wings on this thing, no exhaust. The edges were so bright they were pulsing. Aerodynamically, this thing shouldn't be going at close to 400 knots. For a rectangle to be flying through the air was a wild experience,' he said.
He said that he wasn't picking up any signal on his radar and wasn't experiencing any radio interference as it kept pace with his jet at 400 knots just a short distance away.
'It really was defying any type of aeronautical laws that I've learned,' Bodenheimer shared.
The suspected UFO then 'zooms off,' and Bodenheimer said he called into air traffic control to report the encounter.
4 Bodenheimer claims the object appeared to be '30 to 40 feet' high, with 'bright white' along the outside edges that looked to be 'glowing' and a clear center.
Air Force Thunderbirds
4 Bodenheimer maneuvers his F-16 Fighting Falcon on the flight line at Langley Air Force Base, Va., on April 24, 2016.
U.S. Air Force
After telling the controller what happened, he said there was a 'dead silence' before they told the fighter pilot they'd have other aircraft be on the lookout for the object.
'I never heard anything about it [after],' the former fighter pilot said.
However, he did do some searching of his own and said there was a report filed that day on an 'anomalous object' spotted in his area.
Bodenheimer said for years he never wanted to discuss his two run-ins with UFOs after worrying about the 'stigma' around other pilots who have shared their encounters.
However, the pilot-turned-YouTuber said that since the stigma has dissipated, he is more comfortable opening up about his experience, with more reports of military pilots encountering UFO-like objects in the sky over the last two decades.
Southern Wyoming is notoriously known for having some of the most UFO sightings in the country, according to the Cowboy State Daily.
The city of Cheyenne, which is home to Warren Air Force Base, has had over 50 reported aerial phenomena, out of the state's 421 sightings since 1995.
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