Fontana, CaliforniaApril 1953

On April 28, 1953, at about 2200 (10:00 p.m.) Pacific time, a military pilot reported objects near Fontana, California. The witness was 1st Lt. Ralph R. Scowden, flying a T-6 aircraft through the Cajon Pass at 7,000 feet at about 150 miles per hour. The report came from the 2570th Air Base Squadron at Long Beach.

The objects were circular and a fiery amber color. He first saw two lights, then more joined until there were as many as about sixteen. They first flew in normal two ship and four ship formations, then became unsystematic, both abreast and in a loose group like sparrows. He saw no normal navigation lights. There was no sound. They moved parallel and then seemed to go southward. The sighting lasted about 15 minutes.

When he contacted the Long Beach tower, he was told Navy jets were flying back and forth to Catalina Island. The pilot thought it was possible he was looking down their exhausts, though he saw no conventional navigation lights. The weather was clear with an inversion at about 3,000 feet and haze below. The Air Force concluded the cause was a mirage of ground lights.