Exeter Incident
Sighting at Exeter, New Hampshire in the early hours of 3 September 1965, reported by hitchhiker Norman Muscarello and then by Exeter patrolmen Eugene Bertrand and David Hunt. The Air Force attributed the earlier sightings to an 8th Air Force refuelling exercise, Operation Big Blast Coco, but classified the officers' later observation as unidentified. Blue Book's chief, Maj. Hector Quintanilla, confirmed to Congress on 5 April 1966 that it was unexplained - while denying the radar contact and scrambled fighters claimed in John Fuller's magazine account.
In the UAP recordRuled into the unidentified-phenomena thread on 2 September 2026 from this entity's own name and role text, which contain: "blue book". An editorial classification of what thread this entity belongs to; it rests on no page and does not claim to. Neighbours were not used - see apply-subjects-2026-09-02.mjs for why.
11 of 11 connections resolve to a document you can open.
Documents1 behind a connection
Documents behind a connection
- Unidentified Flying Objects 1966-04-05
11 connections
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the first witness; reported being chased by the objectUnidentified Flying Objectsprinted p. 6016 checked against the page
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responding patrolman who saw the object at close rangesame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6016 checked against the page
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responding patrolman; co-signed the rebuttal to Blue Booksame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6016 checked against the page
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signed the Air Force letter saying the investigation indicated a possible association with Operation Big Blast, and that no final evaluation could yet be madesame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6041 checked against the page
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investigated it for NICAP and pressed the Air Force for its evaluationsame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6016 checked against the page
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backed the investigation and submitted its complete file to Congresssame document as the row above
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Blue Book evaluated it; part of the sighting was left unidentifiedsame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6039 · PDF p. 51 checked against the page
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told the subcommittee "We don't know what it was. I would like to know what it was."same document as the row aboveprinted p. 6074 checked against the page
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his Look magazine account was Hynek's main source on the casesame document as the row above
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examined across eighteen pages of the hearing recordsame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6016 checked against the page
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signed the Air Force letter recording the officers' sighting as unidentified and the earlier ones as Big Blastsame document as the row aboveprinted p. 6039 · PDF p. 51 checked against the pageCaveat The same letter is in tension with itself and this connection does not resolve it: two sentences earlier it states that the Big Blast timing "eliminated these aircraft as a possible evaluation of this incident". Whether that contradicts the attribution, or divides the night into two events, turns on what "this incident" means, and the letter does not say. See the folio 6039 passage note.
Notes on this record
The 3 September 1965 sighting near Exeter, New Hampshire.