A family of four hiking in Southern California has revealed stunning images of a mysterious craft flying overhead during a solar eclipse. The hikers spotted a large dumbbell or H-shaped UFO moving slowly and erratically near Ryan Mountain in Joshua Tree National Park on October 14, 2023.
According to the witnesses, they followed the object for approximately 45 minutes, observing it disappear and reappear several times before vanishing completely. The images, shared with safeaerospace.org—a nonprofit group focused on aerospace safety and national security—captured a clear view of the UFO, which appeared to be made of a highly reflective material described as silver.
The object was described as resembling a capital I or a sideways H, with two large panels on each end, giving it a shape reminiscent of a TIE fighter from the Star Wars films. Skeptics online have suggested that the craft could have been a box kite or an escaped letter H party balloon. However, the hikers estimated the craft to be the size of a car or small plane, significantly larger than typical kites or balloons.
Proximity to Military Bases
The sighting occurred near several US military bases, including the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) at Twentynine Palms, about 125 miles east of Los Angeles. It also took place roughly 115 miles from Edwards Air Force Base, the world's largest airfield and a famous testing ground for experimental aircraft and prototypes since the 1940s. Edwards is home to the 412th Test Wing and the Air Force Test Center, where developmental flight testing of new technology occurs. Past tests have included the X-1, which made the first supersonic flight, and the B-21 Raider, a sixth-generation stealth bomber unveiled in 2022.
Expert Involvement
The incident has been taken seriously by Ryan Graves, a former Navy pilot and founder of safeaerospace.org. Graves, a key witness on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), has testified before Congress about his encounters during a decade-long career. He stated, 'UAP are in our airspace, but they are grossly under-reported. These sightings are not rare or isolated; they are routine. Military air crew and commercial pilots, trained observers whose lives depend on accurate identification, are frequently witnessing these phenomena.'
Safeaerospace.org provides civilians, commercial pilots, and veterans a secure channel to report UAP encounters. On Wednesday, President Trump suggested that long-awaited UFO disclosure files could soon be released, saying, 'I think we will be releasing as much as we can in the near future.' He added that he had spoken with military pilots who reported seeing non-human craft.
