The Chicago O'Hare Sighting and the Possibilities.

Greetings. The Chicago O'Hare UFO sighting occurred on November 7th of 2006, at approximately 4:15pm local time. Twelve employees of United Airlines and a few additional witnesses outside the grounds of O'Hare International Airport reported the sighting of an unidentified flying object over the facility. The Federal Aviation Administration refused to investigate the matter because the unknown was not seen on radar, instead referring to it as a "weather phenomenon."

On November 7th of 2006, federal authorities at Chicago O'Hare International Airport received a report alleging that a group of twelve airport employees were observing a metallic, saucer-shaped object hovering over Gate C-17. The witnesses stated that the unidentified object was in fact, a structured craft of some sort. The unknown was initially spotted by a ramp employee who was pushing back United Airlines Flight 446, which was scheduled to depart Chicago for Charlotte, North Carolina. The employee informed Flight 446's crew of the unidentified object seemingly hovering above their aircraft. The object was also witnessed by pilots, airline management and mechanics. Interestingly, no air traffic controllers saw the object, and the unknown did not show up on any radar screens. 

Witnesses described the object as being completely silent, approximately 1.8 to 7.3 meters in diameter, and appearing dark gray in color. Several independent witnesses beyond the grounds the airport also spotted the object. One witness in particular described a disc-shaped craft hovering over the airport, stating that it was "obviously not clouds." According to this witness, the object shot through the clouds at high velocity, leaving a clear blue hole behind in the cloud layer. The hole reportedly seemed to gradually close in on itself shortly thereafter.

According to the Chicago Tribune's Jon Hilkevitch, "The disc was visible for approximately five minutes and was seen by close to a dozen United Airlines employees, ranging from pilots to supervisors, who heard chatter on the radio and raced out to view it."

Both United Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initially denied that they had any information on the events of November 7th over Chicago O'Hare until the Chicago Tribune, which was investigating the report(s,) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. The FAA then ordered an internal review of air-traffic communications tapes to comply with the Chicago Tribune's FOIA request which subsequently uncovered a call by the United supervisor on duty that evening to an FAA manager in the airport tower concerning the sighting of the unidentified object. The FAA's position on the matter concluded that the sighting was caused by a "weather phenomenon" and that the agency would therefore not be conducting any additional investigations of the incident. According to astronomer Mark Hammergren, weather conditions on the day of the sighting were ideal for the formation of a "hole-punch cloud," an unusual weather phenomenon known to modern science. 

Civilian UFO investigators have argued that the FAA's refusal to continue looking into the incident contradicts the agency's mandate to investigate possible security breaches at American airports such as in this case; an unidentified object witnessed by numerous airport employees and officially reported by at least one of them, hovering in plain sight over one of the busiest airports on the planet. Some witnesses interviewed by the Chicago Tribune were apparently "upset" that federal officials had declined to conduct further investigations of the matter.

Some points need to be made clear about the Chicago O'Hare UFO sighting: 

1. None of the available information, which is anecdotal in form, allows for a defensible declaration or firm explanation for the events in question. 

2. The lack any radar contact(s) does not necessarily invalidate the testimonials of the witnesses. 

3. Unidentified does not mean alien or extraterrestrial, it simply means one thing, unidentified. 

4. Pilots, who are trained observers, are not expert observers, for there is no such animal.

The Chicago O'Hare UFO sighting is an interesting series of reports, void of any definitive explanation, not unexpected when it comes to the UFO topic.

Thank you for your time and consideration.