Rendlesham Forest: The UFO Case the US Air Force Put in Writing
In the last week of December 1980, the twin bases of RAF Bentwaters and RAF Woodbridge in Suffolk, England — leased to the United States Air Force — were among NATO's more sensitive installations. Around 3 a.m. on 26 December, a security patrol near Woodbridge's east gate saw lights apparently descending into the neighbouring Rendlesham Forest. Thinking an aircraft might have crashed, servicemen went in to check, among them Staff Sergeant Jim Penniston and Airman First Class John Burroughs.
What happened next is disputed to this day. Penniston later said he came upon a small triangular craft resting in a clearing, its surface warm to the touch and marked with symbols he could not read — and that he touched it. Sceptics note that his earliest written statement was far more modest, and that the details grew over the years; Penniston stands by his account. What is not disputed is that after daybreak, servicemen found three indentations in the ground, burn-like marks and broken branches on the surrounding trees.
Sign up and get your first month completely free — unlimited access to the entire archive, ad-free for subscribers. Cancel anytime.
Subscribe — first month free