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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.
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