A former U.S. Air Force missile launch officer says unidentified flying objects once disabled several nuclear missiles at a base in Montana during the Cold War, according to the NY Post.

Robert Salas, now 85, said the incident occurred in 1967 at Malmstrom Air Force Base, where he was on duty monitoring LGM-30 Minuteman I missiles. Speaking on the The Danny Jones Podcast, Salas recalled that guards above ground reported strange lights flying over the base late one night.

According to Salas, the guards initially described fast-moving lights that stopped suddenly above the missile facility. Minutes later, one guard called back in a panic, saying a craft emitting a reddish, pulsating glow was hovering near the front gate. He also reported that one of the guards had been injured during the incident.

The NY Post wrote that shortly after the call, warning alarms sounded inside the underground control center. Salas said the launch control panel showed one missile going offline, followed quickly by the rest. Within moments, all ten missiles at the site became inoperable.

Security teams were sent toward the missile silos, but Salas said they stopped after spotting the lights hovering above the launch areas and were too frightened to approach.

An investigation later examined the shutdown but could not determine what caused it. Salas said the missile systems were designed with heavy shielding to prevent outside interference.

He added that Air Force investigators required him and his commander to sign secrecy agreements afterward, warning them not to discuss the event. Salas said he eventually decided to speak publicly years later after learning about similar reports in books about unidentified aerial phenomena.

Salas believes the incident may suggest the presence of a non-human intelligence interested in preventing nuclear conflict, though the cause of the missile shutdown was never confirmed.