8 September 1976
(Huron Daily Tribune, Bad Axe, Michigan
Sources: U.F.O.
Newsclipping Service, Seattle Washington
The whole article (Page 1):
“Official confirmation of ‘radar returns’ on the
scopes at the 754th Radar Squadron in Port Austin, at the same time private
citizens and police officers claimed they saw unidentified flying objects (UFOs)
southwest of the village, has come from the U.S. Air Force NORAD Combat
Operation Center in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado.
As many as seven or eight bright glowing objects that
changed color, shape, and moved horizontally and vertically at incredible
speeds were sighted early Tuesday (7 September 1976) by the manager of a
campground located eight miles southwest of Port Austin.
The initial sightings were made in the nearby Oak Beach
Two Huron Sheriff deputies also reported watching the
objects for several minutes at altitudes ranging (based on estimates) from as
high as 40,000 feet
and as low as 1,000 feet .
One of the deputies, 24-year-old Greg Gordon of Port
Austin, attempted to photograph the objects with an instamatic camera carried
as standard equipment in the patrol car. The objects vanished at daybreak, but
the officers said their sudden disappearance from the radar scopes at Port Austin
coincided exactly with the sounding of the electronic burglar alarm at the Air
Force station store (PX).
Although the Air Force has a reputation for reluctance
in making comments relative to UFO sightings, the following official statement
was released Tuesday afternoon through the local installation by information
officer Lt. Robert W. Newman:
‘Radar Operators at the 754th Radar Squadron at Port
Austin AFS, MI, reported seeing radar returns at approximately 0145 hours
E.D.T.
‘The returns were kept under observation for
approximately 30 minutes. Some personnel on duty also visually sited lights in
the sky in the same approximate area.
‘The NORAD Combat Operation
Center located in Cheyenne Mountain , Colorado
On Tuesday night, a predictable number of new
sightings were reported mainly in the Bad Axe area, but these were believed
either to be stars and possibly a lighted weather satellite visible as it
passes through the sky on clear nights.
No plausible explanation has been given for the
objects observed early Tuesday.”
Wikipedia article: “Port Austin Air Force Station”:
Quote from the Wikipedia article:
“Port Austin Air Force Station (ADC ID: P-61, NORAD
ID: Z-61) is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar
station. It is located 1.2
miles (1.9
km ) south-southwest Port Austin, Michigan. It was closed
in 1988 by the Air Force.
After the station’s closure, it was replaced by the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) at Canton, Michigan (near Detroit)
42°16′36″N 083°28′27″W as part of the Joint Surveillance System (JSS),
designated by NORAD as Eastern Air Defense Sector (EADS) Ground Equipment
Facility J-62.”
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