In 1947, Kenneth Arnold, business
man & private pilot, was flying his own
jet around the Mount Rainer area, looking for a downed plane with 32 men on-board. As he was flying toward the Mount, a glint of
light caught his eye. Arnold reported later that he saw
9 peculiar looking aircraft flying at tremendous speeds around his plane. Later on he reported to a newspaper that the objects flew, "like a saucer would if you skipped it across the
water". The news reported grabbed at the phrase and dubbed the first sightings of UFOs as "flying saucers".