Live Pterosaur Media Center Live Pterosaur Media Center Eskin Kuhn Sighting in Cuba Duane Hodgkinson For many years, Duane Hodgkinson has been a flight instructor. At one  time, he owned a Piper Tri-Pacer, an airplane with a wingspan of twenty  nine feet. In an interview with cryptozoologist Garth Guessman, in 2005,  Hodgkinson answered questions about his 1944 sighting in New Guinea  and said, “I would say that that pterodactyl had the approximate same  wing spread as what my airplane did.”  The 1944 Sighting in New Guinea   During a lull in fighting the Japanese, on the mainland of what was then  called “New Guinea,” two American soldiers stood at the edge of a jungle  clearing, marveling at large ants that were crawling over a log: nothing  like ants back in the States.   The men heard something crashing through the brush but relaxed when  they saw that it was only a wild pig running through the clearing. Then  something at the far end, about a hundred feet away, started running while  flapping its wings. As it became airborne, the men saw that it was no  ordinary bird, for it was too big and had no sign of feathers.   In a 2005 videotaped interview, Hodgkinson said, “It was huge, and as it  took off . . . I estimated the wingflaps were maybe about one or two  seconds in frequency, and the brush all below was totally swaying from  the down-rush of the air from these wings. . . . The creature flew out  a  little ways, and we were discussing what in the world was that, and here it  turned around and came back and it was up probably I would say maybe  fifty or a hundred feet above us, and flew right back alongside and we got  a perfect side view of it.”   He also said, “It had the long appendage out the back of its head, and it  had a long neck, and . . . it was a dark color. . . . I was so fascinated with  the appendage out the back of his head, and I was watching that as he flew  by, and I didn’t pay attention to what the end of his tail looked like . . .”   The interview (Guessman) then asked, “And you’re sure it wasn’t just  long legs?”   Hodgkinson: “No, no.”   Guessman: “It was a tail . . .”   Hodgkinson: “Yes.”   Guessman: “What was the visibility . . . between you and the creature?”   Hodgkinson: “It was clear . . . absolutely clear.”   When asked about the creature’s tail length, the World War II veteran  thought for awhile; he was unsure about his estimate but said, “at least ten  or fifteen feet.” He estimated the head length, not counting the appendage:  “I don’t know, but I’d say three or four feet.”      Other Online Resources A scientific paper in a peer-reviewed journal included this: “ . . . In 2004 I interviewed Duane Hodgkinson, of Montana, by e-mail, survey form, and telephone. He was then videotaped by Guessman in 2005. He and an army friend were in a jungle clearing west of Finschhafen (then New Guinea) in 1944 (Figure 1) when something ‘huge’ took off into the air from the far side of the clearing. The creature ran to their left, taking six to ten steps to get airborne and ascended at an angle of about 30 degrees (similar to an air- plane taking off). It then disappeared over the dense brush but soon re- turned and flew over the clearing, presenting a “perfect side view” of its features before again flying out of view. The wings never stopped flapping, at one to two seconds per flap, while it flew. . . . “He estimated the legs to be 3–4 ft (1–1.2 m) long. The top of the back was 5–6 ft (1.5–1.8 m) above the ground just before takeoff. Although he did not notice details of the tail, he estimated it was “at least” 10–15 ft (3–4.6 m) long. . . . “During flight, the feet were tucked up to the body. Hodgkinson was unsure of other features. The color was dark but not black. He took no notice of any feathers or hair, and he remembered nothing about the eyes.” Creation Research Society Quarterly Volume 45, Winter 2009 “Reports of Living Pterosaurs in the Southwest Pacific” by Jonathan D. Whitcomb Finschhafen Harbor (click for downloadable image for media use) YouTube Video of Hodgkinson  (interviewed by Guessman in 2005)   Soldier Sees Pterodactyl In August of 2004, Whitcomb sent Hodgkinson a questionnaire to learn certain details about the creature. Later, Whitcomb visited Umboi Island, Papua New Guinea, interviewing seventeen credible eyewitnesses. He was followed to the island by two other Americans. Ropen of Papua New Guinea  Just weeks after my 2004 expedition on Umboi Island, the cryptozoologists Garth Guessman and David Woetzel interviewed . . . native eyewitnesses with systematic interview forms . . . Woetzel and I later wrote separate scientific papers, in a peer-reviewed journal, about our experiences in Papua New Guinea and about pterosaurs in human times. Kongamato Pterodactyl  Flying Fox Fruit Bat & Pterodactyls