I had a best friend for years and years who earlier worked at Nellis (Groom Base) in the mid 80s as an electronic tech on the “Wobbly Goblin” as they referred to it then (I did manage to get that out of him after they were declassified). He told me, in a very oblique and circumspect way, that he saw some sort of aircraft on the taxiway right after his commuter flight from McCarren, that absolutely left his jaw drop. I know he was told to forget about ever seeing it. My impression from his body language was that it was something really far out, not just a new generation of stealth fighter or something. I asked him if I would recognize it as an aircraft, but I didn’t get an answer. Wish I would have got a chance to visit one of those Area 51 overlooks before they were closed.
It was after a line of really bad thunderstorms had passed, and the weather report said another front was on its way. (Mid-Michigan, typical summer weather.)
I went outside to scan the sky for tornados (having seen one heading my way in similar weather, which fortunately broke up before getting too close).
While scanning the sky (clear blue sky, with a few "after the storm" type clouds) I saw a black dot on the western horizon, perhaps a quarter or half mile to the north. My first thought was "bird" -- but, it didn't seem to be moving. My second thought was "idiot with kite, sheesh!"
After a few minutes, though, I noticed that it was slowly moving closer to me. Back to "bird?" -- or, "kite, with broken string?"
As it was moving toward the east, it was also moving slightly to the south, and, losing altitude (when first spotted, it was, rough guess, two or three thousand feet up).
By the time it was nearly at my east/west position, it had gotten far enough to the south that it was nearly overhead -- and, only a few hundred feet in altitude.
It was obvious by then that it was neither a kite nor a bird. It was roughly the size of a fighter jet -- black -- silent -- NO engine ports, intakes, propellers, or vertical stabilizers.
It was nearly round -- a rounded triangle shape, with a sharp notch in the rear. It had a small cabin on top.
It was meandering around the sky, it reminded me of a fish slowly swimming -- nose was always pointed in the direction it was moving, but it was moving VERY slow -- not more than perhaps 5MPH or thereabouts. Just wandering around aimlessly -- and, drifting to the east.
It was also rocking from side to side, like a rowboat. (That was why I was able to notice that there was a cabin on top.)
I ran inside, got a spotting scope but, it was so humid outside that the lens immediately fogged up with a thick heavy coat (house had AC running). Wiped it off and it instantly re-coated. Ran back in, got a monocular (half a binocular, that had been converted into a monocular) -- same deal. So, I just kept eyeballing it.
Shortly after it passed my east/west position, the easterly drift picked up speed, and within about thirty seconds it was gone over the eastern horizon.
Fast-forward a few years...
I am in a social setting, having casual conversation with some folks, one of which is a fairly high-ranking officer (I won't mention the branch of military, other than "USA"). I thought, hmm, I wonder if he'd know what it was?
So, I decided to ask. I described what I saw, and asked if he knew what it was.
Now is where it gets interesting. This guy was a bit of an extrovert -- a "life of the party" type guy. Well, he instantly froze in his tracks -- got this really worried look on his face -- and blurted out something like, "I don't know what it is. It's not one of ours. That's all I can tell you." and then silence. Dead silence. Everyone just sat there freaked out, because his reaction was so weird -- so completely out of character for him. It took a while before anyone said anything, and eventually things got back to normal.
Fast forward a day. I am talking with the woman who was his dinner date (she, a licensed psychologist, employed by the government). She tells me that it freaked her out too -- so, after they were alone, she asked him what it was. She thought that without all those other people there, he'd be more open.
She said he went right back into that same routine, clammed up, and refused to discuss it.
So, you tell me.
I don't talk about this too much. I don't like getting ridiculed. But, I know what I saw. Or, rather, I know that I saw "something". It was NOT "a light in the sky" or "the planet Venus" or "a stealth fighter" (one suggestion that someone once offered up as an explanation). Stealth fighters have engines -- and, they need to move to stay airborne!
If you check my posting history, you'll see that I've been here for quite a few years, and that I am not a bullshitter. I'm not making this up. I did see what I described, but I have no idea what it was.