Strange craft flying at around 40,000 feet

[guohua]

I just found this article and it is a year old, but very interesting.

Learjet And Airbus Had Strange Encounter With Mysterious Craft Over Arizona 

You'll read where the one pilot says that the craft was really beaming a light or a really big reflection from the sun.
Now you have to keep in mind that the air traffic controller never seen this craft/object on radar and it didn't have a transponder.

A series of strange events occurred high up in the flightlevels above Southern Arizona on February 24th, 2018. Between roughly 3:30pm and 4:15pm local time, N71PG, a Learjet 36 belonging to Phoenix Air, and American Airlines Flight 1095, an Airbus A321, had independent close encounters with a strange craft flying at around 40,000 feet.

The planes were flying east at about 37,000 feet between the Sonoran Desert National Monument and the New Mexico border when the incident took place. 

 Yes around 40,000 feet, was this craft a passenger airliner trying to save fuel? But why No Transponder?

The initial report came from N71PG, the Learjet, asking Albuquerque Center if traffic had passed above them. The controller replied "negative," meaning that there was no traffic to his knowledge that would account for such an observation.

The Learjet pilot replies defiantly, "somethin' did." Another pilot chimed in on the frequency saying "a UFO" and the Learjet pilot replied "yeah." 


A few minutes later, the controller asks American 1095 to let him know if they see anything "pass over you here in the next 15 miles." The American Airlines pilot replies in a puzzled manner "if anything passes over us!?"

The controller responds "affirmative, we had an aircraft in front of you at 37 [thousand feet] that reported something pass over him and we didn't have any [radar] targets, so just let me know if you see anything pass over you."

At this point things get even more interesting as the Learjet pilot chimes in saying "I don't know what it was, it wasn't an airplane but it was--the path was going in the opposite direction."

A minute later American 1095 calls back in saying "yeah something just passed over us, like a--I don't know what it was, but it was at least two-three thousand feet above us. Yeah it passed right over the top of us."

The controller calmly acknowledges the pilot's report and says nothing else. 

Something Passed Over Them! But What?

Then a moment later the controller asks American 1095 "Could you tell if it was in motion or if it was just hovering?"

The Airbus pilot quickly replies "I couldn't make it out if it was a balloon or whatnot, but it was just really beaming light or had a big reflection and several thousand feet above us going the opposite direction."
The controller confirms the report by just saying "roger." 

Shortly after that communiqué a pilot asks on the frequency "was it a Google balloon?" To which AAL1095 responds in a troubled tone "Doubtful." Another voice then comes on the frequency saying "a UFO!" 

A UFO, I would think so.

According to an FAA representative who was incredibly helpful and forthcoming during our preliminary investigation, he didn't think the incident was written up and noted that the supervisor at Albuquerque Center didn't even know about it when queried.

That does seem somewhat odd considering some sort of unidentified craft was flying along highly trafficked air routes at jet altitudes that didn't have a transponder, did not appear on radar, and was not communicating with air traffic control. 

You can read the Whole article and listen to the actual conversation between the controller and aircraft here: Source

[Wallfire]

I would go with a weather balloon or a sun dog.