Felix Moncla

USAF pilot who vanished along with his radar operator while scrambled to intercept an unknown radar target over Lake Superior in what became known as the Kinross Incident.

Field	Details
Full Name	Felix Eugene Moncla Jr.
Born	October 21, 1926
Died	November 23, 1953 (presumed dead)
Age at Death	27
Location of Death	Over Lake Superior, near Soo Locks, Michigan/Ontario border
Cause of Death	Unknown — disappeared during intercept mission
Official Ruling	Presumed dead — aircraft lost over Lake Superior
Category	Military Witness / Pilot

Assessment: HIGHLY SUSPICIOUS

An F-89C Scorpion jet vanished without a trace while intercepting an unidentified radar contact over Lake Superior. Ground radar showed the jet's blip merge with the unknown target, after which only one blip continued on the original unknown object's course — then it too vanished. No wreckage, no bodies, and no debris were ever recovered despite an extensive search by both the USAF and Royal Canadian Air Force. The Air Force's contradictory official explanations have only deepened the mystery.

Circumstances of Death

On the evening of November 23, 1953, Air Defense Command Ground Intercept radar operators at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, detected an unusual radar target over the restricted airspace above Lake Superior, near the Soo Locks. An F-89C Scorpion jet interceptor was scrambled from Kinross Air Force Base to investigate.

The aircraft was piloted by First Lieutenant Felix Moncla, with Second Lieutenant Robert L. Wilson serving as radar operator in the rear seat. Ground controllers vectored the jet toward the unknown contact, tracking both targets on radar as they converged.

As the two blips grew closer on the radar screen, they appeared to merge into a single return. Ground controllers initially assumed Moncla had flown over or under the target and expected the two blips to separate again momentarily. They did not. The single merged blip continued briefly on the unknown object's original heading, then disappeared from radar entirely.

Repeated attempts to contact Moncla and Wilson by radio failed. A massive search-and-rescue operation was launched by both the USAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force, covering the area of Lake Superior where the aircraft was last tracked. Despite extensive efforts, no trace of the F-89 Scorpion, its crew, or any wreckage was ever found.

Background

Felix Moncla was born in Mansura, Louisiana, on October 21, 1926. His family later moved to Moreauville, Louisiana, where he attended high school. His father, Felix Sr., was a high school science teacher, principal, and World War I veteran. His mother, Yvonne Beridon Moncla, was a seamstress.

Moncla entered the Air Force and completed basic pilot training at Connally Air Force Base in Waco, Texas, where he married Bobbie Jean Coleman. He took advanced pilot training at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock and received F-89 Scorpion training at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida.

In July 1952, Moncla and his family moved to Truax Field in Madison, Wisconsin, where he was assigned to the 438th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron. A daughter was born five months before his disappearance. At the time of the incident, he was on temporary duty assignment at Kinross Air Force Base in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

Second Lieutenant Robert L. Wilson, the radar operator who also disappeared, has received far less attention in historical accounts but is equally missing and presumed dead.

Why This Death Possibly Raises Questions

• Ground radar showed the F-89's blip merge with the unknown target blip, after which only one blip remained — this is the single most disturbing aspect of the case, as it suggests the jet did not simply crash but was somehow absorbed or taken by whatever it was intercepting
• No wreckage, bodies, oil slicks, or debris of any kind were ever recovered from Lake Superior despite extensive multi-national search operations
• The USAF initially claimed Moncla had been intercepting a Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 Dakota that had strayed off course — but the RCAF denied any of their aircraft were in the area at the time
• The RCAF C-47 pilot, Gerald Fosberg, emphatically denied the USAF's account when later interviewed for a documentary
• The Air Force then shifted to an explanation that Moncla may have suffered vertigo and crashed into the lake — without explaining the radar merge or the missing wreckage
• Investigators from the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) discovered that any mention of the intercept mission had been expunged from official records
• The case involved restricted airspace near the strategically critical Soo Locks during the height of Cold War tensions, raising questions about what was being monitored and protected in the area
• Lake Superior is extremely cold and deep, but aircraft crash debris typically surfaces; the complete absence of any physical evidence is anomalous

Key Quotes from Media Coverage

"The two blips merged into one, and then there was nothing." — Description of the radar event as observed by ground controllers

"Moncla had crashed into Lake Superior while tracking a Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 aircraft which was off course." — USAF official statement, later disputed by the RCAF

See Also

• Thomas Mantell — another military pilot who died while pursuing an unidentified flying object
• Frederick Valentich — Australian pilot who disappeared during a UFO encounter in 1978

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Sources

• Felix Moncla — Wikipedia
• This Air Force Jet Was Scrambled to Intercept a UFO — Then Disappeared — HISTORY
• Missing in the Keweenaw: The Kinross Incident — Visit Keweenaw
• The Mysterious Disappearance of an Air Force Jet Over Lake Superior — Northern Michigan History
• The Kinross Incident — UFOBC
• Felix Eugene "Gene" Moncla Jr. — Find a Grave

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