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Jet Fighters Alerted * SAN FRANCISCO, July 6—U») — Military aircraft. hunted the ses over Pacific Coast states tqday for sight of the mysterious “flying saucers” that for 12 days, ve puzzled the entire country. Early reports of results were negative. Five P-5is of the Oregon Na- tional Guard cruised over the Cascade Mountains of Washing: ton—the area where the strange objects first were reported sight- ed. A sixth circled over Portland, in constant radio contact with the other five. All carried photo- graphic equipment, Col. G. R. Dodson, command: ing, described their flight as a “routine patrol,” but said they had been instructed to wateh for the flying discs. t Manhattan Beach, Calif, A. McKelvey took a Mustan; ter plane up above Van Nuys two hours he cruised at 354 feet, but “didn't see a thing. Gen. Carl Spaatz, commandan of the Army Air Forces, was ona Pacific Northwest fishing trip. He denied knowing anything about the flying discs — or of plans to use AAF planes to look for them. JET FIGHTER SET “I’ve been out of touch with things for four or five days,” he said. Louis E. Starr, national com- mander-in-chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, yesterday in Co- lumbus, 0., said he understood Spaatz had a “group out right now” looking for discs, At Muroc Army Air Field in California a P-80 jet fighter stood ready to take off the moment any fi, Fe SEEN IN 86 STATES ————= First sighted June 25 and Breeted generally with scornful laughs, the objects have been Te- ported every day since by observ- ers in 36 states. Most of the ob- jects were reported seen July 4, A few were reported yesterday. Such competent observers as airline pilots said they had seen the totally unexplained discs or saucers, larger than aircraft and \ | duingeia “loose formation” at high speed. —_ David Lilienthal, chairman, of the Atomic Energy Commission, Raid they had nothing to do with atomic experiments, and Army and Navy officials also entered positive disclaimers, Newspaper stories quoting an unidentified California Institute of Technology scientist as saying the phenomena migh‘ have some- thing to do with experiments in “transmutation of atomic energy” used a brief sensation late yes- rday. The institute quickly de- ‘ied the report. Reports generally agreed that the flying objects were round or oval. Estimates of their speed | ranged from about 300 to 1,200 | miles an hour. They were de- scribed as flying with an undu- lating motion at heights of 10,000 feet and less. Some described them as glowing, or luminous. ‘PROPELLER IN CENTER’ Nova Hart, St. Louis mechanic who was trained during service | in the war to spot all types of aircraft, said he saw one of the trang objects near Pattonville esterday. It was flying at 300 et, he said. He described it as circular, with a_mibbed framework and silver gray in color. Hart said it ap- peared tohave a motor with a ‘propeller attached in the center and it ‘turning like an air- flying saucers are sighted in that — Plane area. A cautious attitude marked - both official and scientific com-.' ments, but Capt. Tom Brown pf the Air Forces Public Relatiogs st}ff in Washington acknov- edged the Air Forces had decided “thipre’s something to this” and nad’ been checking up on it for i 10 days. t First) piiblished reports of the Phenomena occu ured Tune 2 June 25. Kenneth” Arnold, Boise, Ida. businessman pilot, told of seeing nine of the dises flying in forma- tion at 1,200 miles an hour over the Cascade Mountains in Wash- ington. i SEEN BY 200 Arnold’s account was taken lightly. Various explanations were offered—“reflections,” “per- sistent vision,” “snow blindness.” Soon afterward other individ-| uals—in New Mexico, Missouri, California and other states—re- ported they also had seen the flying objects. Then on Independence Day 200. persons in one group and», 60 in another saw them in Idaho. Hun- dreds of others in Oregon, Wash- ington and other western sjates reported seeing them. July 4 also brought firs Ports of the flying discs from east of the Mississippi. Since then they have been reported seen In widely separated sections of he country—in 33 states in all. ‘Must Be Insane’ LONDON, July 6—UP)—Don't mention those flying saucers on this side of the Atlantic unless you're prepared for an argument about your sanity, | Maybe they have been seen by sober citizens over a vast area of the United States, but Europe ‘won't believe in them until some- body lassoes one and has it photo- graphed by Frank Sinatra, the British ambassador and five} Supreme Court justices. “America’s reply to the Loch Npss monster,” chortled today’s inday dispatch, referring to ritain’s hoariest tall story—the jerpent that is “seen” romping Jn cotland’s Loch Ness every time re- > * the tourist trade needs a shot An|_ the arm. MILWAUKEE SENTINEL MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN