During the summer of 1999 over Lake Backsjon in Sweden, multiple witnesses claimed to see “something with small wings” crash into the water. And what’s more, a specialist search and recovery unit was assembled by the Swedish military in an attempt to locate the apparently ruined craft.

Although nothing was discovered beneath the surface of the water, at least according to official reports, the case is an intriguing one that brings up several points of interest. For example, was the apparent craft actually crashing into the water or was it simply entering the water purposely, perhaps to make its way to some kind of alien base whose entrance might be hidden somewhere under the surface.

And might there be a connection to the Ghost Rocket sightings that took place half a century earlier and covered much of Scandinavia? Certainly when we consider that the 1999 UFO was described as “cigar-shaped” which is, of course, very similar in shape to that of a rocket. And what’s more, several sightings of similar shaped UFOs exist on record. One of which we will look at shortly, as it just might have a connection to the 1999 encounter. And perhaps it will offer an explanation as to why UFO sightings occur so often near the waterways of the world’s respective countries.

The incident is another that was investigated by leading Swedish UFO investigator, Clas Svahn, and appears to be an incident surrounded in credibility. Certainly credible enough for the Swedish military to put a discreet recovery operation in motion. That it is still of interest to UFO researchers and enthusiasts around the world today over two decades after the events is perhaps a further example of this credibility.

An Object Out Of The Sky Crashing Into The Water

During the afternoon of 27th July 1999, several people witnessed a cigar-shaped object “with wings” scream out of the skies and ultimately crash into waters of Lake Backsjon. Most witnesses agreed the object was approximately 15 feet in length and around 5 feet wide. What’s more, it was evident that water was “thrown into the air” following the craft’s apparent disappearance beneath the waves.

A report would eventually find its way to the local police. However, after conducting interviews with the witnesses they would seemingly wash their hands of the matter.

Several weeks later, though, in late August, an official presence was back on the waters of Lake Backsjon. And this time there were representatives from the military, the security police, and the rescue service from nearby Arvika. Initial searches were on a relatively small scale. The searches were thorough, though. However, the size of the waters and area to cover would quickly dawn on the units.

So much so, that Operation Sea Find was put into action on 13th September. And whether the military knew something that the general public didn’t, there appeared to be a decisive effort to locate something, somewhere in the waters. These suspicions appeared even more credible when the local population was assured that the whole operation was nothing but a training exercise.

Speculation only deepened when several conflicting reasons for the exercise surfaced. For example, one claimed there was a concern the object might be “foreign surveillance equipment”. Another, on the other hand, would claim the exercise was a response to a spate of “robberies of government facilities”. Whether there was any truth to all or any of those statements is perhaps open for debate.

Operation Sea Find – A Genuine Recovery Mission Or Another Cover Story?

Whatever the real reasons for Operation Sea Find, the 14-strong unit utilized high-tech underwater photography equipment, as well as equally high-tech sonar devices. What’s more eight of the unit were specialist divers with substantial experience in their field.

The search would continue for several days. It would then suddenly come to a halt with an announcement that nothing of significance had come to light. Vast regions of the waters remained unsearched. However, the sheer size of the lake would have likely meant an operation in excess of a year.

Once more, much like the reasons for beginning the operation, whether the reasons for bringing it to a close are genuine or not remains an area of concern. At least to some. We should perhaps note, however, that the military themselves would express surprise that they hadn’t managed to recover anything of interest from the waters.

What might they have been expecting to find in the cold, murky lake? Might something actually have been found only to be covered up by those in charge of the search? We should note that such claims are speculative, although, given the subject at hand, perhaps understandable.

Might it be, though, that the military really didn’t find anything as there wasn’t anything to find? Not that the strange craft didn’t enter the water as per the multiple witnesses. But that it did so purposely in order to enter some kind of unknown gateway or tunnel system. One that might take it to another part of the country, or even the world.

We will come back to this idea in a moment. First, however, we will turn our attention to an incident involving a very similar shaped craft near a town also near the inner waterways of Sweden.

1985 Uppsala Cigar-Shaped UFO Case

Although it occurred on the other side of the country in Uppsala, another sighting of a cigar-shaped object is most definitely worth including here. Not least as it is, albeit not exactly, on a similar line of latitude to the 1999 case near Arvika.

The account first appeared in the 12th July 1985 edition of the Swedish newspaper, Enkopings Posten. It would unfold one evening in June of the same year.

The incident involved an anonymous woman who was driving home on the evening in question. She was just outside Uppsala when she witnessed what she thought were two police cars ahead. She had the impression that, whoever it was, they were searching for something. This is an interesting detail in many encounters of roadside UFOs. They often revolve around the apparent occupants conducting similar search and collect operations.

She would continue on along the road, every now and then returning her focus to the scene up ahead. Shortly after, however, a bright light appeared in the sky overhead. Still assuming that the lights on the road were the police, she believed the light overhead was a helicopter patrol unit lending assistance. However, the more she looked at the light overhead, the more she realized that it appeared to be bigger than what she would expect a police helicopter to be.

She noticed how the object was a grey color and had three windows along the side. Furthermore, the closer it came, the brighter the white light underneath appeared to be. Then, it suddenly reduced in intensity and the witness could see that the craft was a distinct cigar shape. By the time it had disappeared into the distance, the witness had the realization that she had witnessed something truly out of the ordinary.

Unknown Connections Amid An Atmosphere Of Mistrust

If there is a connection between these two sightings and quite possibly many others around Sweden and Scandinavia over the years, what might that connection be? Might these cigar-shaped crafts be traversing the regions via the waterways of the area? Admittedly the second sighting didn’t witness the UFO entering or vanishing into the water. However, the Uppsala area is close to many of these waterways. And, as previously mentioned, it’s almost directly west of the 1999 location.

Might there be any accuracy to such a notion? If so, then we have to ask why these crafts are using these waterways? Does it suggest that, if they are of extraterrestrial origin, that there is a permanent alien presence on our planet? Or does it, in fact, suggest that the intelligence of these mysterious vehicles is an indigenous one?

If nothing more, this case over the waters of Lake Backsjon shows how little we actually know regarding UFO sightings. For every detail from the sightings on record, there are twice if not three times as many gaps. Indeed, it does often appear that the more we know, the less we understand.

In fact, it is perhaps these gaps and the speculation and misunderstandings that they create that, in turn, contributes to the mistrust that often simmers below the surface of the UFO community.

With that in mind, perhaps we should examine the words of Yngve Johansson of the Swedish military operation. He would state that the public should report such sightings to the military. Then, they could “build up a picture” of what is the real truth of these strange incidents around the region. And such action would also help us build a picture of the overall UFO and alien question.

Check out the video below regarding UFO sightings in Sweden.