The Coyne Helicopter Encounter
An army helicopter crew said a red light came at them, held above them, and pulled them upward.
What was reported
Late on 18 October 1973, a US Army Reserve UH-1 helicopter commanded by Captain Lawrence Coyne was flying near Mansfield, Ohio, when the crew saw a red light approaching fast on a collision course. Coyne put the helicopter into a dive.
The crew said a grey, cigar-shaped object stopped above them and shone a green light into the cockpit, and that the helicopter then climbed several hundred feet even though the controls were set to descend. People on the ground later said they had seen the encounter.
Explanations offered
The sceptic Philip Klass suggested a bright fireball meteor from the Orionid shower, then at its peak, with the climb caused by the pilots' own reactions. Others say the encounter lasted too long for a meteor. It is still debated.
- When
- 18 October 1973
- Where
- Near Mansfield, Ohio, USA
- Witnesses
- A four-man Army Reserve helicopter crew, people on the ground
- Status
- Disputed
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.