SIGHTING: MISSOULA, MONTANA (UNITED STATES)

Witness Testimony

"I went outside to see if there were any fireworks going on. Many folks blow them up on New Years Eve. I could see a few "displays" from my back yard. Some to the south where the center of town is. I also saw a few smaller ones generated from the next neighborhood north of mine. These fireworks were plainly visible from my backyard and were less than a mile away. While scanning the sky I noticed what I first thought was a helicopter heading in my general direction. It moved from the NE to the SW. Then it stopped and just "sat" above the hill just east of my backyard. IT was totally silent as opposed to the helicopters which fly over. As I watched it I could make out 3 lights. It seemed there were 2 on the top and the third directly below the other two. Like 2 at the shoulders and 1 and the base between the feet. ( IF you will....) As my excitement grew I thought about going inside and getting a camera. But I did not want to stop watching it long enough to run in. After a few minutes ( I estimate less than 5 ....) I decided to go in a get a camera. The lights slowly stared to move away and up. I watched as they disappeared into the overcast. !!!!! These lights were definitely not aviation navigation lights. They did not flash nor pulse. And they were not green or red. They were amber/goldish in color. The edge of the lights were a bit fuzzy but clear enough to distinguish that there were 3 separate lights. Every helicopter that flies near my house makes that noise. WE have several different types currently flying above my apartment. Our "mercy/life flight" is an Aercopter/Eurocopter AS400? I see it often.It makes a noise. I have also seen Blackhawks and Huey's in our airspace. They are very loud. What I saw that night was NOT a helicopter ...unless it was one of those "very special stealth" versions. ( I say NO to that! ) "