Long Island / Moriches Bay: UFO Activity and Alleged Shootdown, September 28
On the night of September 28, 1989, UFO activity is recorded over Long Island and Connecticut within a 35-mile north-south stretch. At around 5:30 PM, residents of Moriches Bay notice strange lights hovering over the bay that interfere with TV reception. By 8 PM near Calverton, a woman and her son see six bright amber lights above a field, discerning a huge triangular craft. At 8:10 PM, UFOs are seen across Long Island Sound in Connecticut. John Ford of LIUFON claims a UFO was shot down with a 'Star Wars' weapon and retrieved at Moriches Bay, though his accounts contain gross inaccuracies. Ford was later arrested and institutionalized. The Moriches Bay area would later be the site of the TWA Flight 800 crash in 1996.
Background
EVENT TITLE: Long Island / Moriches Bay: UFO Activity and Alleged Shootdown, September 28
EVENT DATE: 1989-09-28
EVENT TYPE: sighting
On the night of September 28, 1989, UFO activity was reported over Long Island and Connecticut. Residents of Moriches Bay observed strange lights hovering over the bay, which reportedly interfered with television reception.
The Incident
On September 28, 1989, at approximately 5:30 PM, residents of Moriches Bay on Long Island reported unusual lights hovering over the bay. These lights were said to have caused interference with television reception in the area. Later that evening, around 8 PM near Calverton, a woman and her son witnessed something related to the earlier sightings. The exact nature of what the woman and her son witnessed is not detailed in the provided text. The UFO activity occurred within a 35-mile north-south stretch encompassing Long Island and Connecticut.
Investigation
The provided text does not explicitly detail any official investigation into the Long Island/Moriches Bay incident itself. However, it does mention investigations into other UFO encounters. One case involved a report sent to retired Major Colman Von Keviczky regarding a 1975 encounter off the island of Sardinia. This report described NATO personnel observing a UFO and attempting to shoot it down. Von Keviczky contacted the Italian Ministry of Defense and Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe, but was ultimately informed that film of the incident was unavailable due to Italian national security policy. Another case mentioned was investigated by MUFON and involved a helicopter pilot, Major Claude Riddle, encountering a UFO near Stockton Metropolitan Airport.
Significance
The Long Island/Moriches Bay incident is part of a broader pattern of reported UFO sightings. The mention of other military encounters, such as the alleged shootdown attempt off Sardinia, highlights the potential national security implications associated with UFO phenomena. The difficulty in obtaining information about these incidents, as exemplified by the Italian government's refusal to release film footage, underscores the secrecy surrounding UFO-related matters. The MUFON investigation of the Stockton incident suggests the ongoing civilian interest in and investigation of UFO sightings.