Claim

Large silent triangular craft of unknown origin flew over Belgium in 1989–90, tracked by Air Force radar and F-16s

Also known as Belgian wave claim

Disputed. Later analyses attributed the March 1990 F-16 radar locks to radar artefacts and atmospheric effects, and the famous triangle photograph was a hoax; the earlier visual sightings by gendarmes and the public remain unexplained. (source)

From November 1989 thousands of people in Belgium, gendarmes among them, reported slow, silent triangles with lights at the corners; in March 1990 the Belgian Air Force scrambled F-16s after radar contacts.

Who has said it, in order

  1. November 1989 — says so, relayed: Beginning on November 29, 1989 near Eupen, thousands of people, including gendarmes, reported large, slow, silent triangular craft with lights at the corners. Reports continued into 1991. Source: UFO sightings for 2 years straight- Ret. Belgian Air Force Major General Wilfried de Brouwer 1989 at 0:19
  2. 31 March 1990 — context, documented: On the night of March 30–31, 1990 the Belgian Air Force scrambled two F-16s after ground radar contacts. The fighters recorded several brief radar locks on fast-moving targets. The Air Force published its findings, prepared by Maj. P. Lambrechts, and Col. Wilfried De Brouwer presented radar data at a press conference. Source: ufologie.patrickgross.org (archived)
  3. 12 November 2007 Wilfried De Brouwer — says so, first-hand: De Brouwer introduces himself as former chief of operations of the Belgian Air Force and describes the 1989–90 wave and the F-16 scrambles. Source: National Press Club - November 12th, 2007. UFO Close Encounters at 4:58
  4. 17 August 2009 — says so, documented: It lists “a four-page account of the UFOs detected by NATO radars and F-16 fighters over Belgium in 1990, which remain unexplained” (DEFE 24/1960, pp. 320–324): “The account, from General Wilfried de Brouwer, Chief of Operations, Belgian Air Staff confirms that F-16 pilots obtained “lock-ons” with their radars but were unable to explain the phenomena.” Source: doc-tna-ufo-files-aug-2009.pdf
  5. 29 April 2013 Gary Heseltine — says so, relayed: Heseltine: in Belgium between 1989 and 1991 “hundreds of police officers observed large triangular objects”, often several officers together and at close range. Source: Citizen Hearing 2013: Associated Phenomena at 40:32
  6. 4 September 2022 Wilfried De Brouwer — context, first-hand: De Brouwer says they first suspected weather or electromagnetic interference, but at certain moments could match visual observations with a radar return. Source: UFO sightings for 2 years straight- Ret. Belgian Air Force Major General Wilfried de Brouwer 1989 at 0:32
  7. 4 September 2022 Wilfried De Brouwer — says so, documented: He says the F-16 lock-ons gave speeds varying from 150 to 990 knots, with accelerations that would be impossible for a human pilot. Source: UFO sightings for 2 years straight- Ret. Belgian Air Force Major General Wilfried de Brouwer 1989 at 2:20
  8. 4 September 2022 Wilfried De Brouwer — says so, relayed: He says visual witnesses described a machine that hovered silently at low altitude, beyond current technology. Source: UFO sightings for 2 years straight- Ret. Belgian Air Force Major General Wilfried de Brouwer 1989 at 2:42
  9. — disputes it: Later technical analyses attributed the F-16 radar locks to radar artifacts and atmospheric effects rather than real targets. The famous April 1990 “Petit-Rechain” triangle photo was admitted to be a hoax by its author in 2011. Source: ufologie.patrickgross.org (archived)

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