ACUFO-1945-02-02-COLMAR-1
Among the sighting reports of "Foo-Fighters" found in the UFO literature from combat diaries of the 415th Night Fighter Squadron (415th NFS) of the US Army Air Force, in 1945 in the Rhine valley, it is said that on February 2, 1945, an "unusual green light" that moved "rapidly" below 4000 feet was observed near Colmar.
| Date: | February 2, 1945 |
|---|---|
| Time: | Probable night. |
| Duration: | ? |
| First known report date: | February 2-3, 1945 |
| Reporting delay: | Hours. |
| Country: | France |
|---|---|
| State/Department: | Haut-Rhin |
| City: | Colmar |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 1 or 2 |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | ? |
| Number of named witnesses: | 0 |
| Reporting channel: | Military operations report. |
|---|---|
| Visibility conditions: | Probable night. |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | ? |
| UFO departure observed: | ? |
| UFO action: | Flew fast. |
| Witnesses action: | |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | ? |
| Witnesses interpretation: | ? |
| Sensors: |
[X] Visual: 1 or 2.
[ ] Airborne radar: Not reported. [ ] Directional ground radar: Not reported. [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages: |
|---|---|
| Hynek: | ? |
| Armed / unarmed: | Armed, machine guns and 20 mm cannons. |
| Reliability 1-3: | 2 |
| Strangeness 1-3: | 2 |
| ACUFO: | Possible meteor. |
[Ref. dwn2:] DOMINIQUE WEINSTEIN:
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At 18h45, a 415th NFS Beaufighter crew was travelling over Colmar area when a green light appeared in the sky. Passing by their starboard side, it was "moving rapidly", travelling at three to four thousand feet altitude in an East to West direction about four miles ahead of the fighter.
Sources: 64th Fighter Wing Mission Report, 415th NFS, February 2/3, 1945, NARA / Strange Company, Keith Chester, 2007
(Ref. nip1:) "THE NICAP WEBSITE":
Feb. 2, 1945; Colmar, France
Unusual green light & moving rapidly. (Page 133 Ref.1)
The reference 1 is described at the end of the document as "Strange Company (2007), Keith Chester".
[Ref. sua1:] "SATURDAY NIGHT UFORIA" WEBSITE:
That February the early days of month brought reports from the 415th of a green light "moving rapidly" east to west below 4,000 feet over Colmar, Germany; [...]
3. The February, 1945 reports of a green light near Colmar, [...] comes from Keith Chester's book Strange Company, which gives as its source various operations reports.
[Ref. tai1:] "THINK ABOUT IT" WEBSITE:
Date: Feb. 2, 1945
Location: Colmar, France
Time:
Summary: Unusual green light & moving rapidly.
Source:
[Ref. mmy1:] MACK MAHONEY:
The author says that the crews of the 415th NFS reported three more Foo-Fighters sightings in the 9 first day of February 1945 according to Keith Chester in "Strange Company".
The Bristol Type 156 "Beaufighter", nicknamed "Beau", was a British multi-role aircraft developed during WWII. It was originally conceived as a heavy fighter variant of the Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber; it proved to be an effective night fighter, which came into service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Battle of Britain.
Originally, armament consisted of four 20mm cannons and six 0.303-in machine-guns but many variants were built; for example, versions had the ability to additionally carry eight rocket projectiles, some had a Vickers 'K' gun, Beaufighter TF.Mk X was used for anti-shipping operations.
The Beaufighter Mk VIF was fitted with the Mark VIII radar.
Below: Beaufighter Mk VIF of the 415th Night Fighter Squadron.
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The Beaufighters served with the US Army Air Force until the end of the war, but most were replaced by the P-61 "Black Widow" beginning on March 20, 1945.
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The "Colmar pocket" was a combat zone in Alsace, France, not in Germany, where the German held their position until the beginning of February when the 4th Moroccan Mountain Division of the French 1st Army cleared them off by linking with the US Army in Rouffach, splitting the "pocket" in two. For the fourth time in 75 years, Alsace changed hands between France and Germany.
Some authors wanted to explain the Foo-Fighters as Nazi secret machines, advanced Nazi craft but not secrets for long, extraterrestrial craft, Saint-Elmo fire, optical illusions, flak shots, etc. etc. The "Foo-Fighters", in general, do not seem to me to be systemically the "same" phenomenon. Here, the very meager description leaves room, with the green color, to the possibility of a meteor.
Possible meteor.
* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.
| Main author: | Patrick Gross |
|---|---|
| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Create/changed by: | Date: | Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | March 29, 2017 | Creation, [nip1], [sua1], [tai1], [mmy1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | March 29, 2017 | First published in ALSACAT. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | December 18, 2023 | Addition [dwn2]. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | December 18, 2023 | First published. |
