Richard
Brevard Russell, Jr. (November 2, 1897 – January
21, 1971) was an American politician from Georgia. A member
of the Democratic Party, he briefly served as speaker
of the Georgia house, and as Governor of Georgia (1931–33)
before serving in the United States Senate for almost
40 years, from 1933 until his death in 1971. As a Senator,
he was a candidate for President of the United States
in the 1948 Democratic National Convention, and the 1952
Democratic National Convention.
Richard
Russell as Governor of Georgia
Russell
was a founder and leader of the conservative coalition
that dominated Congress from 1937 to 1963, and at his
death was the most senior member of the Senate. He was
for decades a leader of Southern opposition to the civil
rights movement.
Senator
Russell and UFOs
By
1955, Senator Richard Russell had become one of the most
powerful and influential U.S. Senators in modern history.
After serving as Governor of Georgia, Russell served for
almost 40 years in the United States Senate during which
time, he was a candidate for President of the United States
in the 1948 Democratic National Convention, and the 1952
Democratic National Convention. He was chairman of the
Armed Services Committee from 1951 through 1969, and at
the time of his death, was the most senior member of the
Senate. His credibility as a witness is beyond question.
In
1955, Senator Russell was dispatched to Russian on a fact-finding
mission. It was during this trip, just after 7:00 PM on
October 4, 1955, while traveling on a Soviet train, that
Senator Russell witnessed a disc-shaped UFO taking off
near the railroad tracks.
Russell’s
report, which was declassified 30 years after the fact
(it was filed as "Top Secret"), describes how
Russell called his military aid and interpreter to the
window where all three witnessed the object, plus another
one that appeared a minute later.
"I
doubt if your going to believe this, but we all saw it.
Senator Russell was the first to see this flying disc…we’ve
been told for years that there isn’t such a thing,
but all of us saw it… One disc ascended almost vertically,
at a relatively slow speed, with its outer surface revolving
slowly to the right, to an altitude of about 6000 feet,
where its speed then increased sharply as it headed north.
The second flying disc was seen performing the same actions
about one minute later. The take-off area was about 1-2
miles south of the rail line…"
The
three witnesses watched as the flying disk rose and flew
northward over the train, out of sight.
The
CIA later interviewed Senator Russell, his military aid
Col E.U. Hathaway, his interpreter Ruben Efron, and a
“fourth person” (name was redacted in the document)
about the sighting. The witnesses described the object
as disc-shaped with a dome on top and noted that the object
made no sound as it ascended. They noted that the edge
of the disk glowed pinkish-white with a revolving outer
rim that rotated slowly in a clockwise direction. The
witnesses pointed out that visibility was excellent.
Strangely,
the senator’s report was never filed in Project
Blue Book documents.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Russell,_Jr.
http://altereddimensions.net/2013/senator-richard-russell-disc-shaped-ufo-sighting-during-1955-russian-fact-finding-trip
