Before I left, I told them I was working with True.
"I want to be on record," I said, "as having told you
{p. 32}
this. If there"s any security involved--if you tell me it"s something you"re working on--naturally I"ll lay off."
Al Scholin said emphatically, "It"s not an Air Force device, if that"s what you mean."
"Some people think it"s Russian."
"If it is, I don"t know it," said Al, "and neither does the Air Force."
After I left the magazine section, I tried several officers I knew.
Two of them agreed with Splitt. The third didn"t.
"I"ve been told it"s all bunk," he said, "but you get the feeling they"ve trying to convince themselves. They act like people near a haunted house. They"ll swear it isn"t haunted--but they won"t go near it."
Later, I asked a security major for a copy of the Project "Saucer"
report.
"We"re out of copies right now," he said. "I"ll send you one next week."
I asked him bluntly what he thought the saucers were.
"I doubt if anybody has the full answer," he said seriously. "There"s been some hysteria--also a few mistakes. But many reports have been made by reliable pilots, including our own. You can"t laugh those off."
As I drove home, I thought over what I"d heard. All I had learned was that the Air Force seemed divided. But that could be a smoke screen.
In less than twenty-four hours, I received my first suspicious tip. It was about ten A.M. when my phone rang.
"Mr. Keyhoe? This is John Steele," said the voice at the other end.
(Because of the peculiar role he played, then and later, I have not used his real name.) "I"m a former Air Force Intelligence officer. I was in the European theater during the war."
I waited. He hesitated a moment.
"I heard you"re working on the flying-saucer problem," he said quickly. "I may have some information that would interest you."
"Mind telling me who told you I was on it?" I asked.
"No one, directly. I just happened to hear it mentioned at the Press Club. Frankly, I"ve been curious about the flying saucers ever since "45."
That startled me, but I didn"t tell him so.
{p. 53}
"Do you have any idea what they are?" Mr. Steele said.
"No, I"ve just begun checking. But I"d be glad to hear what you"ve got."
"I may be way off," said Steele. "But I"ve always wondered about the "foo fighters" our pilots saw over Europe near the end of the war."
I thought for a second. "Wasn"t that some kind of antiaircraft missile fired from the ground?"
"No. Intelligence never did get any real answer, so far as I know.
They were some kind of circular gadgets, and they actually chased our planes a number of times. We thought they were something the n.a.z.is had invented--and I still think so."
"Then who"s launching them now?"
"Well, it"s obviously either Russia or us. If it is the Soviet--well, that"s what"s worried me. I don"t think it should be treated like a joke, the way some people in the Pentagon take it."
I stared at the phone, trying to figure him out.
"I"d like to talk it over with you," I said. "Maybe you"ve got something."
"I"ve given you about all I know," Steele answered. "There was an Intelligence report you might try to see--the Eighth Air Force files should have it."
"Wait a minute," I said. "Give me your number, in case I find anything."
He gave it to me without apparent hesitation. I thanked him and hung up, still wondering.
If it was an attempt at a plant, it was certainly crude. The mention of his former Air Force connection would be enough to arouse suspicion, unless he counted on his apparent frankness to offset it.
And what about the Press Club angle? That would indicate Steele was a newspaperman. Could this be merely an attempt to pump me and get a lead on True"s investigation? But that would be just as crude as the other idea. Of course, he might be sincere. But regardless of his motives, it looked bad. Arid who had told him about me?
I thought about that for a minute. Then I picked up the phone and dialed Jack Daly"s number.
{p. 34}
"Jack, do you know anyone named John Steele?" I asked him. "I think he"s a newspaperman."
"n.o.body I know," said Jack. "Why, what"s up?"
I explained, and added, "I thought maybe you knew him, and he"d heard about it from you."
"h.e.l.l, no," said Jack. "You ought to know I wouldn"t leak any tip like that."
"It wouldn"t be a tip--I don"t know anything about this deal yet. By the way, when you were on the Star did you handle anything on "foo fighters"?"
"No, that was after I left there. Bill Shippen would have covered that, anyway."
I told him I would look it up in the Star"s morgue. Jack said he would meet me there at three o"clock; in the meantime he would see what he could find out about Steele.
Jack was a little late, and I went over the Star"s file on the foo fighters. Most of the facts were covered in a story dated July 6, 1947, which had been inspired by the outbreak of the saucer scare. I copied it for later use:
During the latter part of World War Two, fighter pilots in England were convinced that Hitler had a new secret weapon. Yanks dubbed these devices "foo fighters" or "Kraut fireb.a.l.l.s."
One of the Air Force Intelligence men now a.s.signed to check on the saucer scare was an officer who investigated statements of military airmen that circular foo fighters were seen over Europe and also on the bombing route to j.a.pan.
It was reported that Intelligence officers have never obtained satisfactory explanation of reports of flying silver b.a.l.l.s and disks over n.a.z.i-occupied Europe in the winter of 1944-45. Later, crews of B-29"S on bombing runs to j.a.pan reported seeing somewhat similar objects.
In Europe, some foo fighters danced just off the Allied fighters"
wingtips and played tag with them in power dives. Others appeared in precise formations and on one occasion a whole bomber crew