Kinross F-89 disappearance over Lake Superior
Air defense radar picked up an unidentified target over the restricted airspace near the Soo Locks. An F-89C Scorpion was scrambled from Kinross AFB, flown by 1st Lt. Felix Moncla with radar operator 2nd Lt. Robert Wilson. Ground controllers watched the fighter close on the target over Lake Superior at about 8,000 ft, until the two returns merged into one. The F-89 never answered again, and neither the aircraft nor its crew was ever found.
Explanation
The Air Force said the target was a Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 flying off course and that the F-89 probably crashed after the pilot became disoriented (vertigo). The RCAF denied any intercept took place, and no wreckage of the F-89 has ever been found.
What was seen
Shape: Unidentified radar target
Witnesses: Ground-control radar operators
Duration: About 30 minutes
Browse
- United States
- 1950s
- Unresolved
- Military encounters
- Official government documents
- Military witnesses
- Radar tracking