It was supposed to be just another quiet afternoon. The sun was beginning its slow descent over the western horizon, casting golden hues across the clouds above the sleepy coastal town of Fairview. The air was clear, calm, and still. At exactly 5:17 p.m., Flight 2623 was seen ascending over the ocean after departing from the regional airport.

That was the last moment anyone saw the plane the way it was supposed to look.

Within seconds, something changed — something no one could explain. Above the open sky, just past the shoreline, a circular formation of darkness appeared. It was not a cloud. It wasn’t a shadow. It was perfectly round, completely black, and seemed to absorb the light around it. Several eyewitnesses described it as a «void» or «hole in the sky.»

As the aircraft approached this black circle, there was a collective gasp among those watching from the beach and nearby cliffs. The plane didn’t crash. It didn’t explode. It simply entered the circle — and never came out.

One woman, 48-year-old Laura Mendel, said:
«It was like something out of science fiction. The plane was right there, flying smooth and steady. Then it just passed through this… this black ring in the air. And it vanished. Like it was swallowed. Not a sound, not a trace.»

Another witness, a retired meteorologist named Henry Sloane, called the phenomenon “absolutely unnatural.”
«I’ve studied the sky for over 30 years. I’ve seen rare cloud formations, mirages, refractions — but never anything that behaved like that. There was no distortion, no turbulence. Just a clean, dark circle that opened and then closed after the plane disappeared.»

Within minutes, emergency services were flooded with calls. The coast guard launched search teams. Radar control attempted to reestablish contact with Flight 2623. Nothing. No transponder signals. No emergency broadcasts. No wreckage. The plane, its passengers, and its crew — 132 souls in total — had simply vanished from every system.

Speculation Spirals

By morning, footage and photos began circulating on social media. Several people had managed to capture video of the event. The black circle was visible for about 19 seconds in total — just long enough to draw the aircraft in and then seal shut.

Skeptics were quick to suggest optical illusions. Atmospheric experts proposed rare meteorological phenomena. But none could explain the perfect symmetry, the lack of distortion, or the fact that the plane never reappeared.

Conspiracy theorists had a field day. Theories ranged from secret military experiments to interdimensional gateways. Some claimed it was proof of extraterrestrial activity. Others referenced classified satellite footage from past decades that allegedly showed similar phenomena over remote parts of the Pacific.

Official Silence, Public Panic

Authorities released a carefully worded statement 48 hours later:

“At this time, Flight 2623 is considered missing. No evidence has been found indicating a crash or impact. Anomalies observed in the sky are under investigation by independent atmospheric research teams. We urge the public to remain calm and avoid speculation.”

But speculation was already roaring. Hashtags like #BlackCircleSky and #Flight2623Mystery trended worldwide. Online forums lit up with amateur analyses. People slowed down footage frame by frame. Astrophysicists weighed in. Former pilots called into late-night radio shows.

The most compelling fact, however, remained unchanged: no one had ever documented a natural phenomenon that looked or behaved like the black circle in the sky that day.

Echoes of the Past

Digging through archived aviation records, a few independent researchers uncovered something eerie. In 1997, a private cargo flight over the Indian Ocean disappeared under strange circumstances. The pilot’s last message, partially garbled, included the words: “approaching dark vortex… not on radar…”

That flight was never found.

In 1984, a military jet reportedly vanished during training maneuvers over Nevada. Witnesses spoke of a sudden “hole in the clouds,” though the official report blamed a mechanical failure.

Are these coincidences — or part of a pattern no one dared acknowledge?

The Uncomfortable Truth

To this day, Flight 2623 has not been found. The families of the passengers live in painful limbo. No wreckage, no black box, no signal. Just silence — and a single moment that defies reason.

Laura Mendel returned to the same beach a week later. She stood in the same spot, stared up at the sky, and said softly to a local reporter:

«If it was an illusion, where’s the plane? Where are the people? They vanished right in front of us. And that circle — it wasn’t part of this world.»

As investigations continue, the truth remains elusive. The sky above Fairview is clear again. Planes come and go. But many who were there that day say they’ll never look up the same way again.

Because sometimes the sky opens — and swallows what it wants.