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The Phoenix Lights: The 1997 Sighting Thousands Saw

Two separate events over Arizona on one night, the official explanation, and why the governor changed his story.

Quick answer

What were the Phoenix Lights?

The Phoenix Lights were lights seen by thousands of people across Arizona on the night of March 13, 1997. There were two events: a V-shaped formation of lights that moved across the state early in the evening, and a row of stationary lights over Phoenix around 10 p.m. The Air Force said the later lights were flares dropped during a training exercise. The earlier formation has no official explanation that satisfies witnesses.

Timeline

  1. March 13, 1997, about 7:30 p.m.Witnesses from Nevada to Arizona report a large V-shaped formation of lights moving silently southeast.
  2. About 10:00 p.m.A row of bright, hovering lights appears over Phoenix and is widely filmed.
  3. 1997The Air Force says the 10 p.m. lights were illumination flares dropped by A-10 aircraft over the Barry Goldwater Range.
  4. June 1997Governor Fife Symington holds a press conference where an aide appears in an alien costume.
  5. 2007Symington says he saw the craft himself that night and describes it as otherworldly.

What is documented, and what is not

On the record

  • Thousands of people reported the lights, and the later lights were filmed.
  • Military flares were dropped in the area that night.
  • The governor mocked the sighting in 1997 and later said he had witnessed it.

Disputed or unproven

  • What the early V-shaped formation was remains unexplained to the satisfaction of many witnesses. Suggestions include aircraft flying in formation.

Common questions

Were the Phoenix Lights flares?

The Air Force said the stationary lights seen around 10 p.m. were flares dropped during a training exercise. That explanation does not cover the V-shaped formation seen earlier in the evening.

What did Governor Fife Symington say?

In 1997 he held a press conference with an aide dressed as an alien. In 2007 he said he had seen the craft himself and did not believe it was a conventional aircraft.

How many people saw the Phoenix Lights?

Estimates run into the thousands, across a path of more than 300 miles.

Read the record yourself

Links go to official archives, museums, agencies and published research. Search links open the archive's own search for this topic.

THE FICTION BUILT ON THIS RECORD · FILE 030 · VOLUME IVThe Governor Laughed at the Phoenix Lights. Then He Admitted He Saw Them.The fastest way to bury a truth is to make it funny.Read the first pages free →

Last reviewed 2026-10-13. This page covers the public record only. Archive files are dramatized and always marked as files.

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