Patrick D. McCaslin Interview, 25 February 2001
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| for an aircraft. Radar sighting describes the size on the scope to be larger than that of a KC-135 during aerial refueling." | ||
| PM: | Right. | |
| INT: | "The airborne radar sighting was a single return on the scope...Air Electronics, ASQ-38 in station keeping mode. No optical aids used. Radar echo accompanied aircraft to approximately 14 nautical miles, 29 south radial, approximately 9,000 feet MSL.". That make sense? | |
| PM: | It could be. I mean, well again, and I could be wrong about the distance, but the only way to verify that distance is to—because, remember, I'm sitting in the bottom of a black hole there, and it could have been—30 years ago or so, it could have been that far. I just would have to look at an approach plate and see where, you know, where we would normally be at that point. | |
| INT: | And they call you a very reliable witness here, so— | |
| PM: | I'd like to think so. | |
| INT: | So, and in here they're saying...they're going through what you were up to: "The air craft initially arrived in the area on a 50 nautical mile radius clearance with a block altitude of flight level 210 to flight level 230 and began various instrument practice maneuvers including a vertical S-pattern." Do you remember that? | |
| PM: | We may have. I don't know what a verti—even as a pilot, I don't know what they're talking about when they talk about a vertical S-pattern. | |
| INT: | "This took place at almost the same time as the first ground sighting. After a VOR penetration, low approach and missed approach to runway 29 at Minot Air Force Base." So everything collaborates with what you guys remember. "The aircraft climbed to flight level 200 on a heading of 292 after rolling out of a right turn around to the TACAN initial approach fix, a bright echo suddenly appeared 3 miles abeam and to the left of the aircraft. The echo rapidly closed on the aircraft and remained at about 1 mile." | |
| PM: | Okay, that's at variance with what I say because I saw it on the way out. | |
| INT: | Yeah. "The radar echo continued with the aircraft during its TACAN penetration for about 20 miles. During this time, radarscope photographs were taken that clearly shows a radar echo." And that's all that's relative to you. I guess that's about it. |
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