Travis Walton
A logging crew driving home saw a glowing object over the forest. One of them got out to look, and was missing for five days.
What was reported
On 5 November 1975, a seven-man logging crew driving home through the forest in eastern Arizona said they saw a glowing, disc-shaped object hovering above a clearing. Travis Walton, 22, got out and walked towards it. The others said a beam of light struck him and threw him back, and they drove away in panic.
When they returned, Walton was gone. A large search found nothing. Five days later, he phoned from a petrol station in a nearby town, saying he had woken up aboard a craft. His story was later made into the film 'Fire in the Sky'.
Explanations offered
Sceptics argue it was a hoax, perhaps to escape a logging contract the crew was behind on. Supporters point out that five of the six crew members passed lie-detector tests about what they saw. Walton has never changed his account.
- When
- 5–10 November 1975
- Where
- Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, Arizona, USA
- Witnesses
- Travis Walton and six members of his logging crew
- 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.