The two strange events sighted from a Spanish Air Force P-3A Orion

Flying is an unforgettable experience under normal conditions, and pilots around the world cherish many interesting stories.

A former Spanish pilot tells two curious anecdotes about the excellent P-3 Orion
The interior of the P-3 Orion 'Cisne 31', a Spanish plane that tracked Soviet submarines

Beyond routine experiences, many aviators have witnessed strange events—often classified as UFOs (Unidentified Flying Objects). While this term frequently draws jokes, it simply acknowledges the impossibility of explaining certain aerial sightings based on available data. Whether those sightings involve extraterrestrial craft or some other phenomenon is a separate debate.

The Spanish Air Force has not been immune to these sightings. Between 1991 and 1992, the Intelligence Section of the Combat Air Command (MACOM) General Staff—the organization responsible for defending Spanish airspace—published an official 18-page report listing dozens of UFO sightings that occurred between August 1962 and September 1991. The report, now declassified and digitized, can be viewed at the Virtual Defense Library; also available there today are 80 UFO case files recorded by the Air Force, totaling approximately 1,900 pages.

One of the cases not included in those official records occurred in 1989 during an instrument flight training mission involving a P-3A Orion maritime patrol aircraft—specifically the P.3A-01 22-21, affectionately nicknamed "Abuelo" (Grandfather) because it was the first unit of this model operated by the Air Force. At that time, the P-3 Orions were assigned to Wing 22, based at the now-defunct La Parra Air Base in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz).

That mission involved a night flight from Jerez to Son San Juan Air Base in Mallorca, where the crew performed a "touch-and-go" (the term aviators use for landing and immediately taking off again without coming to a full stop). Colonel (R) Miguel Ángel de las Heras recounts the events in this video, released today by the Air Museum Friends Association; he describes the experience from inside the very aircraft where two strange incidents were observed—one over Valencia and another over the Gulf of Cádiz (the video is in Spanish; you can enable automatic English subtitles in the player):

---

Main photo: Ejército del Aire.