Dam UFOs.

[Karl12]

The translated links have long since been taken down but there's a pretty crazy military UFO incident described below from Uruguay in 1986 where two Pucara fighter aircraft were sent up to intercept a strange luminous object hovering over Palmar Dam which flew off at a 'dizzying rate of speed' as the aircraft approached.

When the pilots returned to base the object reappeared in the same place and the aircraft yet again attempted (and failed) to intercept the object.

Colonel Ariel Sanchez, head of the Uruguayan Air Force UFO Office goes into more detail about how the object changed colours from yellow to orange to red as it increased its acceleration and also mentions how a power blackout of Montevideo occurred at the same time of the incident due to the overheating of a power line which was directly underneath the spot where the UFO was witnessed.

UFO chase over Palmar Dam

Unsolved cases have a considerable high strangeness quotient for the FAU. For example, the 1986 pursuit by two Pucara jet fighters over the Palmar Dam in response to the maneuvers of a luminous sphere. The pilots joined together and decided to chase it. When they were about to intercept it, the sphere flew off at a dizzying rate of speed toward Argentina and could not be reached. When the pilots returned to their base, the sphere reappeared over the dam. But the same thing occurred - the chase occurred and it vanished from sight, changing colors from red to yellow.

• Excerpt of Interview with Colonel Ariel Sanchez.

Among those 40 cases with a high Level of Strangeness which one caught your attention the most? Could you describe it?



The most shocking events involved Uruguayan aircraft pursuing a UFO. It occurred mainly in 1986. Two military aircraft tried to intercept a UFO which entered Uruguayan airspace without authorization. I believe the Official UFO Night in Brazil occurred in the same year and month (19 May 1986).



Do you believe this UFO pursuit in Uruguay was part of the same phenomenon seen in Brazil (When more than 20 round-shaped UFOs of around 100m in diameter jammed radars of several capitals in South-Eastern Brazil)?



I would have to check the dates in our files, but it is possible. It was around 20h30 when those two fighters I’ve mentioned tried to approach an object maneuvering over a dam. They tried twice to reach the UFO. They didn’t succeed because the object managed to escape maneuvering at great speed which our aircraft could not follow.



What were the procedures adopted in the investigation of this case?



We collected all the flight data such as the type of our aircraft, duration and speed of their flight, etc, then we had a thorough interview with the pilots. They were four pilots aboard two Argentine-made FMAIA 58 Pucara — a two-turboprop-engined aircraft for fast combat. (Pucara means fortress in Quechua language. This aircraft was often used during the war over the Falklands). The Pucara reached a 400 to 500/h speed but the UFO was much faster. We estimate it to be at around 1.000 km/h. That was double our speed if not more.



Besides the incredible speed did the UFO display any other signals of a possible extraordinary origin?



Yes. A peculiar thing was seeing the object changing colors while increasing its acceleration. It went from yellow to orange then turned red. It moved away at an enormous speed until it disappeared from our sight. In a second attempt to intercept it, the object did the same thing: when the Pucara got closer, the UFO vanished at an incredible speed towards the West. Without much they could do the pilots simply quit the pursuit and returned to the base.



For how long did they try to intercept the UFO in that second attempt?



Just for a few minutes, because it vanished when the pilots tried to approach. Strangely enough, the object always returned to the same spot after our aircraft moved away — as if it were playing with our crewmen. There was a moment when the UFO was surrounding the dam and our pilots tried to reach it with a fast maneuver - one with a 30 or 40-second response



Then what happened?



When the object noticed the maneuver it moved away to the West at a high speed.



What happened to the pilots after such an experience?



Due to the stress they cancelled their training and returned to the Durazno Air Base (FAU’s most important site, located in the middle of the country). By getting there they reported the event to the officials. At the same time they learned that Montevideo had been hit by a blackout. It lasted for a few minutes and affected the whole city. It was due to the overheating of a power line which came from the exact spot where the UFO was seen over the dam. I should add that the Durazno base is where pilot trainings are mostly held. There are many different aircraft stationed there.



Did Cridovni consider one fact against the other? That is, did you associate the UFO over the dam with the blackout in Montevideo?



Yes. We believed the object must have affected the power line in some way causing the overheating. This is a supposition based on technical data provided by the power company itself (Usinas y Trasmisiones Eléctricas - UTE). Their technicians detected an overheating in some transformers in the line that supplies the capital city. We suppose this might be a result of that incident. After all, there must be a reason why it was over the dam. It must have been doing something there. What it was we don’t know. Security guards and employees also witnessed the object flight around the dam that night. The object was seen from the ground and from the air. This leaves no doubt about its materiality.



Did you talk with the Pucara pilots? How was their emotional?



They were quite surprised with what they had seen. I personally interviewed the four of them, one by one, pursuant to our protocol for investigation. All narratives were coincident regarding the shape and maneuvers of the object. Our crewmen were affected by what they experienced.



Do they still work in the Air Force?



Only one of them remains in the Air Force.



Would you like to have been in their feet? What would have been your reaction if you were in one of those Pucara?



I would love to have been there (laughing), but I think my reaction would also be one of total surprise. Actually, I don’t know what I would do at the time. One never knows. The aircraft involved were twoturboprop-engined fighters. There could have been some kind of hostility between the parties. However, in such situation the pilot must ask for permission before taking any action such as to fire a missile. There is a protocol for that in our country. According to Uruguayan law, we can’t fire at an aircraft unless under presidential orders or in a real combat situation. A pilot might think about doing something, but will be subjected to superior orders and to the protocol for interception of unknown vehicles.

Curious that there was yet another power blackout reported and did find the UFOs 'colour change' during acceleration rather interesting (as it's certainly not the first time that aspect has been reported).