The Ghost Fliers of Scandinavia
In the 1930s, people in the far north of Scandinavia reported aircraft circling in blizzards at night, shining searchlights, where no plane could fly.
What was reported
From the early 1930s, people in the remote north of Sweden, Norway and Finland reported mysterious aircraft flying at night, often in terrible weather, circling villages and shining powerful searchlights on the ground. They were grey, usually had no markings, and appeared and disappeared without a trace.
The reports were taken seriously. In 1934, the Swedish air force carried out a search over the northern wilderness, and Norwegian authorities investigated too. Nothing was found. The aircraft became known as the 'ghost fliers'.
Explanations offered
Many reports were probably of stars, planets, or the lights of ordinary planes and cars. Some historians think there may have been secret flights, perhaps by smugglers or by foreign military pilots testing long-range flying, but no evidence has been found. The case is an early example of a wave of mysterious-aircraft reports.
- When
- 1932–1937
- Where
- Norrbotten, Sweden
- Witnesses
- Hundreds of people in Sweden, Norway and Finland
- Status
- Unexplained
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.
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