Coyne helicopter encounter

Record summary

What happened Four U.S. Army Reserve crew members flying a UH-1 helicopter reported a red light approaching on a collision course. Captain Lawrence Coyne initiated a rapid descent, then the crew described a grey metallic, cigar- or football-shaped object with a green light passing close above the helicopter. They reported that green light filled the cabin and that the helicopter gained altitude despite the controls still being set for descent. Ground witnesses later described lights in the same general area. The case is notable for a multi-person trained crew, but it lacks surviving instrument data or a confirmed radar track. Evidence Four military aircrew witnesses, military reporting and several reported ground observations. Explanations considered A bright meteor combined with aircraft lights, a conventional aircraft seen during an evasive maneuver, and errors in perceived distance and helicopter vertical motion have been proposed. What remains uncertain Nighttime closure rate and distance were estimated visually, and the claimed altitude change was reconstructed from crew memory rather than a preserved flight recorder. Ground reports cannot be securely matched to the same object. Primary source Near Midair Collision with UFO Report — U.S. Army report reproduced by UFOS at Close Sight