"Shuttle Bus Driver" Reports Sighting of Large, Humanoid "Owl" with "15 to 20" Foot Wingspan over O'Hare International Airport

Manuel Navarette of UFO Clearinghouse received a report recently from a man claiming to have seen a large, humanoid owl while working as a shuttle bus driver at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois.

According to the initial report submitted to Navarette,

I work as a shuttle bus driver at O’Hare [International Airport]. I was working on April 21st, 2021 near the new parking terminal near Zemke Road at about 6 p.m. I was staged and had wandered away from my bus to take a smoke break, when I saw a large owl fly over the top of the building and disappear behind the parking garage.
It must have been at least 30 to 40 feet off of the ground when I saw it fly over. It made no sound and looked like a giant black thing with very large wings. I saw it for all of two to three seconds as it flew overhead, over the building, and out of sight. I didn’t see it again, and I saw nothing else when I drove around to the other side after starting my route again.
I know of the stories of the Mothman that is seen around O’Hare, and that is why when I saw your reports, I decided to write to you about what I saw.

Navarette said he was able to speak with the man via telephone for a few minutes regarding his sighting.

"The witness seemed very hesitant in regards to speaking about his sighting," Navarette said. "He stated that he was advised by his superiors that it was a misidentification of a large bird and that he should not speak to anyone else about these sightings."

When asked if he thought he had indeed seen a large bird, the man told Navarette that "he was certain that it was not a large bird as the wingspan was easily 15 to 20 feet in width and the object seen was easily the size of a human being. He described it as humanoid in shape and solid black, and moving faster than he had seen any bird fly."

Navarette added that the man "did not elaborate on any other details other than he was certain it was not any bird seen around the airport, at least not one he had seen in his time on the job."

Following that, the bus driver said that he "did not wish to speak with the investigator anymore."

Navarette thanked the witness for his report and his time, and the call was ended.

The investigator received no response to his subsequent requests for information via email and phone.

O’Hare International Airport has been the epicenter of recent winged humanoid sightings in the Lake Michigan Mothman investigation, with at least a dozen sighting reports coming from the airport itself since August of 2019, and many more reported in the surrounding communities. Reports from the larger investigation have come from every state bordering Lake Michigan and date back to 1957.

At 15 to 20 feet, this sighting represents the largest reported wingspan among flying humanoid reports within the Lake Michigan Mothman investigation. In comparison, the largest living bird species on earth, the wandering albatross, has a wingspan of up to only 12 feet; a measurement more consistent with what is normally reported by witnesses.

The reporting of winged creatures with owl-like qualities is not uncommon, and in June of 2020, a woman said that she and her friend had encountered a “huge owl” with "glowing red eyes that looked like [they] belonged to the devil himself" near a parking lot at O’Hare.

This report constitutes the latest news in a string of ‘Mothman’ sightings from within a few hundred mile radius surrounding Lake Michigan, including every state bordering the great lake. These sightings ostensibly began in the spring of 2017, but more historical accounts are being reported as more people become aware of the phenomenon. They generally take place in the evening or at night, often in or near a park or natural area, and around water. Witnesses consistently describe a large gray, brown, or black, bat or bird-like creature—although in a small number of cases the creature was described as insect-like—sometimes with glowing or reflective red, yellow, green, or orange eyes, and humanoid features such as arms and legs are often reported. Some witnesses have reported feeling intense fear and an aura of evil emanating from the creature they encountered. Many of the sightings are also of something seen only briefly or are described only as a flying creature with few details, which leaves open the possibility that a misidentified large bird—such as a heron or crane—or some type of anomalous avian species could explain some, although certainly not all, of the encounters. A number of associated high strangeness incidents have also occurred alongside the creature sightings; these include reports of UFOs, other anomalous flying creatures and mysterious humanoids, parapsychological phenomena, and bizarre events experienced by those investigating the sightings.

To report a sighting reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

You can view a timeline of the sightings so far here.

To report your own encounter with the impossible, reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

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