Thread by @mrjeffknox

#ufotwitter #ufohistory
Today in UFO History - Cigar-Shaped UFO Approaches Morgantown Victory
January 11, 1966 - Pacific Ocean, north of Marcus Island
1/10:00 PM. (22:00 local ship time), three witnesses (the Third Mate, the Helmsman, and the Bow Lookout) of the S. S. Morgantown

2/Victory saw a cigar shaped object approach their ship. The object approached the starboard beam of the ship from the horizon and then turned almost 180° to avoid going over the ship. It approached the ship within 1 mile at an elevation of 400 ft. It hovered for 30 seconds, then

3/ crossed in front of the ship and made another directional change. The object was described as being cigar shaped, glowing with an orange-yellow color, with a bright glow on its front, a body with a duller glow, and a long fiery tail. The body appeared to have two lights on

4/top. The length of the object was estimated at 200-250 ft and its height at about 35-40ft. The object was visible for 3 minutes. The Master of the ship thought that a plane had crashed in the ocean and he ordered the ship to turn to conduct a search. Two turns were made and

5/nothing was found in the searches. Blue Book Conclusion: Satellite Decay (Cosmos 53) [Fran Ridge]
Sources:
"Three in Crew of GAA Ship Tell of Sighting of 'UFO'," Sealift Magazine (June 1966): 3, 21;
Blue Book Files;

NICAP, "Cigar-Shaped UFO Approaches Morgantown Victory"
nicap.org/660111dir.htm

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Morgan…

Interesting note: I guess these ships had asbestos, and people who served on them were exposed and later developed illnesses related to abestos exposure.
asbestos-ships.com/ships/ss-morga…