Posted on 03/21/2006 5:06:47 PM PST by blam
Big boys' toys end riddle of the UFOs
By Catherine Elsworth in Los Angeles
(Filed: 21/03/2006)
A spate of flying saucer sightings that alarmed residents of Orange County, California, and attracted attention from UFO researchers worldwide have been traced to the garages of a local heart surgeon and engineer.
For the past few months, police have been logging reports of mysterious discs hovering and weaving over Aliso Viejo and nearby towns.
In one sighting, recorded on a UFO research website, a witness reported seeing four craft studded with bright blue lights "dance around one another in the night sky".
But now the men behind the UFOs have revealed that they are radio-controlled models and that night flights are not just to shock people but also help sell the craft.
Dr Gaylon Murphy, a cardiovascular surgeon from Aliso Viejo, and Steve Zingali, an engineer in Mission Viejo, built the fleet of carbon fibre-reinforced foam flying saucers in their garages.
The discs are 3ft in diameter, about 1in thick, weigh less than 17oz and can reach 40mph powered by a tiny electric motor. The flashing lights are fitted around the edge of the disc.
"We fly them in formation. It's pretty funny," Dr Murphy told the Los Angeles Times. "People stop, people scream; one cab driver ran his car off the road."
The men have already sold four flight-ready saucers for $1,000 (£570) each.
Not everyone has found the displays entertaining, however. Erik Strong, the manager of a restaurant in Aliso Viejo, accused the duo of scaring his staff by making the discs hover near the restaurant.
"It looked like something right out of a movie, a little too real," said Mr Strong.
Local police chief, Lt Richard Paddock, said the men were not breaking the law. "These guys have really done something quite controversial, scary to some people, quite fun in the eyes of most, and who knows where it's going to go," he said.
I want one!!!!
Cool.
How is the electric motor propelling these things? Is there a propeller on the top and its like an RC helicopter? Are they gliders? What gives them lift if not wings or a helicopter-type propeller? This article is sorely lacking in detail.
"We fly them in formation. It's pretty funny," Dr Murphy told the Los Angeles Times. "People stop, people scream; one cab driver ran his car off the road."
I always wondered what happened to those guys when they grew up.
Ditto!
Putz. He oughta give these guys a couple bucks so they can tow a banner that says something like "We flew fifty light years just to eat at Erik's".
I want one
Close encounters
A fleet of foam-core saucers began showing up in Aliso Viejo more than a year ago. The lightweight "UFOs" are flown by remote control. A flight-ready model costs about $1,000.
Composition: 1/4 –inch thick Dow Corning waterproof foam board body, reinforced with carbon fiber rods
Power: 7.4-volt lithium battery, 3800-6800 Himax motor
Weight: 17 to 18 oz.
Speed: Up to 40 mph
Maneuvers: Can fly inverted, do loops, prop hang (hang vertically), roll (with aileron model)
Source: Steve Zingali
Unny Ufts
The 3-foot hovering disks developed by two Orange County hobbyists have sparked a wave of 'flying saucer' reports to authorities.
By Lynn Doan
Times Staff Writer
March 18, 2006
Move over, Roswell. South Orange County is recording its own share of UFO sightings.
Several residents have reported sightings to the Orange County Sheriff's Department in recent months. And word has even reached a Canadian UFO researcher who has posted information about the incidents on his website.
In one case, witnesses reported seeing glowing disks zigzagging through trees and hovering above the Aliso Viejo Town Center at night. About a yard in diameter and studded with flashing lights, the four UFOs dance around one another in the night sky.
LOL!!!!!!! This is HILARIOUS!!!
:)
Here is a good site is anyone is interested in learning rc e-flightline.com they can set you up.
pretty funny stuff.
Paging Art Bell...............
Don't you mean, "Merry Christmas"?
And it hoovers!
Hovers
That too!
Bravo! Just when I thought I had the obscure reference department job all sewn up.
"Not everyone has found the displays entertaining, however. Erik Strong, the manager of a restaurant in Aliso Viejo, accused the duo of scaring his staff by making the discs hover near the restaurant."
Erik is a wuss. Instead of complaining, he should have used this as a marketing opportunity for his business.
So ... the article is deliberately misleading, then. They aren't saucers, they aren't discs -- they're RC helicopter-type gadgets that mimic discs. *sigh* A true flying disc without a propeller or wings would be something to write home about! Still, this thing looks like a blast. I also like to watch the RC flying wing gliders that dogfight regularly on the bluff at Long Beach! Very cool!
The perps wih their discs
RC flight is FUN! NO DOUBT ABOUT IT!
RC stuff is really, really cool! I bought a kit sailboat but only sailed it once but it was such fun despite what happened to it. (thats another story LOL!)
Area 51 Ping!
An inaccurate MSM story? I'm SHOCKED I tell ya!
now days you can buy models that are already built. or near built. Almost-ready-to-Fly or ARF's
I would love one...but no dang place to park it. :)
I've never been one to fly RC -- I can barely tell my left from my right on the ground! -- but met my husband of 18 years due to an RC model and one of our first dates was at an RC airfield, where his buddy and partner made very realistic RC helicopters at a time when hardly anyone was flying them. He could make helicopters do incredible things-- a heck of an RC pilot. He and husband ended up designing, building, and driving a 26-foot RC submarine that had 28 channels (they both had to drive it) in a dive well for underwater film effects. Husband was not a bad RC pilot either -- but he doesn't do it anymore. Has moved on to other interests! Me, I love the flying wing. I'm told Swift Engineering in San Clemente has an RC wing that's rather large. Someday maybe I'll get to see it in action.
Kevin, you can take me off the UFO ping list. I'm on too many now and I just kindof prefer to go to things when I want.
I became friends with Quix when my son was traveling in Thailand and we kept in touch. That's how I got on the UFO list.
I may show up from time to time! Thanks, potlatch
As for easy to fly ... I know my limitations! I can't even fly a paper airplane for doodly squat! But I'll RIDE in a plane any chance I get. Even jumped out of one once with a parachute ... man, that was a RUSH! It was a blast. Landed on my feet just as if I'd jumped off a chair onto the floor. The best part was hanging off the struts of the airplane tearing through the air at 80 miles and hour (it was a little plane) before letting go. That was really COOL!!! I know .. why jump out of a perfectly good airplane? Partly because I was getting paid for it .. but mostly because it was fun!
Zagi's are pretty easy to fly, get someone to help you and you should be up and running in no time. Combat is a blast! hehe
Sounds like fun. :')
They look like fun. Wouldn't it be cool to have a personal wing that was real! I had a dream once where I was flying around in small flying wing. *sigh* Dream on. But then again ... maybe some day! As it says in Hitchhiker's Guide, in an infinite universe, anything is possible!
yep! thats would be cool.
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