"The next day, intelligence units at both Luke and Davis-Monthan were abuzz. No one knew what had occurred, other than something physical was in the sky, an intercept was attempted, and there were thousands of eye-witness accounts (many of these being the flares)."

"Orders were apparently given for a flare-drop near Phoenix by a unit returning from the Goldwater range. This was considered highly odd to say the least, as that order was given while the main event was unfolding. These aircraft were likely A-10s."

"The orders that were given for the flare drop would have had to have been very high up, probably even officers outside the Luke and Davis-Monthan chain of command. For the average intelligence personnel working on the bases, this event was no doubt 'above their pay grade' and security clearance."

"The alert aircraft being scrambled is not uncommon. Anytime a small aircraft that is unidentified violates southern Arizona airspace, and does not answer radio hails, we will scramble fighters to intercept and ID the 'bogey.' What was unusual about that night were the contact reports from the first flight, and a second scramble of two additional aircraft. This is simply unheard of in day to day intercepts."

"However, I do know that USAF aircraft were chasing down something that night they could not positively ID, either on radar, or visually. Massive electronic interference occurred, knocking out the F-16s BVR (Beyond Visual Range) capability, forcing the fighters to close at short-range. After brief contact, the 'bogey' accelerated close to mach 2, and dashed south-southwest into Mexico," Topol-M/AL said.

TRAINING AND PREPAREDNESS

Some of the anonymous source's information does seem to dovetail with Randall Fitzgerald's speculation about a U.S. operation of some kind. It also seems to point out that there may have been secrecy about the operation that even excluded Air Force personnel.

If it was a PSYOP test of some kind, the experiment seems to have also been planned to explore the reaction of local Air Force bases and units, local public safety officials and the news media (local, national and international) as well as the general public.

The idea that this was a planned event to test reactions seems to make sense to some people. The object or objects obviously wanted to be seen or didn't care if it was seen. But why? To see if there was mass panic? To prepare us for something in the future? It's unclear to most people.

Because of the many reports of UFOs and related phenomena and activities around the U.S. and around the world, it does seem wise to be prepared for many types of challenging situations that could occur.

A worthwhile training source is the well-known firefighter training manual "A Fire Officer's Guide to Disaster Control," published in 1992 by Fire Engineering Books & Videos, written by firefighting experts William M. Kramer and Charles W. Bahme.

The authors are highly-trained and experienced. In addition to important and conventional firefighter training, a chapter is included titled "Disaster Control and UFOs." It covers certain risks and dangers associated with UFOs.

One section is subtitled "Adverse Potential of UFOs." The authors note that, "The two principal hazards noted with relation to UFOs have been attributed to powerful electrical fields which they can project in a general or localized area and the psychological effects they have produced on the general populace or individual contacts."

The authors also explain that "force field impact" can affect the electrical systems of vehicles and aircraft. Disruption of electronic-related communications systems can also occur. They also point out that regional power blackouts have been reported in conjunction with UFO incidents. Kramer and Bahme point out that public panic is also a concern for public safety officials and could be related to some of the other effects.

My March 2009, article on these topics, "UFOs and public safety: Firefighter manual explains risks," might be worthwhile reading for those interested in the Phoenix lights case.

Because, who knows, we may experience another incident like this in the future - and we should be prepared.

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