A former US combat pilot has shared a UFO encounter he experienced while flying at 30,000 feet.
Major General Ryan Bodenheimer, who previously flew for the US Air Force Thunderbirds and as an F-15E pilot, recounted this incident on his YouTube channel. He nearly collided with a UFO that he described as a “perfect rectangle” during a training mission in South Wyoming earlier this month.
At the time, Bodenheimer was cruising at about 400 knots, which is roughly 460 mph, when a “bright object” suddenly caught his attention from afar.
To his shock, the object was on a “collision course” with his aircraft. He recalled, “I’m trying to grip the control stick and disengage the autopilot, and then I noticed we weren’t hit. It was essentially a perfect rectangle.”
He estimated the UFO was around 30 to 40 feet tall and noted that it had a “bright white” outer edge that appeared to be shimmering.
“I know it sounds like I’m describing desserts or something, but honestly, it was the most surreal experience I’ve ever had,” he remarked.
Initially, Bodenheimer considered that it might be a weather balloon, but he quickly dismissed that idea as it didn’t resemble anything he had previously observed in the sky.
He described the object saying, “There are no wings, no exhaust. The edges were incredibly bright and pulsating. This shouldn’t have been able to fly at 400 knots.” He didn’t detect any radio interference, as he adapted to the jet’s speed rather than picking up signals on his radar.
“This really defied all the aviation rules I knew,” he stated.
After the UFO “zoomed off,” he contacted air traffic control to report the sighting.
When he explained the incident, he was met with “dead silence,” before the controller mentioned that other aircraft were monitoring the unidentified object.
“I never heard anything more about it,” he added.
Despite this, he conducted his own research and found that reports had been filed that day concerning “anomalous objects” in his vicinity.
Though Bodenheimer previously hesitated to discuss his UFO encounters, worried about the “stigma” among other pilots, he now feels more open to share his experiences as perceptions have shifted.
Interestingly, Southern Wyoming is notorious for UFO sightings. Cheyenne, near Warren Air Force Base, has logged over 50 reports of aerial phenomena since 1995, contributing to the state’s total of 421 sightings.
