seen by several hundred thousand people, at the very least. Many would
have reported it as a balloon. But even if this angle is ignored it
still could not possibly have been a balloon at low altitude. The fast
flight from Madisonville, the abrupt stop and hour-long hovering at
Godman Field, the quick bursts of speed Mantell reported make it
impossible. To fly the go miles from Madisonville to Fort Knox in 30
minutes, a balloon would require a wind of 180 m.p.h. After traveling
at this hurricane speed, it would then have had to come to a dead stop
above Godman Field. As the P-51's approached, it would have had to
speed tip again to 180, then to more than 360 to keep ahead of
Mantell.

The three fighter pilots chased the mysterious object for half an
hour. (I have several times chased balloons with a plane, overtaking
them in seconds.) In a straight chase, Mantell would have been closing
in at 360; the tail wind acting on his fighter would nullify the
balloon's forward drift.

But even if you accept these improbable factors, there is one final
fact that nullifies the balloon explanation. The strange object had
disappeared when Mantell's wingman searched the sky, just after the
leader's death. If it had been a balloon held stationary for an hour
at a high altitude, and glowing brightly enough to be seen through
clouds, it would have remained visible in the same general position.
Seen from 33,000 feet, it would have been even brighter, because of
the clearer air.

But the mysterious object had completely vanished in

{p. 42}