Somewhere in the Skies - The Flatwoods Monster: Re-Examined

Episode Date: April 15, 2024

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at: www.betterhelp.com/skies and get on your way to being your best self. On episode 351 of SOMEWHERE IN THE SKIES, we review the classic Flatwoods Monster case from a new perspective. On September 12th, 1952, a group of local boys and one of their mothers saw what they described as a "shooting star" that fell to earth on the top of a hill. They soon stumbled upon an object that was glowing and hissing. Near the glowing object they were terrified to see a huge creature, that would come to be known as the Flatwoods Monster. What was it? Where did it come from? Featuring rare audio from UFO researchers, Ivan T. Sanderson and Stanton T. Friedman, we'll re-examine this classic case and look at some of the possible explanation for what may have crashed to Earth that day in 1952. Episode co-researched and co-written by Marcus Lowth: www.ufoinsight.com Patreon: www.patreon.com/somewhereskies PayPal: [e-mail] Website: www.somewhereintheskies.com Store: http://tee.pub/lic/ULZAy7IY12U YouTube Channel: CLICK HERE Order Ryan’s new book: https://a.co/d/4KNQnM4 Order Ryan’s older book: https://amzn.to/3PmydYC Twitter: @SomewhereSkies Read Ryan’s Articles by CLICKING HERE Opening Theme Song, "Ephemeral Reign" by Per Kiilstofte Copyright © 2024. Ryan Sprague. All rights reserved. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/somewhere-in-the-skies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Terms apply. In September of 1952, in Flatwoods, West Virginia, something fell from the skies. What it was and what it did to the people of the town would solidify its place in the annals of UFO history. However, there's always more to the story, as you'll soon hear. This is the Flatwoods monster, re-examined. This is Somewhere in the Skies with Ryan's Bread. September 12, 1952, Flatwoods, Braxton County, in West Virginia. It was around 7.15 p.m. when several children were playing football on the grounds of a local school,

when they suddenly noticed something bright and flashing streak across the sky. The object appeared to land a short distance away on the land of a local farm owner. The children, after coming to their senses, rushed to the home of the two boys, brothers 14-year-old Eddie May and 13-year-old Fred May. They would excitedly tell the boy's mother, Kathleen, of what they had seen, and along with a small group of children, 10-year-old Tommy Hire and Ronnie Shaver, 14-year-old Neil Nunley, and 17-year-old Jean Lemon.

She would accompany the boys to the spot where they claimed the strange object had crashed to the ground. Jean's dog also tagged along with the group. The initial accounts and what makes up the backbone of this incident would appear in an article in Fate magazine, with Gray Barker arriving at the location shortly after the encounter had played out, and piecing the article together after speaking to those involved and collecting recorded interviews.

This is where the reports vary somewhat. In the book, Monsters of West Virginia, Mysterious Creatures in the Mountain State, it is claimed that the witnesses could most definitely see a craft of some kind, either landed or sticking out of the ground. It also claims that a machine-like whining noise filled the air, and the dog also began to react strangely. In fact, according to this account,

the dog was later found to have vomited near the house when it was found and would pass away a short time after. According to the initial reports, though, once the group arrived at the top of the hill, they could see a, quote, red pulsating light. It's uncertain if this pulsating light was coming from the allegedly landed craft, but some reports state that the craft had originally landed on the hillside before moving to a nearby valley. However, thoughts of the craft itself paled in comparison to the frightful scene that awaited

them. When Lemon turned the flashlight he was carrying toward the apparent glow, there in front of them stood a man-like figure which appeared to be surrounded by a pointed hood-like shape. The figure had a round red face with eyes that appeared to glow a greenish orange color. The group would estimate that the figure was around 10 to 12 feet tall and easily towered over them. One witness, Mrs. May, claimed to see small claw-like hands. She would also recall that the strange figure had a head similar to the shape of an ace of spades from a playing card deck. None of the witnesses could fully make out the torso or lower part of the entity. Some of the witnesses would later state that there appeared to be a machine-like quality to the creature,

almost as if the outer clothing was some kind of hard suit or armor. This hard exterior appeared to reflect the green of the surrounding trees and bushes. Although they couldn't make out any further details of the lower half of this creature, a general view would suggest that the middle area was almost cylindrical, while the bottom part appeared to fan outward, like metallic apron of sorts. Whatever the creature was, it appeared to be watching the group in terms. intently. And they watched back. Until that is, it made a hissing sound and appeared to move in a gliding motion toward the group. This caused them to immediately turn and run, with lemon dropping

the flashlight in shock as they did so. Mrs. May, according to some sources, claimed that the creature squirted an oily substance on her clothing. As this was taking place, several, of the witnesses would later recall how they became aware of a pungent mist creeping over the area. When some of the witnesses later reported feeling ill, particularly with nausea, it was suspected that this mist might have been an intentional release of a chemical agent by the strange creature. However, none of the witnesses, apart from Lemon's dog, if the report is accurate, would suffer any long-lasting or drastic effects. Although, once more, some sources on the account state that Lemon would spend most of the evening vomiting, while two of the boys sought medical advice for

sore throats in the days following the incident. Because of reports of a possible crashed aircraft, it wasn't long before the sheriff and deputy arrived to investigate the site, as would several local residents of the town. However, despite a search of the area, they could see nothing out of the ordinary, nor could they sense any sign or smell of the strange mist that the witnesses claimed quickly enveloped the area as the creature headed toward them. With so many witnesses all claiming the same thing, combined with the genuine fright that was evident in each of them, it was clear that something did occur out in the woodlands that evening. What that something was, though, was far from clear.

With the UFO wave of 1952 well underway, UFOs and outer space visitors were certainly embedding themselves into the American psyche, so much so that the following day, a reporter from the Braxton Democrat, A. Lee Stewart, arrived at the scene to take a look for himself, He would discover strange markings where the group had claimed to see the craft land, although they very well might have been left by the tires of a car. He would also, however, discover an odd gummy deposit.

This detail is perhaps more interesting, as many UFO landing encounters do often leave a oily substance behind, which often fades or seeps into the ground. According to Gray Barker's investigation and research, there were several residents of the town who witnessed a strange object overhead that evening, and all were from various different locations around the town stretching out to a 20-mile radius. Barker would conclude that this might suggest either the same object was circling the town, possibly searching for a hill or field to land in, either out of necessity or for observational purposes, or that it was the same object simply visible to multiple locations. As interests in the case seeped out into the small community, the town was descended upon by UFO investigators,

both those working in a private capacity and those from many of the groups that were beginning to pop up around the United States, as well by reporters from newspapers all across America. With this flurry of interest came from, further investigations, theories, and explanations. According to the book, Monsters of West Virginia, the United States Air Force would issue orders for the State National Guard to investigate the matter.

A unit would arrive in Flatwoods, as well as in the nearby town of Frampton so that they could investigate similar UFO sightings there, too. Reports in local newspapers would ultimately state the UFOs were, quote, meteor-like as it, or they, moved across the sky. This would ultimately be the settled upon explanation for the UFO sightings that evening over Flatwoods. It was further theorized that the meteors must have burned up as there were no known remains discovered at the site

where the children claimed the UFO had landed. Years later, some of the residents of the town would insist that all that was witnessed over overhead that night was a meteor. And the fact that some descriptions would even state that the UFO appeared to disintegrate would appear to back up that explanation. However, many researchers at the time would stick to their findings from speaking with local residents, some of whom claimed to have seen something clearly land near the woodland, while others claimed there was a purposeful movement to the object that was unlike a meteor or a comet. There are also other reports of the bizarre, monstrous entity on record.

But first, here's a few other sightings that took place around the same time. According to one report, a young couple and their young toddler would see an almost identical creature in the town of Frampton, where the National Guard unit would be deployed. and this took place the night after the encounter in Flatwoods. Apparently, the couple was so traumatized by the creature that they refused to even speak about it until a year later. Another couple from Queens, New York, George and Edith Snitowski, who were passing through Braxton County on their way home from Cincinnati, Ohio,

also witnessed it. It was around 8 p.m. when their car suddenly came to a stop, just outside Frampton. George would attempt to find out what the problem was but was unable to restart the car. As the couple stood in the open air, they noticed a strange and intense smell, an aroma that was similar to burnt sulfur. The smell was so intense that it appeared to wake their baby up, causing it to cry. The couple remained with their vehicle, the light now beginning to fade rapidly.

As George was contemplating what to do next, a sudden flash lit up the entire area. It appeared to come out of the woods. George would reach for a window in an effort to see more clearly what was taking place. As he did so, a thick mist filled the inside of the car. A mist that made him feel instantly nauseous, much like several of the witnesses in the Flatwoods incident. Even so, he opened the door and stepped out to investigate. As soon as he straightened and stood upright,

he could see a bizarre, glowing sphere similar to a giant frosted street lamp. It appeared to be floating in mid-air. He would estimate that it was around 300 yards away, maybe slightly less from where he stood. As it hovered, it appeared to move back and forth, as if being dangled by some invixtrous, visible string. George began to head toward the strange orb, noting that as he did so, the nauseous feeling

appeared to be getting much worse. As he got close with a strange mist still swirling all around him, he suddenly began to feel a burning sensation run through him. He continued on a little further. However, the burning feeling rapidly progressed into a feeling similar to a low-grade electrical shock. Realizing he was dealing with something truly bizarre, he turned around and headed straight back to the car where his wife and their child waited. When he heard Edith scream out from the vehicle, he shook off the rubbery feel of his legs and went straight toward the sound. The sphere shape

was now near the vehicle, only this time he could see a huge figure underneath the light of the glowing orb. He would claim the creature was around nine feet tall and very much human-shaped, except for the head, which was almost reptilian. George would describe the body as weird and bloated, and the lower half the body as a solid mass of some sort. He reached the car as the figure was moving closer. He jumped inside and pulled his wife and child to the floor of the vehicle. It was then he He reached into the glove box and pulled out a knife that sat inside. By the time he turned his attention to the car's window, the strange creature was now directly in front.

It reached forward, revealing its spindly arms that ended in a bisected fork of fingers. The claw-like hand scraped against the glass of the windshield. George noticed, though, this was not so much an attack, but more as if it was examining the vehicle, somewhat. After a few moments of this closer look at the car's exterior, the creature simply turned and floated away into the woods. Within moments, it had disappeared completely. The disturbed couple, though, would remain in the car, watching the area in case it was to suddenly emerge once more.

After several minutes, they saw the globe-like object rise upwards above the trees and move into the air. A few seconds later, it would sip into the distance at incredible speed and vanish. After several moments, with a couple each still unsure of exactly what had happened, George reached down to the keys in the ignition. He turned the car over, hoping against hope that the engine would, somewhat start. Much to his surprise, not to mention relief, the engine ticked over and burst into life. The family would drive away from the area immediately, not stopping until they reached a truck stop diner several miles down the road. Once there, they would go inside and attempt to make sense of

the events of the last half hour. Not wishing to drive any further, they would spend the night in a nearby hotel. They did not see the creature, again and would leave the area headed for Queens early the next morning. Before setting out on the journey, though, George would discover a burn mark on the exterior of the car where the strange creature had seemingly made contact with it the previous evening. Although the young couple was not aware of it, the following evening, on September 15th, multiple residents of the town of Wheeling would bombard the local police desk with reports of a quote, monster near Oakle Bay Park.

The vast majority of the reports claimed that the monster had been seen in a housing development. What was interesting about the reports was that they came from people who were reporting a sighting of the monster that had been given to them, either by a child, relative, or neighbor. Police did attempt to locate the creature, but no actual sightings of it were ever made. It is surely highly coincidental, though, that such a rash of sightings, secondhand though they might be, should be reported at the same time as other similar sightings in the area. Whether these sightings are connected to the encounters in Flatwoods or not is perhaps open for debate. It does, though, cast an element of doubt onto the eventual explanations for the case.

A further intrigue is the fact that the main witnesses were apparently discreetly visited by a strange group of men who simply offered that they were, quote, from the government. As well as being interviewed relatively extensively, the men would take away the clothing that was oil-stained, as well as several pieces of metal that the witnesses claimed to have seized a short time after the incident. Apparently, these items were not returned to the witnesses, and their whereabouts remain unknown. At around the same time, the press coverage of the witnesses changed somewhat, with them suddenly being made to appear like, quote, ignorant country folk, who would become scared during a meteor episode. This was the view taken by several astronomy experts in interviews with the local and national papers, in the weeks following the encounter.

The Flatwood's tail would take an even stranger twist, however, a month or so later, when a letter arrived with Mrs. May from Washington, D.C., apparently offering a different explanation. It would state that the object she had witnessed was, quote, an experimental military aircraft, which was designed for lunar travel. What's more, there were four of these craft overhead on the night in question. It should be noted that there is a chance that a great many of the accounts became a little more inflated over time. The more reporters flock to the area, the more neighbors and people not actually at the scene would be spoken to.

All of a sudden, hearsay would infiltrate the incident, at least in some reports. It's perhaps easy to see then why some of the other accounts and sightings of not just UFOs, but the creature itself, have perhaps been overlooked, not least that of the couple traveling back to Queens. Could it be possible that this information allegedly sent to Mrs. May by the government was to implant the seeds of a cover-up, even down to the mentioning of four vehicles in order to combat any one, witnesses who might make such a statement. Despite the apparent explanations, apparent new evidence in the last two decades might suggest just that.

Perhaps the most likely and accepted explanation, at least for the incident in Flatwoods, was that the UFO was not, in fact, a UFO at all, but simply a meteor that the children believed landed nearby, but it actually disappeared a little way to. over the hillside. The research of Joe Nickel, UFO investigator, in the year 2000, would certainly suggest this. The pulsating light, for example, was explained as either the afterglow of the passing meteor on the land below, or more likely, from one of three nearby plane beacons, which did indeed have a red glow to them. There was also an apparent explanation for the markings on the ground and the gooey, oily substance. A local claimed it was from his pickup truck that had been

there just after the incident had occurred, as he had driven there out of curiosity. Not only were the markings from his tires, but the substance was oil from the car itself. This could explain the situation reported in the newspaper as discovered by its reporter, but it brings back to mind the claims of Mrs. May and the oily substance she claimed the entity unleashed in her direction, staining her clothes. The same clothes it has claimed were recovered by government agents and never returned. It would certainly be a stretch to suggest a cover-up, but it is perhaps worthy of keeping the idea that this substance may have been of importance at the back of their minds, especially when we learn that according to some researchers,

there is little to substantiate the account, other than the later admission report. The other aspects of the encounter were also neatly summed up. For example, the strange mist was explained away as nothing more than just normal fog that settled into the area. This, despite the claims of toxic or nauseous smells to it, the sickness of the witnesses was also dismissed as nothing more than, shock, with the throat infections being attributed to the children screaming loudly when frightened. This is certainly possible, although these aspects are not as neat a fit as those to explain the UFO

and strange lights, nor is the explanation, after a few moments' contemplation, that the strange aroma was nothing more than the type of grass that was native to the county. It would seem bizarre that so many locals who live there their entire lives should suddenly become aware of this strange smell all of a sudden. With these last suggestions in mind, this watertight

explanation perhaps doesn't seem so watertight after all. That brings us to the creature and what it might have been. Nicol would suggest, and many others would agree with him, that what the group witnessed that evening was not a robotic creature

from outer space with monstrous eyes and claws, but rather nothing more than a simple barn owl. When sketches and drawings of the creature had been produced, there was indeed a similar shape to a common barn owl, and we should recall how all of the witnesses claimed that they couldn't see clearly the lower half the body. They would state that all that was there was a dark form. Many who subscribed to the explanation that the alien in the trees was actually an owl

offered that the reason the witnesses didn't see a lower torso is that there was nothing to see, only forest and underbrush. The owl was likely perched on a branch, and in the confusion and fright of the situation likely appeared as a tall creature with a round head and glowing eyes. Indeed, some reports state that Mrs. May initially said that the eyes appeared similar to a raccoon. Upon being confronted by the group, the owl, likely itself alarmed by the sudden influx of people, flew from the branch, although likely not to attack, but merely escape the location. This would also explain, according to the argument, the gliding or floating nature of the creature.

Even the hissing, whining, or squealing sounds, said to be heard by those in the group of witnesses are apparently similar to sounds one might hear from a common barn owl in certain situations. And then there's the bobbing or circular motions of the head, the shape of the head itself, and even the claws can all be explained if an owl was actually the creature they saw. With this in mind then, we might think the Flatwood's monster case has been put to bed. However, in 2004, researcher Frank C. Faschino Jr. published a book that would question this entire explanation. Hey, everyone, Ryan Sprague here, host of Somewhere in the Skies. If you've ever thought about supporting us, we have great two easy options for you right now.

If you listen to the show on Apple Podcasts, you can click the subscribe button at the top of your Apple feed. Or you can join our Patreon at patreon.com slash somewhere skies. Both of these options give you the same benefits. Early access to the main show, bonus episodes and content, and priority to ask our guests your listener questions. So to help support Summer in the Skies, click that subscription. button on Apple or visit patreon.com slash somewhere skies. Thank you so much for your support and keep looking up. In his book, the Braxton County Monster, the cover-up of the Flatwoods monster revealed. Faschino stated that his research was the result of over a decade's worth of interviews with witnesses

and military personnel alike, as well as accessing government and military files. One of the the people he would track down was the reporter who claimed to have discovered the oil marks and markings on the ground, A. Lee Stewart, and the story he gave Faschino was much different from the one that had become commonplace in most articles and reports in the years since the incident. Stuart would claim to Faschino that he had been grossly misquoted in relation to the Flatwood's monster case. He would state that he received a call at around 9 p.m. on the night of the incident from a state trooper who he named as Ted Tribbitt. After speaking with Tribut, Stuart got in his car and headed to the May residence to investigate. As he made his way there, he passed a store where a friend worked

and stopped briefly to allow him to get in and join him. When they arrived at the May residence, panic and turmoil was the scene that they found. What was already proving to be an extraordinary night was about to get even stranger. Stewart would organize a makeshift search party of around 12 people. Between them, they had both a 12-gauge and several handguns. They set out to the location of the incident. Although they discovered the markings on the ground and claimed the intense and unplanned, pleasant aroma was still present, there was no sign of the creature. They would head back to the

May residence. After speaking briefly to the witnesses involved, Stewart would then take his friend home and return to his office. He went through his notes before telephoning a friend to ask if he could arrange to borrow a real-to-reel tape recorder the following day so that he could return to tape record his interviews with the witnesses. With that arranged, he telephoned Olin Barry, his attorney, seeking advice on how he was best to allow the story into publication. Although it was now well after midnight, Barry would tell him to come to his house, and from there they would contact the Charleston Gazette to negotiate such a release. All of this was far from the only discrepancies.

Perhaps the biggest of these claims, which would come from interviews with witnesses and military documents, that the meteors were actually part of four formations of unknown spacecraft that had entered the airspace from the Gulf of Mexico during a military exercise. If that wasn't an outrageous enough claim, the United States military would launch several fighters to engage the unknown aircraft. One of these was seemingly damaged in the exchange and would eventually land in flatwoods, close to where the group of children were playing. Then, the account takes an even stranger and more intriguing twist. Whether the object had an emergency landing or crashed,

it was Faschino's findings that the occupants survived the impact and escaped into the trees and woodland. Only by pure chance did the group stop right opposite where the marooned creature was hiding out. We might also recall that the witnesses also claim that the lower portion of the creature appeared to be metallic, or as if it was inside a metal case. The next sightings of the creature were on the night after in the nearby town of Frampton. It isn't clear whether there were more than one survivor or occupants in the craft,

but it's Faschino's suggestion that within 24 hours, and using the cover of the wood, woodland, the creature had made its way to Frampton. Following its encounter with the Snitowski's, it would appear that it was essentially rescued as witnessed by the merry couple who saw the globe-like object rise into the air and disappear. Further, according to Faschino's research, another craft from the formation that appeared during the military exercise, possibly looking to recover its lost colleague came down in the town of Wheeling. It is possible that on this occasion, the creature was recovered by authorities. But, according to the documents, the researcher viewed, a, quote, burned woman's corpse

was substituted at the site, and the wreckage made to resemble something more earthly. A cover story was then released into the press, and all efforts success, disfally diverted attention away from the incident. From there, a discreet effort was put into place to discredit the witnesses, as we might recall how they were seemingly lured into wider press coverage only to be mocked and set up as country folk with little perspective for their actual surroundings. It might be easy to dismiss Faschina's findings as nonsense and speculative since, If it wasn't for the apparent endorsement of widely respected UFO researcher, the late Stanton Friedman.

Friedman would write a foreword for the book in which he would state that the evidence presented by the author points to a conspiracy and cover-up of a truly outstanding and important event. Perhaps of even more intrigue and concern is the fact that Faschino has also collected numeric. similar accounts of strange fireballs overhead, followed by sightings of strange, monstrous creatures, usually in woodland. He also states that even now, more than half a century later, people remember the witnesses to the Flatwoods monster incident were almost shunned and treated terribly. Consequently, the vast majority of people don't wish to speak of their encounters. And if they do, it isn't until many years later. Maybe the most intriguing aspect to Faschino's claims, however,

revolve around the creature itself, and the intriguing and seemingly controversial lower half, which, as mentioned, was this metallic casing of some kind. And the connections these apparent creatures have to one of the most intriguing, alleged alien races on record. If we recall the account of the account of, of this Natowski's for a moment, George would claim that a creature

had a reptilian head, and that the lower body was in some kind of metallic casing. Faschino believes that the creature was likely more snake-like. With the metallic casing being a body that allowed it to move around,

he would further theorize that the rest of the creature's body was coiled inside that casing. While such theories sound as though they came straight out of science fiction, they are perhaps further intriguing when we discover information the researcher learned from Gray Barker and Ivan T. Sanderson, both of whom would investigate the region on several occasions as part of their own research in the 1950s and 60s. On one occasion, while inspecting the location of a little-known crash site, as well as discovering a huge indentation

in the ground, they would find several strange. pieces of a coiled substance. They would have this strange find analyzed, which would result in some strange findings indeed. Perhaps most bizarre, when this substance was placed in water, it would suddenly uncoil. According to the information given to Faschino, the substance was like a giant piece of snake skin. So are we dealing with a conspiracy theorist's dream of reptilians? And could this explain the strange and unpleasant smell, which, bizarrely or not, often surfaces in claims of encounters with reptilians? And what about the oily substance discovered at the Flatwood's site?

Perhaps it's worth noting the comments of Mrs. May, who would state that, quote, the government just tells you what they want you to believe. So what can be made of the Flatwood's region? Is it itself some kind of entry point between the world of these potential reptilian creatures and ours? Perhaps that is why the sightings and strange activity persists. Could it be that the final chapter in the Flatwoods monster case might not even yet be written? The group of witnesses, understandably already spooked and perhaps hyper alert,

given the multiple UFO reports that would have surfaced in the several months, leading up to the incident, had gone to investigate just such a landed object, and found themselves confronted with this equally bemused owl. Remember, the credibility and genuineness of the witnesses were not at any point in question. And, in the heat of the moment of such an encounter, it's easy to understand why the brain would put together what it very much believes, to be two and two and come up with five. That being said, we have also examined a distinctly different version of events in this re-examination, one that tells a completely different story.

This, of course, creates doubt sufficient enough for other researchers to examine the case with a new mindset. The Flatwood's case remains of interest to UFO enthusiasts and skeptics alike, with the latter often using it as proof that all UFOs are. are likely the result of similar circumstances, and the former looking to it as a demonstration of UFO researchers' abilities to lean toward the most likely scenario. It only takes, though, the slightest element of doubt to maintain such interest.

No matter what the Flatwoods monster was or wasn't, it will remain a classic case of UFO lore, and it truly does continue to keep us wondering what truly happened over Flatwoods somewhere in the skies. The following audio features UFO researchers Ivan T. Sanderson and Stanton Friedman commenting on the Flatwoods Monster event. When we had questioned all these people, at least all the kids, together in various combinations of two, three, four, and five, and singly, and then mixed them up again, and we, for three days, we went on and they never deviated from their stories one single iota and if you can tell me that a bunch of 12 kids can get together and make up a lie and stick to it for 10 days under the most grueling circumstances because there were professional reporters there is you

interrogate them individually individually in combinations of different twos and threes and fours and all together and over three days and there was never in the evidence we have it taped and we have it written down there was never a mistake. Some added a few touches which were not exaggerations. Some of them became a little doubtful as to whether it was just as they said the first time or the second, but they never deviated in their overall story

and I think that's very, very a powerful factor in evaluating the whole thing. I hadn't heard much about the Flatwood's Monster case as I was growing up in euphology. I first got interested in 1958 and I'd heard about it and read about it on the encyclopedias and so forth.

But it was only when Frank Faschino called me to appear at their 50th anniversary celebration in Flywoods, that I looked a lot more closely to see it, what do I want to get involved with here? I mean, is this real? Is it not real? Is it just a story?

I was very impressed with what I found. So I agreed to go down there, and I was astonished in talking to Frank, and he was setting the material, and we spent time together at the 50th anniversary. to see the enormous amount of information he had collected. And when talking to the witnesses, I believe you have to go to the site

if you're going to learn something useful about it case. It's very hopeful. So with Flatwoods, being able to walk the walk that the kids took going up the hill to see the big tree, to see the area where the saucer had landed up above, as soon as you saw those things, You've got a very important context for the story.

And that's what had been there. It was the highest place in the area. So whoever was running the door and think would look around and say, hey, we'd better put it down there. There's no place else. We've been in trouble otherwise. So that made sense. That place made absolute sense.

And then when you go up the hill to go past the tree, what's left of it, the family, the people had gone up past, the monster came out from it. then you can again understand. They're going up there to see what's up there. They had no expectation of all of running into something over here, especially some monster, some different things,

some totally unexpected thing. And so when you start looking at this, and you talk to the witnesses, and you find out that the kids got sick, had a whiff on this crazy gas or oil or whatever it was, making the two together, and how they understood it could be. make kids sick. And kids were sick all night long. The reporter found that out. When you hear about

what the National Guard guy, Dale Levin, found, it begins to really pile up facts and data and information. And then when I read the Air Force explanation, gee, no surprise there. It was just a meteor. Well, meteors have certain properties. They move very rapidly. When they hit the ground, there's a big noise, and usually a big hole in the ground, and there are remnants of the meteor. None of these hold true. Meteors don't circle around the city and come down on land.

You could say, well, it just went down the other side, but that wasn't what the people perceived. And when you hear the explanation, not only was it a meteor up there, although there's not the slightest bit of evidence that there was. And if you look at the meteor compilations for that year, no flatwood's meteor. And when you hear it,

about the monster and then the stupid explanation, that it was an owl. I mean, a big owl, real big owl. And if the kid's getting sick, was because they were frightened. None of that makes any sense. Look at that. Here's the monster owl.

Here's the monster. You know how by the branch was up here, When the skeptics put out drawings, of course, they got the branch down here. But the object couldn't have moved out if there was a branch in the way. It went under the branch that was maybe 12 feet off the ground. So I don't know what this thing was. I suspect it was protective gear being run by somebody, maybe even remotely. And these seem to be antennas.

Now, people were misled by the initial drawings. ever put together as to what this was. But it's remarkable when you look at the fine drawings made by the fine kids who were up there and the local reporter had each kid do it separately. And you see how alike they were. Standard legal procedures say if five people describe something the same way, then they're probably describing the same thing.

And, you know, this is impressive. This is impressive for fine different kids. This episode is brought to you by Netflix. Most valuable promotions in Netflix are hosting a blockbuster triple headliner Saturday, May 16th. Rhonda Rousey returns to face fellow woman's MMA pioneer Gina Carano in the main event. Plus co-main's Nate Diaz versus Mike Perry. And the best heavy weight in the world, Frances Ngano versus Felipe Lins. Watch Rhonda Rousey versus Gina Carano, live only on Netflix.

Saturday, May 16th at 9 p.m. Eastern Center time. 6 p.m. Pacific Time. And this is peculiar. Nobody's ever reported a cow-like affair, like Aces Spades, you know, it's made a behind something. This is not like they copied it from a science fiction magazine. So you have an honest reporter who actually was willing to go on television with the kids and Mrs. May, primary witness. Now, I was favorably impressed with the witnesses, too.

I get a real kick out of the people who attack witnesses. but don't talk to them. Make up explanations. You know, they were just seeking attention. They wanted to be somebody. The attention UFO witnesses get is not usually very pleasant, especially in a small town.

They get laughed at by the people in the community. These kids had nothing to gain. Mrs. May had nothing to gain. Only went on television. Big deal. They were being accommodating to a local reporter, Mr. Stewart. And when you attack the people, people's credibility without giving any good reason for doing so.

And when you ignore the data and when you refuse to go to the site to see things firsthand or to talk to the firsthand witnesses, that's what Dr. Joe Nichol did with regard to this case. He was in flatwoods, but he didn't go up to see the hill or the gully where the thing moved down and he didn't talk to the witnesses and he didn't go to the tree. What kind of investigation is that? One of the major contributions Frank Machina was made to the investigation

on the five-woods monster case, is to take out the blue book files. Difficult as it was, they were hard to read. But you look at all the witness testimony from that time. You know, people saying it was not a meteor, I have seen meteors. People who haven't seen meteors might think it was, but I have seen meteors

is clearly being flown. That's a quote for a witness. Obviously, the craft was in trouble or it wouldn't have come down a bit. saw it as kind of burning. So you've got to go down, cool it off. It's amazing out there on the site. See how steep the gully is.

The terrain is rugged. It's not gently sloping hills. The thing slid on down. This object went back there. And the whole thing took off sometime later. Meanwhile, lots of information was collected, which we have never seen. And Dale Leibbitt pointed out, he never got any feedback on the stuff that he sent in.

He sent in samples of the liquid, samples of the metal. Nobody knows what happened to it. Where it went and what the results were. And that's what I think happened here. And I think the government was the guys on the inside at the hub were very much concerned about what this meant. In the first place, people were scared all the pieces. Monster, that conjures up all kinds of things.

and in the second place what does this mean are these guys here to destroy us where they're getting ready to attack you know the imagination plays tricks and if you talk about a 12 foot high monster that is scary and so

you can understand the government's concerned if not making any more out of this story than they had to it's part of the job of the government to prevent public panic about things to tamp down too much excitement because it gets in the way of getting rational things done. So I'm not blaming the government entirely for lying about this event.

What are they going to say? That wouldn't scare the heck out of people. Are they going to tell you about all the other sightings that night? Of craft moving across the country from the East Coast over? Don't think so. But Frank Faschino has collected the stories from the newspapers all over the east. And it is clear there were lots and lots of sightings of truly unidentified flying objects that were not meteors. So Flatwoods is a good, solid case.

Frank Faschino has collected more data on that case than has been collected any other case that I'm aware of. And I've been on Roswell for 25 years. This episode was written and co-researched by Marcus Loth. To learn more, visit UFOinsight.com. take a moment to rate and review Somewhere in the Skies on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever possible. It truly does help us.

You can also follow us on Twitter at SomewhereSkies. Thank you for listening. And remember, keep your feet on the ground, but never stop searching. Somewhere in the Skies. Somewhere in the Skies is produced by Third Kind Productions in association with the Entertainment One Podcast Network.