Alternate Perceptions Magazine, April 2023
FROM THE SAUCER FILES
by: Rick Hilberg
A 1957 "Two - Dimensional" Michigan UFO
After a 1979 television news report on the activities of our then active local UFO group, I received a phone call from a man who had a very strange and unusual experience from way back in 1957. He told me that only his family knew of what happened to him and another man one spring morning in that year. He said that he was willing to share his experience because he knew that we could use the information, and that also his name would remain anonymous.
At the time in question the witness was just out of the service and working at a steel plant in the Detroit area. He and another man from the plant would often rent a boat and go fishing on the Detroit River when they both got off work at 7:00 a.m.
One fine morning at about 9:30 they were drifting just off Elizabeth State Park near Trenton, Michigan when they saw an unusual object hovering over the water not far from the north bank of the river. Both men later agreed that the UFO was between 20 and 30 feet above the river, and not more than a half mile from their boat. The object was football-shaped, metallic in color and completely noiseless. They estimated that it was quite large, no less than 100 feet long.
While they were watching in total amazement, the strange thing suddenly began moving toward the opposite shore at a high rate of speed and made an "instant stop" 50 feet from shore. It remained there for what was estimated to be not more than 10 seconds, when it suddenly went back near its original position on the north bank, this time with a small island visible to them behind the object.
After several more seconds both men observed the object slowly seem to turn on edge, as if it was a "cardboard cutout." It turned until only a thin "edge" was visible. At this point the strange "two- dimensional "nature of the UFO struck them both as being somewhat frightening in nature, and they both hurriedly brought in their fish lines and started the outboard motor to leave the area. At this time the object, still looking flat as a pancake, sped off at a high speed. And, as the two frightened anglers were leaving the area, they both observed a Coast Guard rescue boat heading toward the area where the UFO was hovering before it shot off out of sight. However, the two men decided not to turn back and see what the Coast Guard boat was up to, but rather head for shore and call it quits for the day. They both watched the newspapers for several days hoping about the thing they saw being reported by the Coast Guard or other people on the river but saw no mention of the incident.
Source: Rick Hilberg, Around And About the Saucer World 1998,2006.
