Betty Cash, Vickie Landrum, and 7-year-old Colby Landrum reported in 1980 that they had an encounter with a UFO that was being chased by a number of military-style helicopters in Huffman, Texas. Several health issues were experienced by all three witnesses to the Cash-Landrum UFO incident.
Three Oldsmobile Cutlass occupants near Huffman, Texas, saw something extraordinary on December 29, 1980. On their drive back home in Dayton from East Texas, Betty Cash, Vickie Landrum, and Vickie’s seven-year-old grandson, Colby, observed a large light above the trees in the distance while they were driving through the southern tip of the East Texas piney woods.
Initally, the sight of the light was lost for a short time until it reappeared when they reached a straight stretch of two-lane highway on FM 1485 after rounding a curve. As it approached, it floated over the road at a height of no more than a treetop, and flames were coming out of its bottom. The object was only around 130 feet away from Cash and the Landrums.
Since the road they were on was so narrow and the ground so moist and damp, it was impossible to get away from the UFO. Betty Cash was driving, and she knew that if she tried to turn around, the automobile would get stuck. When Betty and Vickie got out of the car, the frantic screams of young Colby drew them back toward the vehicle.
The UFO was dull metallic in color and looked like a huge diamond whose top and bottom were flat instead of pointed. The women allegedly surrounded the object’s center while flames shot out of the bottom in an outwards direction, creating a cone effect, the women stated. Witnesses reported that they could feel the heat in their faces the entire time.
The car became so hot due to the UFO’s flame that they were not able to even touch it. In one instance, Vickie Landrum, leaning out the front window, tried to steady herself by placing her hands on the dashboard, only to discover that it had molded to the shape of her fingers. When John Schuessler of MUFON checked the car, the impressions were still there. A few minutes later, when Cash tried to get back into the car, the door handle burned her fingers.
The UFO climbed slowly into the sky with a final explosion of fire and heat. When the UFO was just clearing the tree tops, helicopters from all directions began to arrive. After that, no one could see the helicopters or UFOs anymore. The three of them proceeded on their way. Five minutes later, they arrived at the intersection of FM 1485 and FM 2100, where they once again observed the UFO and the helicopters. Cash counted and was able to see all 23 helicopters clearly because of the UFO’s light reflecting off of them. The Army and the Marine Corps have both used the huge, double-rotor Boeing CH-47 Chinooks that were spotted there.
Cash continued driving, the diamond UFO and helicopters still in front of her, until she reached a road that would lead them to Dayton. For the following few minutes, she was able to see the UFO in her rearview mirror. The entire ordeal lasted about 20 minutes.
Illness Faced By The Witnesses Of The Cash-Landrum UFO Incident
Cash drove the Landrums back to their home after dropping them off, then continued towards her own home. She waited for the sickness to go away while she sat in her chair at home, but her headache and nausea persisted, and huge knots appeared on her neck and scalp. They grew into blisters over time. Her skin was turning red, and her eyes swelled up. Along with a lot of vomiting, she also had severe diarrhea. It wasn’t as bad for the Landrums, but they were still in a lot of pain. Their skin appeared and felt burnt, yet their tummies were churning up.
Friends worried that Cash was close to death by the next day. She was on the verge of passing out. She was on the verge of passing out. It was impossible for her friends to identify her cardiologist because she was so sleepy, so they had to phone unidentified physicians on her behalf. A patient with a history of heart illness and a bizarre narrative of being hurt by a UFO would not be accepted by those they could approach during the holiday season.
The pals had no choice but to deliver Cash to Vickie Landrum’s residence. In spite of Landrum’s best efforts, Cash rebuffed all he offered her, growing weaker and weaker. To get the name of Cash’s heart doctor, Landrum got a local pharmacist to search through his prescriptions for the information. Finally, after getting the information, Landrum called her doctor, who instructed Landrum to take her to the Parkway Hospital emergency ward as soon as possible.
The hospitalization of Betty Cash occurred on January 3, 1981. She was unable to move and had lost large amounts of skin and hair. She was released from the hospital after 12 days, but her condition had not significantly improved; she later returned for another 15 days. The Landrums’ condition improved marginally, but their skin sores and eye damage lingered. After that, for the next few years, Vickie’s health deteriorated again and again, and her vision never returned to normal. Colby suffered from a variety of ailments, including persistent sickness, blisters, and hair loss.
“We have strong evidence that these patients have suffered damage secondary to ionizing radiation. It is also possible that there was an infrared or ultraviolet component as well.”
Radiologist who reviewed the victims’ medical records for MUFON
Investigation Into The Cash-Landrum UFO Incident
NASA in Houston was alerted to the incident after a witness reported it to ufologists there. A representative from NASA recommended they speak with John Schuessler, an aerospace engineer and NASA supervisor with a long-standing interest in extraterrestrial craft. Schuessler and his MUFON colleagues interviewed witnesses who claimed that they had been witnesses to the UFO and helicopters for an hour or more. The helicopters’ origins were also investigated. The Fund for UFO Research commissioned one of Ufology’s most respected investigators, Allan Hendry, to determine the origin of the aircraft. No airport, whether civilian or military, would admit to knowing anything about the helicopters.
Cash and Landrum embarked on a long, arduous endeavor to obtain responses from government agencies. Their senators, John Tower and Lloyd Bentsen, eventually spoke with Department of Defense representatives. They instructed Cash and Landrum to report their complaints to the Judge Advocate Claims Officer at Bergstrom Air Force Base in Austin.
In August 1981, they went to Bergstrom to meet with Air Force lawyers. They were told that if they could find a lawyer who would take their case, they should file a claim for compensation with the US government for the injuries that they faced. Over the next few years, the case went through both military and federal courts, but neither the diamond-shaped object nor the helicopters could be proven to be official property. The US District Court judge threw out the case on August 21, 1986.
Lieutenant Colonel George Sarran was sent by the Department of the Army Inspector General (DAIG) to look into the case in 1982. This is the only official investigation we know of that was important.
“Ms Landrum and Ms Cash were credible… The policeman and his wife (who had reported seeing 12 Chinook helicopters in the Huffman area on the night of the incident) were also credible witnesses. There was no perception that anyone was trying to exaggerate the truth. All interviewees were extremely cooperative and eager to be helpful in any manner. Through the course of inquiry, the DAIG investigator tried to concentrate on any reason or anyone or any organization which might have been flying helicopters that particular evening in that general area. There was no evidence presented that would indicate that Army, National Guard, or Army Reserve helicopters were involved. “
Lieutenant Colonel George Sarran
“Betty Cash has been hospitalized at least 25 times and had had two operations for cancer (after having shown no previous signs of it). She has had blood problems and trouble with her eyesight. Her hair has regrown, though in a different texture, but she is still very weak and has to spend a good deal of time in bed.”
John Schuessler
The Cash-Landrum UFO incident is yet another fascinating example of aerial phenomena that has been met with both government and military denial, despite witnesses seeing their involvement with their own eyes. What do you think about the Cash-Landrum UFO incident?
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