Foo Fighter?

Question

I've thought myself to be well informed on Aviation History especially WWII. The Foo Fighter caught me off Guard. Although I'm interested in any serious discussion what I'm really interested in is;

1. Had you heard the term before?

2. How did it come to your attention?

I learned of it while researching the 1942 Los Angles Air Attack and analysis of the subsequent LA Times Photo. http://brumac.8k.com/BATTLEOFLA/BOLA1.html While I can understand the reason the incident was closed and fell into obscurity, I think it is a fascinating event with more questions than answers.

But as I said, Had you heard the term Foo Fighter? or it's sitings during the War?

Thanks for your time.

Answer 1

"Foo Fighters" were examples of what is now called "Unidentified Flying Objects" or UFOs.  World War II pilots did not imagine that they were alien spacecraft, but it was recognized that pilots, usually in stressful situations, occasionally experienced unknown objects that appeared to be brightly lighted aircraft attacking them or flying nearby.

The whole UFO alien science fiction circus of the 1950s and later sort of pushed the Foo Fighter story onto a back burner, but there was some study of the phenomenon in the aerospace medicine community of that day.  It was realized that the susceptibility of the human visual system to optical illusions and to misinterpretation of fast occurring images could create problems.  Human factors engineers have considered ideas that would reduce the frequency of false visual interpretation every since.

I flew on airline flight decks for many years.  We never thought we saw alien spacecraft, but professional pilots on long flights under variable visibility conditions often say "What the heck was that?"  Usually we can figure out what we really saw, but momentary spottings of things we can't identify sharing the airspace with us are quite common.  And you will still occasionally hear the expression "Foo Fighter" assigned to one of these sightings.

Answer 2

First off, that's just searchlights tracking flak bursts; a second likely explanation is a barrage balloon.  Though I presume from your "...more questions than answers" you are anxious for it to be something more.

"Foo Fighter", was WW2 slang for "fake".  Comes from a popular comic strip at the time.  Inflatable fake aircraft were commonly used as deception tools; these were called "foo fighters" as well.

It's also a pretty good band.

Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence.  Under the scientific method it's not my job to prove your thesis; it's yours.  Which light analyses are you referring to?

The term has nothing to do with "Kung Fu".  Martial arts were unknown in the US in the 1940's; this is anachronistic.  The searchlights, and AAA were radar directed.  The radar operator got a return and slewed the guns and searchlights to the target. As I said, flak bursts, a barrage balloon, even false echoes, given the primitive radars of the time; this is a non-event.

If you desire further "incidents" one need only look at the near hysteria in London in 1938.

Answer 3

Aviophage is correct, although I haven't heard the term used modern, only with WWII and immediate post-WWII useage.  Mostly it seemed they were reported in the Pacific and by everything from B-29s to Corsairs.

Show up, fly off the wing a while and then depart at a high rate of speed.  Optical illusion or little green guy, either way they were UFOs.