Captain Drew Sullins of the Maryland Air National Guard suggested that the
lights COULD BE flares that were dropped over the North Tactical Range of
Luke Air Force Base.The flares were dropped sometime between 9:00 pm and 10:00 pm during a training exersize.
This theory was shot down after video footage and several photos were analyzed. The photos were taken from different locations, which allowed the lights to be triangulated. Triangulation proved that the lights could have not been over the base.
The military flares are extreamly dangerous. They burn intensely and at very high temperatures. It would be unbeliveably stupid to drop them over a population center. Furthermore, they stayed in a formation, hovered, did not look like flares and spectral analysis showed that they did not give off the spectral signature of flares.
To put the final blow to this explanation, Captian Sullins stated that the flares were dropped sometime between 9:00 pm and 10:00 pm. When the Captian made his suggestion, he was most probably unaware that the sightings started nearly a hundred miles away at 8:10 pm .