grup57At the Mihai Kogălniceanu military airport, north of Constanta, Romania, several supersonic fighter aircraft pilots of the Romanian Air Force Regiment 57 had witnessed an unidentified aerospace phenomenon. The event took place probably in the second half of March 1989 (there are differences in the timing remembered).

Between the hours of 15.00 and 21.00, the unit, consisting then of 18-20 pilots, executed a shooting exercise in two sets: day flight and night flight. “At one point, it was announced that the training flights were halted, although weather conditions were excellent and the visibility was very good" said one witness.Strejea

At around 21.20, the pilots were stripped of their equipment. Some of them, including the Commander and the Colonel (ret.) Platon Streja, flight inspector in the Air Force Command in Bucharest, delegate to attend and participate in flights that week, were in the "alarm cell", a room located in a building, planning the next flight, scheduled over two days. The other pilots were talking on a bench outside this building. The technicians were preparing the aircrafts for parking at night. The sky was "glass clear”, and the visibility perfect.

DobreColonel (ret.) Aurelian Dobre remembers: „I was talking with some fellow pilots before the ‘cell’. I was facing the take off terminal. At one point, I saw many lights, appearing actually above the trees. I immediately entered the ‘cell’ to warn those who were inside. When I went out, the lights were already on top of us.”Otelea

Colonel (ret.) Paul Otelea, commander of the second group, then flying a MIG -23, says: “At one point our colleague Aurelian Dobre entered, calling us: Come out quickly!” We went all; we looked in the sky and saw a triangular sections train at an equal distance between them, bathed in white light silver matte, strong but without giving light around. [... ] They moved from south to north. I appreciate that they were at an angle of about 20-25 degrees and about 7,000 meters high. Along with the passing over him, he heard “a noise that resembled very well with the rustle of a flock of birds in flight over the forest at night. I knew it from childhood, when I was wandering the woods”. “From the first moment I saw them until they disappeared, several tens of seconds passed, then the lights faded out towards Ukraine”. He adds that it is a great mystery the lack of "sonic bang” shock wave.

Colonel (ret.) Dan Aioanei, who at the time was flying a MIG-29, says: "From Medgidia, a formation of 7, 8 or 9 flowing objects were approaching. They looked like neon tubing, several kilometres long each, and were thus positioned relative to one another that form a "V". From the distance, the tubes seem to have a diameter of 15-20 cm, so in reality they have 2-3 meters. Travel speed must have been at least supersonic. They were flying very high, at an altitude of over 3,000 m but may be well over 10,000 meters. Even for us, acquainted with the sky, was hard to estimate, because the reference points, i.e. clouds, were missing. As pilots, we know what shape, texture, and dynamics have the clouds, depending on the altitude at which they are [... The formation] left no trace behind, no light, no trail. [...] The "tubes" have disappeared from the horizon, somewhere east of Tulcea.

Unlike his colleagues, Colonel Dobre believed it was a single ship, but almost of impossible size, equipped with lights, but in no case projectors. "I think it was the size of a football stadium. Back then there were no large aircrafts and the largest now reach half the size of that ship” said the Colonel.

Pilots heatedly debated the event. While some, including and Colonel Otelea, felt that they saw several UFOs, others argued that it was a single ship, but a very large one. All agreed, however, that, whether it was alien or a secret project, they have never seen something similar."

I flew at the altitude where we saw everything; satellites and weather balloons, anything. But I can tell you that whatever opinion had each, we all lived the same feeling: that of smallness. That, if the objects were built by human hands, we are the last people, and we consume resources of our country for nothing”, said Paul Otelea.

Reason makes Aurelian Dobre to believe that it was a UFO, but not one of extraterrestrial origin, for he did not believe in such things. When the object passed overhead, he heard that fizzle and had the same feeling: “We thought we run some fucking pipes and others are flying with such things" he recalls.

Colonel Streja reported to the Deputy Flight Commander of the Air Force. Initially were told that no radar had registered anything, not even radar Thomson, from Bucharest, who could "see" any movement in the skies of the country. They said also that the whole story could be a collective illusion. The next day, however, representatives of higher hierarchical structures and of the Minister appeared. All the witnesses were asked to provide written reports about what they have seen and heard. That's because in the meantime UFOs were sighted at Cape Midia and by Romanian and Ukrainian border guards too. Some sources said later that the object(s) would have been detected also by military radars, both of the aviation and navy. A report was made, but, as nothing could be undertaken, that reporting has remained practically without result and remained buried in the archives.

In 1989, the Regiment 57 of Air Force, now disbanded, was among the highest rated in Europe in terms of professionalism of the pilots and endowment of the unit. The pilots who witnessed the event were both well qualified and trained to distinguish an airplane, helicopter, balloon, flock of birds, or satellite from whatever. 



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