The Rendlesham Forest incident occurred in December 1980 near RAF Woodbridge, Suffolk, England. This table summarizes the key events and witnesses involved in this mysterious case.
| Date & Time | Witness | Rank/Position | Events Reported | Details Later Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 26, 1980, early hours | John Burroughs | Airman First Class | Saw strange lights in the forest and a glowing object on the ground. | Later described feeling a static charge in the air and difficulty moving. |
| December 26, 1980, early hours | Jim Penniston | Staff Sergeant | Observed a triangular craft on the ground with hieroglyphic-like symbols. | Claimed to have touched the craft and received binary code messages. |
| December 26, 1980, early hours | Edward Cabansag | Airman First Class | Saw lights in the forest and accompanied Burroughs and Penniston. | Reported feeling disoriented and experiencing time anomalies. |
| December 26, 1980, early hours | Bud Steffens | Airman First Class | Initially spotted unusual lights while on patrol near the East Gate. | Called the Base Security to report the sighting. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Charles Halt | Deputy Base Commander | Led a team to investigate reports of lights and recorded his observations. | Recorded a memo known as the "Halt Tape" detailing the events. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Adrian Bustinza | Sergeant | Part of Halt's team; observed strange lights in the forest. | Later described seeing a craft emitting beams of light down to the ground. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Bruce Englund | Master Sergeant | Accompanied Halt; saw lights moving through the trees. | Described beams of light tracking their movements. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Monroe Nevels | Disaster Preparedness Technician | Took radiation readings at the landing site. | Reported finding higher-than-normal radiation levels at the site. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Larry Warren | Airman First Class | Claimed to have witnessed the lights and a landed craft. | Later provided detailed descriptions of the craft and beings seen. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Fred “Skip” Aalto | Sergeant | Part of the security team during the incident. | Later spoke about seeing lights and beams in the forest. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Norman Evans | Radar Operator, RAF Neatishead | Reported tracking an unidentified object on radar during the incident. | Noted that the object moved erratically and at high speeds. |
| December 27, 1980, early hours | Mal Scurrah | Radar Operator, RAF Watton | Confirmed sightings on radar of unidentified objects in the area. | Described multiple fast-moving targets appearing on radar. |
| December 27, 1980, morning | Charles Halt | Deputy Base Commander | Discovered triangular impressions in the ground where the craft was seen. | Measured radiation levels higher than the background radiation in the area. |
| December 27, 1980, morning | John Burroughs, Jim Penniston | Airman First Class, Staff Sergeant | Observed broken tree branches and burn marks near the site. | Noted the impressions and physical changes in the environment. |