Koi UFO Video 097 : UFO on flatbed truck (X-47b)
[DEBUNKED] Copies of Koi UFO Video 097 were posted online in 2011 with titles that suggested it showed a UFO being transported on a flatbed truck in Kansas. Similar footage has subsequently been posted with titles referring to Illinois and to Area 51 in Nevada.
One copy of this video on Youtube had approximately 2 million views as at March 2015.
In fact, as detailed below, the video shows a Northrop Grumman X-47b Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle ("UCAV") with its wings removed for transport, being transported by Diamond Heavy Haul Incorporated. X-47B UCAVs have been transported by road several times and has caused some excitement each time. One of these UCAVs was seen being transported in December 2011 (being shipped from California to the Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland) and one was seen being transported in June 2012 (near Pesotum, Illinois on I-57 heading North). The X-47b is designed for carrier-based operations. The UCAV is not a secret project and, indeed, can be seen during carrier flight tests in various videos online. So, it's not a UFO ... but it still looks cool.
Sections below:
2. Stories and claims relating to this video
3. The real background to this video
4. Relevant online discussions
1. The relevant video
Copies of Koi UFO Video 097 were posted online in 2011 with titles that suggested it showed a UFO being transported in Kansas on a flatbed truck. Similar (but clearer) footage was posted online in 2012 from Illinois.
Screen shots from these videos are included below for ease of identification.
Here is a screen shot from the December 2011 (Kansas) footage:
Here are a couple of screen shots from much clearer screen shots from a 2012 video (discussed below).
And here is a screen shot from similar footage posted online in March 2015:
2. Stories and claims relating to this video
The 2011 footage was accompanied by information stating it showed a UFO being transported by a flatbed truck in Kansas. In 2012, similar footage was taken in Illinois. Similar footage was subsequently posted online in March 2015 with titles suggesting it was filmed near Area 51 in Nevada.
One copy of the 2011 footage on Youtube had approximately 2 million views as at March 2015.
3. The real background to this video
In fact, as detailed below, Koi UFO Video 097 shows a Northrop Grumman X-47b Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle ("UCAV") with its wings removed for transport, being transported by Diamond Heavy Haul Incorporated. X-47B UCAVs have been transported by road several times and has caused some excitement each time.
One of these UCAVs was seen being transported in December 2011 (being shipped from California to the Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland) and one was seen being transported in June 2012 (near Pesotum, Illinois on I-57 heading North).
The X-47b is designed for carrier-based operations.
The UCAV is not a secret project and, indeed, can be seen during carrier flight tests in various videos online:
After sightings and video of the UCAV in 2011 caused some excitement, a Northrop spokeman confirmed to the DefenseTech.org website that the video showed one of Northrop Grumman’s X-47B drones being shipped to Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland from California. The X-47Bs was being sent to Pax River to practice aircraft carrier take-offs and landings on a strip of runway painted to resemble a flight deck.
After similar footage caused excitement again in 2012, it was again confirmed that relevant footage showed an X-47B with its wings removed for transport:
By the way, the logo of the transport company mentioned in the follow-up television news reports in 2012 (i.e. Diamond Heavy Haul Incorporated) can be seen in some of the relevant footage if you take a screen shot at the right moment, such as this one:
If you look at Diamond Heavy Haul Incorporated's website, you can see that logo and also see some of its trucks.
So, the item being transport not a UFO ... but it still looks cool.
4. Relevant online discussions
Relevant discussions on the AboveTopSecret.com forum include the following:
2012 (June) discussion entitled "Military clears up Beltway UFO mystery"
2012 (June) discussion entitled "Military drone mistaken for UFO on D.C.’s Capital Beltway"
**2014 (August) discussion entitled "Strange craft sighted on the bed of a trailer near Los Vegas, Nevada"
2012 (June) discussion entitled "UFO Towed Near Area 51, Nevada"