The Phoenix Lights (1997): Explanations Tied to Military Training Flights and Flare Drops Over Arizona

Phoenix Lights - Wikipedia

On March 13, 1997, the Phoenix Lights were a widely witnessed phenomenon over Arizona and Nevada consisting of two main sightings—a V-shaped formation of five lights that appeared to move and hover and a separate sequence of stationary lights above Phoenix—later explained as military activity: five A-10 Thunderbolt II jets following an air-traffic corridor as part of Operation Snowbird at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, and illumination flares (LUU-2B/B) dropped by A-10s from the Maryland Air National Guard at the Barry Goldwater Range, with the Air Force noting heat bloom and parachute effects could create hovering or row-like appearances and that FAA rules do not govern such flights; eyewitnesses included Tim Ley and his family, Henderson, Nevada, and Paulden, Arizona, while Kurt Russell reported the lights to air traffic control and Governor Fife Symington described the event as otherworldly, photographs were attributed to atmospheric conditions and terrain obscuring flare views, and later claimed sightings in 2007–2008 were tied to additional flare drops or hoaxes, underscoring that training flights and flare drops are the prevailing explanations though uncertainties about perception and memory remain.