Staff Sergeant Robert Yanacsek

Crew Chief

Robert Yanacsek (often spelled Yanacsek in official documents, though some secondary sources spell it slightly differently) was one of the four military witnesses in the 1973 Coyne Helicopter Incident. He was the crew chief aboard the U.

S. Army Reserve UH-1H helicopter.

He is actually one of the most important witnesses in the case because he was the first person aboard the helicopter to notice the object.

Robert Yanacsek
Rank: Staff Sergeant (SSG), U.

S. Army Reserve
Role: Crew Chief
Aircraft: UH-1H Huey helicopter (Army helicopter 68-15444)
Unit: 316th Medical Detachment (Helicopter Ambulance), Cleveland U.

S. Army Reserve facility
Position during encounter: Rear section of the helicopter, where he had a view out the side/cargo area windows
His role in the encounter

On October 18, 1973, while the helicopter was flying from Columbus, Ohio, back to Cleveland, Yanacsek noticed a steady red light on the horizon. Initially, he thought it might be:

an aircraft navigation light, or
a radio tower beacon.

After watching it, he reported that the light appeared to change direction and move toward the helicopter on a converging path. He alerted Capt. Lawrence Coyne, who then took control of the helicopter and began evasive maneuvers.

According to the crew's report, Yanacsek estimated the object approached extremely rapidly, and he was the person whose observation triggered the crew's immediate reaction