The Bamboo Saucer

During flight testing over the test range, Fred Norwood pilots the experimental X-109 with a chase plane in attendance. He is pursued by a flying saucer and must perform a series of tricky aerobatics to protect himself. He manages to pull out of a Mach 3.12 dive, narrowly surviving the encounter.

Back on the ground, radar data shows no other aircraft near the X-109. Norwood insists he saw something unusual, but the oversight panel dismisses his account and chastises him. Blanchard, the chase pilot, remains frightened and is coached to deny the event.

Determined to prove his sighting, Norwood takes to the skies again in a surplus P-51 Mustang equipped with a futuristic laser radar. He patrols the area relentlessly, pushing himself toward exhaustion. His action is a personal crusade to validate what he saw.

While Fred sleeps, his friend Joe Vetry secretly takes off in the Mustang to monitor radar updates. The unidentified object reappears on the screen and Joe's aircraft vanishes from radar. FAA investigators later report the Mustang disintegrated midair.

Norwood is summoned to Washington, D.C. There, Hank Peters presents a sketch of the blue saucer and tells him the shapes come from intelligence sources based in Red China. Peters notes that credible sources suggest the encounter involved aliens.

Peters explains there are credible reports of two humanoid aliens dying from Earth bacteria, with their bodies reportedly cremated. Fred is asked to accompany Peters and two scientists parachuted into Red China to locate the craft.

At the drop zone, American agent Sam Archibald leads them to the saucer hidden inside the ruins of a Catholic church. The Communist destruction of the church is evident, but upset locals assist the Americans. They evade units of the People's Liberation Army.

A Russian party led by Comrade Zagorsky, including Anna Karachev, arrives and the Americans and Russians reluctantly decide to cooperate to investigate the saucer. Tensions run high, but the shared goal drives collaboration.

The Chinese Army closes in, and a fierce firefight erupts with casualties on both sides. The three survivors—two Americans and one Russian scientist—board the saucer, activate it, and escape the Chinese airspace.

A pre-programmed autopilot carries the saucer out of Earth’s orbit, past the Moon and Mars toward Saturn. The trio struggles to regain manual control, and they eventually manage to steer back toward Earth in a dramatic return.

The survivors regain control and re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, landing in Geneva, Switzerland. The sequence culminates with a visual message underscoring a broader message about unity in space exploration.

A quote from President John F. Kennedy about mutual human cooperation in space flashes on screen, framing the film’s takeaway as a hopeful, shared mission beyond Earth.