It is quite likely that the JAL sighting would never have been known to the general public, nor would it have been
investigated, if it hadn't been for the interest by the American newsmedia in an odd story out of Japan. On Monday, December 29, 1986,
the Kyoda Press in Japan published a news story about a Japan Airlines crew that had seen a UFO while flying over
Alaska and that the UFO had been picked up by military radar. The Kyoda press got the story as a result of the air
crew talking to their friends, etc., and someone alerted the press. On 24 Wednesday the Kyoda Press
contacted the Public Information Officer at Anchorage, Paul Steucke. According to Steucke, as told to Walter Andrus
of MUFON, The first thing I got was a phone call from Kyoda News Service out of Japan. That was the day before
Christmas, 24 Wednesday. They sent a correspondent over and the correspondent said to me - you know
that we've got some information on 'such and such'. Is it true? I said, well, yeah, and here's what we've got. On
the 29th after the Christmas holidays that story must have been printed somewhere in Japan because United Press
International picked it up. Then the United press reporter over here asked me the same question and I told him the
same thing.
UPI reporter Jeff Berliner broke the story in the United States on 29 Monday. Numerous newspapers reprinted the story and the FAA headquarters in Washington, D.C. learned about it from the press reports, especially the January 1 report in the staid (never report a UFO story, and, if you must, be sure it is unfavorable!) Washington Post. When the FAA headquarters called Anchorage for the full story, it learned that the radar data tape had been saved (which was unusual since the tapes were generally reused after 30 days).