Kinross Incident
An F-89 Scorpion jet scrambled to intercept a UFO over Lake Superior disappeared entirely. Radar showed the two blips merge, then only the UFO remained. The plane was never found.
The Vanishing Jet
On November 23, 1953, an F-89C Scorpion jet was scrambled from Kinross AFB to intercept an unidentified radar target over Lake Superior. Radar operators watched in horror as the jet merged with the unknown object and vanished completely.
The Scramble
Emergency launch:
- Kinross Air Force Base
- Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
- F-89C Scorpion interceptor
- Radar target detected
- Scramble ordered
The Crew
Two airmen:
- First Lieutenant Felix Moncla Jr. (pilot)
- Second Lieutenant Robert Wilson (radar operator)
- Experienced crew
- Routine intercept
- Never returned
The Target
Unknown object:
- Detected on radar
- Over Lake Superior
- Moving erratically
- Unidentified
- Intercept ordered
The Pursuit
Tracked on radar:
- F-89 climbing
- Approaching target
- Ground controllers watching
- Vectoring pilot
- Closing distance
The Merge
What operators saw:
- Two blips approaching
- Merged into one
- Then one blip remained
- That blip continued
- F-89 blip gone
Immediate Search
Massive effort:
- Air search launched
- Lake surface searched
- Canadian assistance
- No wreckage found
- No bodies recovered
Official Explanation
Air Force stated:
- Pilot error
- Crashed into lake
- “Merged” with Canadian aircraft
- Later: Canadian plane wasn’t there
- Contradictory
The Canadian Aircraft
Later discovered:
- RCAF C-47 was in area
- But not at merge location
- Different altitude
- Different position
- Explanation failed
The Mystery
Never resolved:
- No wreckage
- No bodies
- No explanation
- Complete disappearance
- Total mystery
Lake Superior
Factors:
- Massive, deep lake
- Cold water
- Difficult recovery
- Wrecks preserved
- Still never found
Theories
Speculation includes:
- Mid-air collision
- Abduction
- Crash into lake
- Unknown
- Never proven
Freedom of Information
Later revelations:
- Some documents released
- Others withheld
- National security cited
- Ongoing secrecy
- Questions remain
Significance
An interceptor jet vanished while pursuing a UFO, with radar operators witnessing the apparent merger of aircraft and object.
Legacy
The Kinross Incident remains one of the most disturbing UFO cases—trained military radar operators watched a jet disappear while pursuing an unknown target, and neither crew nor aircraft were ever recovered.