Esteban Cova airport encounter — Maiquetía, August26,1967

At approximately 2 a.m. on August 26, 1967, Marine Private First Class Esteban D. Cova had finished his duty at an airline hangar at Maiquetía Airport, Venezuela. The contemporary APRO Bulletin identifies the workplace as Venezuelan Airpostal Airlines. After showering and changing clothes, he was leaving the building when he encountered a small figure about three feet tall. Cova described an unusually large head, bulging eyes and a covering resembling hairy or wiry material. The figure made a deep whistling sound, which he associated with a prickling sensation throughout his body. It then asked him to accompany it because it wanted the company of a human being. HUMCAT preserves the reported Spanish invitation as asking him to come with the visitors because they needed one more person. Cova fainted during the encounter. The later retelling says the figure was gone when he recovered. APRO reports that he immediately went to the Commandante's office and described what had happened. The commander subsequently told investigators that something had badly frightened Cova. The recorded sequence ends with his recovery and report: no consciously remembered boarding, craft interior or continuous journey is described for this incident.