60-year mystery: 4 The Record examines the questions surrounding the Kecksburg UFO
Witnesses reported seeing a strange sight in the sky on Dec. 9, 1965
THEN. FOR THE RECORD, STARTS NOW. YOU WERE ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE THAT WERE ACTUALLY HERE ON THE SCENE THAT NIGHT. YES, ME AND THE WIFE COME OUT FROM GREENSBURG, AND IN 20 MINUTES, THE MILITARY WAS ALREADY HERE. THAT’S RONNIE STRUBLE, A 50 YEAR VETERAN OF THE KECKSBURG VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT, TELLING ME ABOUT THAT FATEFUL NIGHT, DECEMBER 9TH, 1965, WHEN SOME SAY AN UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT LANDED IN KECKSBURG, WESTMORELAND COUNTY, A LITTLE LESS THAN 50 MILES OUTSIDE OF PITTSBURGH. THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAT EVENT IS JUST DAYS AWAY. AND IN TODAY’S EDITION OF. FOR THE RECORD, I GO DEEPER INTO THE MYSTERY. WHAT WAS IT THAT CAME OUT OF THE SKY THAT NIGHT? WHAT IS IT THAT SO MANY PEOPLE CLAIM TO HAVE WITNESSED, AND WHY THIS MYSTERY ENDURED FOR SO LONG? LET’S START BY GOING TO MY CONVERSATION WITH MR. STRUBLE. SO THE FIRST THING I WANT TO ASK YOU IS, WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER BACK IN 1965? ON DECEMBER 9TH? OKAY. REMEMBER, THAT’S A LONG TIME AGO, 1965. THE WIFE AND I HAD JUST BEEN MARRIED FOR TWO YEARS, AND I LIVED ON 429 OAKLAND AVENUE IN GREENSBURG. AND DURING THAT TIME PERIOD, WE HAD HEARD IT ON TV AND THE RADIO, AND WE’D SEEN A STREAK IN THE SKY FROM GREENSBURG. SO YOU LOOKED UP IN THE SKY AND YOU COULD SEE SOMETHING FLASHING. WE COULD SEE. WHAT DID YOU THINK IT WAS? WELL, AT THAT POINT, YOU KNOW, I WAS ONLY 20, 21 YEARS OLD AT THAT POINT. SO, YOU KNOW, WE’D SEEN THE ORANGE STREAK IN THE SKY. AND OF COURSE, THEY SAID THEN THAT IT WENT DOWN NEAR A TOWN OF WELLINGTON. WELLINGTON IS WHERE I WAS BORN AND RAISED. SO I KNOW THIS AREA LIKE THE BACK OF MY HAND. SO WE DECIDED TO COME OUT. SO YOU WERE 21 WITH YOUR NEW WIFE? CORRECT. AND YOU JUST WERE LOOKING AROUND THE AREA FOR SOMETHING. WHAT DID YOU COME ACROSS? WELL, WE LEFT AND CAME OUT HERE AS SOON AS WE HEARD. HEARD ABOUT IT. AND WHENEVER WE ARRIVED OUT HERE, WE WENT. WHAT IS NOW? METEOR ROAD. BACK THEN, I WAS NOT A FIREMAN AT THAT POINT. SO THE WIFE AND I WERE JUST PEOPLE COMING OUT TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON. AND AT THAT POINT ON METEOR ROAD AND SNIVELY ROAD IS WHERE I SEEN, WE SEEN THE MILITARY. WHAT SORT OF MILITARY DID YOU SEE? WELL, IT WAS HARD TO TELL FROM OUR VANTAGE POINT BECAUSE THEY WERE DOWN IN A HALL AND WE WAS UP ON THE ON THE ROADWAY, BUT IT DEFINITELY WAS THE MILITARY. HOW DO YOU KNOW IT WAS THE MILITARY? BECAUSE OF THE UNIFORMS THEY WERE WEARING? WERE THEY TRYING TO KEEP PEOPLE BACK? WHAT WAS HAPPENING? WELL, AT THAT POINT, THE FIREMEN ALREADY HAD A CLOSURE OF THE ROAD UP THERE, AND THEY WOULDN’T LET US PASS AT THAT POINT. SO THERE WAS A NUMBER OF US THERE WITNESSING AND LOOKING DOWN AT THE HALL, TRYING TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON. COULD YOU SEE ANYTHING? ANYTHING WE COULD SEE. WAS THE MILITARY GOING UP IN THE HALL, BUT YOU COULDN’T SEE WHATEVER IT WAS THAT FELL FROM THE SKY? NO, I COULD NOT. HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE AROUND WATCHING AND WAITING? AT THAT POINT, THERE HAD TO BE TEN, 15, MAYBE 20 PEOPLE STANDING AROUND TALKING. WHAT WERE YOU GUYS SAYING? AND, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THEM I KNEW FROM LIVING IN THE AREA. I HAD MET OUR PRESIDENT’S DAD, WHO WAS PRESIDENT OF THE FIRE COMPANY AT THAT TIME, AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON BECAUSE I WORKED FOR HIM AS A YOUNG GUY AT HIS FARM. WHAT WERE YOU SAYING? JUST, YOU KNOW, WE EVERYBODY WAS WONDERING WHAT IT WAS. YOU KNOW? WE HAD ORIGINALLY THOUGHT THAT IT WAS A PLANE DOWN, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE COULDN’T SEE AT THAT POINT DOWN IN THE VALLEY ANYTHING. SO WE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT IT WAS. I HAD HEARD REPORTS THAT WHATEVER IT WAS IN THE SKY WAS BEING CONTROLLED. IT WAS KIND OF DIRECTING ITSELF. HAD YOU HEARD STORIES ABOUT THAT? NOT BACK THEN. NOW? YES. WE REALIZED THAT THE WHATEVER IT WAS MADE SOME ABRUPT CHANGES TO COME DOWN IN THE VALLEY AT KECKSBURG AS IF IT WAS BEING CONTROLLED. COULD HAVE BEEN. YES. WHAT DO YOU THINK IT WAS? WELL, I’VE BEEN ASKED THAT QUESTION 64,000 TIMES. OKAY. AND, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING HAPPENED BECAUSE WE’VE WITNESSED AND TALKED TO SO MANY PEOPLE THAT WERE THERE AND SEE THINGS THAT SOMETHING WAS IN THAT VALLEY, WHAT THEY TOOK OUT. I HAVE NO IDEA. HOW DO YOU KNOW THEY TOOK SOMETHING OUT? BECAUSE INITIALLY, THE GOVERNMENT CAME BACK THE VERY NEXT DAY AND SAID WE DIDN’T FIND ANYTHING. YOU ARE CORRECT. INITIALLY THEY SAID THAT, BUT IT’S LIKE THE AGE OLD SAYING HERE, IF IT LOOKS LIKE A DUCK AND QUACKS LIKE A DUCK, IT’S A DUCK. OKAY. SO A LOT OF PEOPLE SAW SOMETHING. MANY PEOPLE THAT I’VE TALKED TO OVER THE YEARS, WE’VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND THEY’VE SEEN TRUCKS GOING OUT OF TOWN. THEY’VE SEEN THE MILITARY THAT WAS THERE. SO I’M SURE THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED AND SOMETHING WAS TAKEN OUT. WHY DO YOU THINK THE GOVERNMENT AT FIRST SAID THERE WAS NOTHING? WE FOUND NOTHING. $64,000 QUESTION, I DON’T KNOW. WHAT WERE THEY TRYING TO STOP EVERYONE FROM FINDING OUT? YEAH, WELL, YOU KNOW, BACK THEN, YOU KNOW, WE JUST THOUGHT IT WAS A PLANE DOWN. WE DIDN’T GIVE IT A SECOND THOUGHT, AND, YOU KNOW. BUT NOW. YEAH, THERE HAD TO BE SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED BACK THEN. HAVE YOU TALKED TO ANYONE PERSONALLY WHO SAW THE OBJECT IN THE WOODS? I’VE TALKED TO PEOPLE THAT WITNESSED THE MILITARY. I’VE NOT TALKED TO PEOPLE THAT SEEN THE OBJECT DOWN IN THE WOODS. SO YOU DON’T KNOW IF THIS ACORN, THIS KIND OF BRASS COLORED ACORN IS WHAT FELL FROM YOUR VANTAGE POINT. FROM MY VANTAGE POINT. NOW WE DO EVERY RESEARCHER WHO HAS TALKED TO PEOPLE THAT HAS SEEN HAS TALKED TO PEOPLE WHO HAVE SEEN IT. YEAH. SO WE’LL GET INTO THAT WITH HIM COMING UP. HOW COOL IS IT THAT THE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT BENEFITS OFF OF THIS EVERY YEAR WITH THE FESTIVAL? WELL, THAT’S A STORY IN ITSELF THERE. BACK IN 19. THIS HAPPENED IN 65. IN 1975, I JOINED THE FIRE COMPANY. AND DURING THAT TIME PERIOD, I MET A LOT OF THE THE FIREMEN THAT WERE INVOLVED IN THE INCIDENT. THAT WOULD BE MR. MAYES AND MR. BITNER, WHO I HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT FOR. THEY WENT TO THEIR DEATHBED STATING THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED THAT DAY. SO DURING ABOUT 2005, WE GOT PERMISSION FROM THE FIRE DEPARTMENT TO GO AHEAD AND SELL SHIRTS. THAT ONE OF THE LADIES IN THE TOWN HAD MADE. THE SKETCH OF, AND HAD PUT IT ON A HAT. SO WE GOT PERMISSION FROM HER TO GO AHEAD AND PRINT SHIRTS. AND THAT’S HOW THE THE UFO STORE GOT STARTED. WE SOLD SHIRTS OUT OF THE ONE OF THE FARM AND HAD PASSED AWAY, AND WE BOUGHT MALLORY’S HOUSE FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, AND WE STARTED IN THE BASEMENT OF THE HOUSE SELLING SHIRTS ONLY ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. AND IT GOT SO BIG THAT WE HAD TO MOVE OUT OF THE HOUSE AND MOVE OVER HERE TO THE HALL. GREAT FOR A VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT TO HAVE THAT INCOME. IT’S ONE OF OUR BIG FUNDRAISERS, SUPER IMPORTANT. AND WHAT IT DOES FOR FROM MY VANTAGE POINT, IT BRINGS THE THE TOWN PEOPLE AND PEOPLE HOME. WE HAVE VISITORS FROM ALL OVER THE UNION, FROM FLORIDA, FROM FROM CANADA, FROM MISSOURI, FROM TEXAS, JUST ANYWHERE YOU CAN THINK OF. AND THEY COME TO THIS LITTLE TOWN JUST TO JUST TO BE TOGETHER. IT’S MORE OF A FAMILY GATHERING. IT IS ANYTHING. IT’S GREAT. BUT THE UFO INCIDENT IS A BIG PART OF IT. WHAT HAVE SOME OF THE THEORIES BEEN THROUGH THE YEARS OF WHAT THIS WAS? WELL, YOU KNOW, THERE’S AND OUR RESEARCHER WHO TALK ON THAT, BUT MOST OF IT IS, YOU KNOW, IT WAS GERMAN ORIENTED FROM OVERSEAS. IT WAS METEORITES THAT COME DOWN. BUT SINCE THEN I’VE TALKED TO PEOPLE THAT SEEN IT UP ON THE RIDGE, SEEN THE STREAK IN THE SKY, AND IT TURNED FROM UP IN ACME AND UP IN THE DONEGAL AREA AND COME DOWN HERE. SO AND THERE’S A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT SEEN IT IN THIS AREA, SEEN IT IN THE SKY. AND IF IT MOVED AND DIRECTED ITSELF, CHANGED DIRECTIONS, THAT DOES NOT SOUND LIKE A METEORITE. THAT’S CORRECT. OR AN OUT OF CONTROL PLANE PART OR OUT OF CONTROL SATELLITE PART. AND AND THE FACT THAT THERE WAS NO EXPLOSION, THAT IT CAME DOWN AND WAS ALL IN ONE PIECE, SO TO SPEAK. THEN YOU WANT TO BELIEVE THAT IT WAS CONTROLLED. SO YOU’VE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS FOR 60 YEARS. WHAT IS YOUR CONCLUSION AS TO WHAT THIS THING IS? WELL, I HAVE AN OPEN MIND AND, YOU KNOW, I REALLY DON’T KNOW. BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT SOME OF THE SHORTS THAT WE PUT UP AND LANDED IN THE OCEAN, YOU KNOW, THERE’S A LOT OF SIMILARITY THERE. SO. SO YOU THINK IT COULD HAVE BEEN FROM THE US GOVERNMENT? COULD HAVE BEEN. I DON’T KNOW. DO YOU THINK WE’RE EVER GOING TO FIND OUT? WELL, SOMEDAY WE’D LIKE TO KNOW. YES. BUT RIGHT NOW, FOR US, IT’S A IT’S A GOOD VENTURE MONEY MAKING EVENT FOR US. AND WE’RE CAPPING ON IT. THE PEOPLE IN THE TOWN LOVE IT. IF IT WASN’T FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE TOWN, WE WOULDN’T HAVE IT. I WENT AROUND. EXCUSE ME. BEFORE WE STARTED, AND I ASKED ALL THE HOMEOWNERS IN THE TOWN ABOUT REENACTING A FESTIVAL FOR KECKSBURG. AND WE HAD HAD A FAIR YEARS AGO BEFORE THIS, AND WE SHUT IT DOWN BECAUSE OF THE LIABILITY INSURANCE. SO I GOT WENT AROUND AND ASKED THEM AND THEY SAID, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING ON? GET IT GOING. SO THAT’S THAT’S HOW IT GOT STARTED. SO THE MYSTERY OF WHAT THIS THING IS KEEPS THE LEGEND GOING. YES. AND THERE’S MORE AND MORE PEOPLE COMING FORWARD THAT I VISIT THAT VISITS OUR FESTIVAL. THEY’LL COME TO ME AND SAY, HEY, MY MOM AND DAD WAS THERE AND THEY’D GIVE ME THEIR THEIR STORY. YOU’RE LEARNING NEW THINGS EVERY YEAR STILL? YES. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT’S BEEN 60 YEARS? NO I CANNOT. WE’VE BEEN INVOLVED THIS FOR THAT LENGTH OF TIME, AND IT’S BEEN REWARDING BECAUSE I’VE MET A LOT OF GOOD PEOPLE. AND AND LIKE I SAY, IF IT WASN’T FOR THE TOWNSPEOPLE AND THE AND THE AND THE VENDORS IN OUR AREA HELPING US, WE WOULDN’T HAVE IT. STILL AHEAD ON FOR THE RECORD, I KNOW THEY’RE OUT THERE, BUT I HAVE YET TO SEE ONE. A MAN WHO’S BEEN STUDYING THE KECKSBURG UFO INCIDENT FOR DECADES. WHAT HE THINKS REALLY HAPPENED. WELCOME BACK TO. FOR THE RECORD, AS I CONTINUE TO EXAMINE THE KECKSBURG UFO INCIDENT AHEAD OF ITS 60TH ANNIVERSARY LATER THIS WEEK. I ALSO HAVE TO SHARE MORE ABOUT HOW IT HAS BECOME A TRADITION IN THIS SMALL WESTMORELAND COUNTY TOWN WITH THE KECKSBURG UFO FESTIVAL HELD EVERY SUMMER. AND I’M TOLD THAT EVENT IS FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY. OH, IT’S SO MUCH FUN. THE PEOPLE ARE SO GREAT. IT’S AN ABSOLUTELY FUN TIME. I MAKE A LOT OF TINFOIL HATS AS WELL AS OTHER THINGS. WE DO A LOT OF THINGS FROM OUR BOOTH. THIS YEAR. WE’RE GOING TO HAVE A KIDS CORNER WITH A LOT OF OUR FUN COLORING BOOKS. WE’VE GOT MORE VOLUMES COMING OUT OF OTHER FUN THINGS, AND A FEW OTHER THINGS LIKE MAD LIBS AND KIDS STORIES AND A FEW THINGS LIKE THAT, AS WELL AS OUR USUAL ALIEN FEST FLAIR. AND I’M GOING TO HAVE MUCH MORE ON THE KECKSBURG UFO MYSTERY COMING UP IN JUST TWO MINUTES. WELCOME BACK TO FOR THE RECORD, AS I CONTINUE DELVING INTO THE KECKSBURG UFO MYSTERY, I TURN MY ATTENTION NOW TO AUTHOR, RESEARCHER, AND DOCUMENTARIAN STAN GORDON, WHO HAS BEEN LOOKING INTO THIS INCIDENT FOR DECADES. FIRST OF ALL, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT’S BEEN 60 YEARS? IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE I WAS 16 YEARS OLD WHEN IT HAPPENED. I STILL REMEMBER THAT NIGHT, JUST LIKE IT HAPPENED YESTERDAY. TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT. WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ON THAT EVENING, DECEMBER 9TH, 1965, THURSDAY EVENING. I HEARD THE BREAKING NEWS REPORTS FROM THE PITTSBURGH AREA THAT EVENING THAT A BRILLIANT, FIERY OBJECT HAD BEEN SEEN OVER ONTARIO, CANADA, OVER MICHIGAN, OHIO AND PENNSYLVANIA. WHATEVER THE OBJECT WAS, IT CAME IN OVER THE GREATER PITTSBURGH AREA ABOUT 4:47 P.M., JUST AS GETTING DARK. AND AT THAT TIME, FROM ALL THE REPORTS WE HEARD, THE RADIO STATIONS, TV STATIONS, NEWSPAPERS, POLICE DEPARTMENTS WERE JUST JAMMED WITH MULTIPLE REPORTS COMING IN OF THIS FIERY OBJECT THAT WAS SEEN OVER THE GREATER PITTSBURGH AREA. AS THE EVENING WENT ON, MORE REPORTS WERE COMING IN THAT WHATEVER THE OBJECT WAS, IT CAME OVER. PITTSBURGH HAD FALLEN FROM THE SKY IN A WOODED AREA OUTSIDE OF KECKSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA. AND THEN IT GOT MORE INTERESTING WITH REPORTS THAT THE MILITARY WAS NOW SHOWING UP IN THAT AREA TO SEARCH FOR AN UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT. SO IT WAS A FASCINATING EVENING. I REMEMBER VERY WELL WE HAD THE OLD BLACK AND WHITE ZENITH TV CONSOLE, AND I WAS RUNNING BACK AND FORTH FROM THE LIVING ROOM TO MY OTHER ROOM TO LISTEN ON THE RADIO, TRYING TO GET ALL THE LATEST REPORTS. AND I WAS HOPEFUL, SAID, BOY, I SURE HOPE THIS MAKES THE NEWS NEXT DAY. AND THE NEWSPAPER SAID, THE FIRST THING I DID WENT TO THE LOCAL NEWSSTAND THE NEXT MORNING, PICKED UP ALL THE LOCAL NEWSPAPERS AND HERE’S ALL THE LOCAL NEWSPAPERS. EVERYBODY HAD A FRONT PAGE STORY ABOUT THIS STORY. WELL, THE GREENSBURG TRIBUNE-REVIEW HAD MORE THAN ONE EDITION AT THE TIME, AND THEY HAD ARMY ROPES OFF AREA. UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT FALLS UNDER KECKSBURG. THAT WAS THE HEADLINE. AND OTHER PAPERS ALL OVER HAD SIMILAR TYPE REPORTS COMING IN. BUT INTERESTINGLY, THE LATER EDITION OF THE TRIBUNE HAD THAT SEARCHES FAIL TO FIND OBJECT. AND IT WENT ON TO SAY THAT THERE WAS A SEARCH THAT EARLY MORNING HOURS THAT THEY HAD FOUND ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. AND ALSO IT INDICATED THAT OFFICIALLY THE STATE POLICE BLAMED IT ON SOME YOUNG CHILDREN’S IMAGINATION. AND THE OFFICIAL EXPLANATION WAS PEOPLE APPARENTLY SAW A BRIGHT METEOR MOVE ACROSS THE SKY, BUT NOT TO GET FALLEN. SO YOU WERE 16? YES. YOU WERE HEARING ALL THE REPORTS COMING IN FROM PITTSBURGH THAT SOMETHING WAS SEEN OVER THE SKY. THEN YOU STARTED HEARING IT LANDED IN KECKSBURG, AND THEN YOU HEARD ARMY MEMBERS, MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS WERE SHOWING UP TO SECURE THE SITE. TELL ME ABOUT WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING ON THE SITE RIGHT AFTER THIS OBJECT FELL. WELL, THERE WAS A LOT WE DIDN’T KNOW ON THAT DATE OR EVEN THE NEXT DAY. AND IN FACT, IT TOOK ME MONTHS AND YEARS TO ACCUMULATE SO MUCH DATA FROM HUNDREDS OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE WHO WERE INVOLVED IN DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THIS THING. SO WHEN I FOUND OUT WAS THAT THAT NIGHT AT IS BEING BROADCAST ON PITTSBURGH RADIO AND TV, HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE DESCENDED ON THE KECKSBURG COMMUNITY TO TRY TO GET A LOOK AT THE OBJECT REPORTEDLY DOWN IN THE WOODS. WHAT DID THEY SEE? WELL, INTERESTING STORY IS WHAT WE DID KNOW AT THE TIME WAS, FIRST OF ALL, THE OBJECT CAME IN OVER THE GREATER PITTSBURGH AREA. IT MOVED OUT TOWARDS WESTMORELAND COUNTY, WENT OVER THE CITY OF GREENSBURG, MADE A TURN TO THE SOUTH WHERE THE OLD STORE USED TO BE, OR GIANT EAGLE IS NOW MADE A TURN TO THE SOUTH. IT SEEMS SEQUENTIALLY BY PEOPLE ALL ALONG THIS COMMUNITY. SOME MARGUERITE. MAMMOTH NORVELT OUT TO THE MOUNTAINS OF LOREAUVILLE. AND THEN WE’RE TOLD THAT IT KIND OF HESITATED OVER THE MOUNTAIN OF LOWER LAWRENCEVILLE BEGAN TO TRACK BACK OUTSIDE OF KECKSBURG MADE ANOTHER SLOW TURN DOWN, WENT DOWN TO THE WOODS. WHAT WE DIDN’T KNOW AT THE TIME WAS THAT A NUMBER OF THE LOCAL PEOPLE, RIGHT IN THIS AREA, SAW IT COME DOWN VERY LOW OVER THEIR HEAD, AND SOME OF THEM SAW GO DOWN IN THE WOODS. SO AGAIN, WHAT WE DIDN’T KNOW AT THE TIME WAS SOME OF THOSE LOCAL PEOPLE WENT DOWN SOON AFTER IT FELL, AND THAT’S WHEN THEY CAME ACROSS THIS LARGE METALLIC, ACORN SHAPED OBJECT, SEMI-BURIED IN THE GROUND. AND WHAT WERE THEY THINKING AT THE TIME WHEN THEY SAW IT? WELL, THE FIRST THOUGHT WAS, WAS AN AIRCRAFT THAT WAS IN TROUBLE, AN AIRCRAFT ON FIRE THAT HAD FALLEN. THAT WAS THE FIRST THOUGHT GOING DOWN INTO THE WOODS. AND THEY ARE EXPECTING TO FIND. BUT THIS THING’S ABOUT 10 TO 12FT IN LENGTH, ABOUT 8 TO 10FT IN DIAMETER, LIKE A BIG KIND OF OFF GOLD, BRONZE COLORED, METALLIC ACORN SHAPED OBJECT. INTERESTINGLY, THERE WAS NO WELD MARKS, NO SEAMS, NO RIVET MARKS, NO WINGS ON IT, AND ON THE RAISED UP BACK PART, LIKE YOU HAVE AN ACORN. WITNESSES SAW SOME TYPE OF UNUSUAL SYMBOLS. UNFORTUNATELY, BACK THEN THEY ONLY SAW IT FROM DIFFERENT DISTANCES, DIDN’T CONCENTRATE ON IT, AND THEY DON’T HAVE A LOT OF MEMORY OF WHAT THE ACTUAL SYMBOLS LOOKED LIKE, BUT THEY REALIZE WHATEVER THEY SAW WAS SOMETHING QUITE UNUSUAL. AND THEN, AS WE FOUND OUT LATER, FIRST YOU HAD THE CIVILIANS COMING IN, SAW IT, THEN YOU HAD VOLUNTEER FIREMEN WHO WERE BEING CALLED OUT FROM DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES TO SEARCH FOR A POSSIBLE DOWNED AIRCRAFT. AND THEN THE MILITARY COMES IN, AND ONCE THE MILITARY COMES IN, THEY APPARENTLY TOOK CONTROL OF ALL THE OPERATIONS IN THE AREA. AND THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE I INTERVIEWED WHO HAVE SO MANY AMAZING PERSONAL ENCOUNTERS. HOW MANY PEOPLE DO YOU THINK SAW THE OBJECT? WELL, THE MILITARY CAME IN. WELL, IF YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT IN THE SKY, WE HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING THERE COULD BE THOUSANDS DOWNED ON THE GROUND. VERY FEW, VERY FEW GOT DOWN. HANDFUL. JUST A HANDFUL GOT CLOSE ENOUGH. BUT A LOT OF PEOPLE SAW IT GOING OUT ON THE MILITARY FLATBED TRACTOR TRAILER COVERED WITH A TARP. THAT’S ANOTHER WHOLE STORY. YOU KNOW, THERE WERE SO MANY LITTLE DETAILS OVER THE YEARS THAT I GOT FROM SO MANY INDIVIDUALS THAT I DIDN’T TALK ABOUT FOR YEARS AND YEARS UNTIL I HAD ENOUGH INDEPENDENT CONFIRMATION. ONE OF THOSE DETAILS WAS THERE WAS NOT ONE, BUT TWO MILITARY FLATBED TRACTOR TRAILERS WITH BIG SEARCHLIGHTS ON THE SCENE THAT NIGHT. AND THAT’S AN INTERESTING STORY IN ITSELF. I CAN TELL YOU. THE ONE WITH THE OBJECT WENT OUT AROUND 1:00 IN THE MORNING. IT WAS TAKEN TO LOCKBOURNE AIR FORCE BASE NEAR COLUMBUS, OHIO, WITH A MILITARY CONVOY. IT WAS BACKED INTO A HANGAR AT THE BASE. THEY SET UP A SECURITY PERIMETER AROUND THAT HANGAR. IT STAYED THERE FOR A SHORT TIME, THEN CONTINUED ON TO WRIGHT PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE. WHY ARE YOU SO CONFIDENT IN THAT? BECAUSE THE NEXT MORNING, THE GOVERNMENT SAID WE DIDN’T FIND ANYTHING. I CAN TELL YOU, WHEN YOU TALK TO SO MANY CREDIBLE PEOPLE, INCLUDING MILITARY SOURCES, WHO WERE INVOLVED IN CERTAIN ASPECTS OF THIS, DIFFERENT PEOPLE CONFIRMED THE FACT THAT IT WENT TO LOCKBOURNE AIR FORCE BASE, THEN LATER OTHERS CONFIRMED IT. SEEING IT, WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE. ARE YOU SUSPICIOUS OF THE REASON THE GOVERNMENT SAID AT FIRST WE DIDN’T SEE ANYTHING AT ALL. WELL, OFFICIALLY, THEY STILL SAY THERE WAS NOTHING THERE. IT WAS JUST A BRIGHT METEOR IN THE SKY. BUT YOU HAVE SO MANY WITNESSES, INCLUDING NUMEROUS REPORTERS. AND THAT’S INTERESTING TOO, BECAUSE THEY BECAME PART OF THE STORY. SEE, REPORTERS FROM ALL THE MAJOR PITTSBURGH RADIO AND TV AND NEWSPAPERS ON THE SCENE THAT NIGHT. I INTERVIEWED MANY OF THOSE REPORTERS. THEY TOLD ME THEY SAW MILITARY EQUIPMENT, THEY SAW MILITARY PERSONNEL. SOME OF THEM INTERACTED WITH THE MILITARY. AND YET THE NEXT DAY THEY SAID IT WAS STATED LATER THAT THERE WAS ONLY THREE AIR FORCE PERSONNEL INVOLVED, AND THEY APPARENTLY SAW NOTHING. SO IT’S A FASCINATING STORY, REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE OBJECT WAS. KEEP IT HERE. THERE’S MORE ON THE KECKSBURG UFO MYSTERY COMING UP IN JUST TWO MINUTES. THEY DENIED ANYTHING HAD HAPPENED, BUT CLEARLY SOMETHING HAD HAPPENED. THAT’S FORMER GREENSBURG TRIBUNE-REVIEW REPORTER BOB GADDY, WHO WAS ON THE SCENE IN KECKSBURG ON DECEMBER 9TH, 1965, AND WHO TELLS ME HE HAD NO IDEA AT THE TIME HE’D BE GOING BACK TO THAT NIGHT TIME AND TIME AGAIN OVER THE NEXT 60 YEARS. I THOUGHT THAT WAS THE END OF THE STORY, BUT NO. I’M 82 YEARS OLD AND THAT THING HAS FOLLOWED ME MY WHOLE LIFE. IT’S THE STORY THAT WON’T GO AWAY. AND NOW, AS WE WRAP UP AN EPISODE ALL ABOUT MYSTERIES AND SECRETS, IT’S TIME FOR ME TO REVEAL A SECRET OF MY OWN. THIS IS JUST PART ONE OF TWO EPISODES OF FOR THE RECORD, FOCUSED ON THE KECKSBURG UFO MYSTERY. JOIN ME NEXT SUNDAY MORNING AT 11 FOR MY FULL INTERVIEW WITH REPORTER BOB GADDY, AS WELL AS MORE FROM STAN GORDON. AS WE CONTINUE THE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS INTO WHAT HAPPENED IN KECKSBURG ON THAT DECEMBER 9TH IN 1965. UNTIL THEN, THANK YOU FOR WATCHING. HAVE A GOOD WEEK.
60-year mystery: 4 The Record examines the questions surrounding the Kecksburg UFO
Witnesses reported seeing a strange sight in the sky on Dec. 9, 1965
Updated: 11:00 AM EST Dec 7, 2025
Tuesday marks 60 years since an incident that continues to be a mystery to this day: The sighting of what’s been called the Kecksburg UFO.It was an unusual sight in the sky reported by several witnesses.Other witnesses reported it being an object that may have made a controlled landing.”We heard it on TV and radio, and we saw a streak in the sky from Greensburg,” said Ronnie Struble, a 50-year veteran of the Kecksburg Volunteer Fire Department.Stan Gordon, a UFO researcher, author and documentarian, said the official word from the U.S. government is that “it was nothing.”But he said he interviewed multiple people who saw military personnel on the scene.”Some of them interacted with the military,” Gordon said. “And yet, the next day, it was stated later that there were only three Air Force personnel involved, and they apparently saw nothing. So it’s a fascinating story, regardless of what the object was.”WATCH THE FULL EPISODE IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE
KECKSBURG, Pa. —
Tuesday marks 60 years since an incident that continues to be a mystery to this day: The sighting of what’s been called the Kecksburg UFO.
It was an unusual sight in the sky reported by several witnesses.
Other witnesses reported it being an object that may have made a controlled landing.
“We heard it on TV and radio, and we saw a streak in the sky from Greensburg,” said Ronnie Struble, a 50-year veteran of the Kecksburg Volunteer Fire Department.
Stan Gordon, a UFO researcher, author and documentarian, said the official word from the U.S. government is that “it was nothing.”
But he said he interviewed multiple people who saw military personnel on the scene.
“Some of them interacted with the military,” Gordon said. “And yet, the next day, it was stated later that there were only three Air Force personnel involved, and they apparently saw nothing. So it’s a fascinating story, regardless of what the object was.”
WATCH THE FULL EPISODE IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE