 presents
1948
UFO Chronology
and
the
"Estimate of the Situation"
 July 24, 1948 -
Chiles-Whitted Case
Created December 15, 2005, updated: 10 Dec. 2016 1948 was (and still is) a very important year in UFOlogy and this is a 24-page report. I want to thank all the members of the A-Team who made this possible. The latest group of entries was supplied by new A-Team member, Don Johnson (UFOCAT fame) and are marked with an asterisk. Note: There are 209 entries in the 38-page La Paz catalog, the " Summary of Sightings of Unknown Phenomena, 17th District OSI" But in the 1948 group there were only 13 sightings and the only ones listed here are the reports with some important details that make them extraordinary. Also, brief case descriptions giving the Cat (Category) number, name of witness, and source in brackets (M=military), are NICAP UFO Evidence entries that haven't been located. Finally, the case listings from BB files, where available, are inserted by month, and also listed here. A major breakthrough on the Mantell case occurred in 2006. This case had been explained by many researchers, but the A-Team uncovered new evidence. See January 7th. Finally, I want thank Loren Gross for thoughtfully and diligently collecting data many years ago for his UFO Histories and supplemental notes, in particular here the year 1948. And a big thanks to CUFOS and Mary Castnor for housing them on the CUFOS site. Francis Ridge NICAP Site Coordinator The Chronology Jan. 3, 1948; Vaasa, Finland (BBU) A disc-shaped object shot across the sky from west to east in 30 seconds over the coast of Vaasa, Finland. (Source: Project Blue Book files, case 99; Larry Hatch, U computer database, case 1289; Loren E. Gross, UFOs: A History. 1948, p. 1). Jan. 6, 1948; Chehalis, Washington 3:00 p.m. Mrs Bernice Zaikowski heard a “sizzling and whizzing” sound, and looked up to see a “birdman” hovering 200 feet above her barn. She watched “a man equipped with long silver wings fastened over the shoulders with a strap” ascend rapidly, hover, bank, then fly away. “He flew in an upright position and appeared to be manipulating controls strapped to his chest.” The wings did not flap, instead they retracted close to his body during ascent, and were extended to hover or proceed in horizontal flight. Mrs Zaikowski said five other adult witnesses and a number of children also saw the birdman. (Source: David F. Webb & Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case 1948-05, citing The Portland (Oregon) Journal, April 30, 1950; Hans Holzer, The UFOnauts, p. 117; John A. Keel, Operation Trojan Horse, p. 206). 1-7 p.m. (CST). Mantell case. Kentucky ANG
pilot Capt Thomas F. Mantell, Jr., was killed in
an F-5ID F fighter crash at about 3:18 p.m.
about 4 miles S of Franklin, Ky., (at about
36°40.4' N, 86°35' N) about 92 miles S (about
205° azimuth) from Godman Control Tower, in an
attempt to intercept an unidentified object
described in one of Mantell's last radio reports
to Godman AAF tower, Ft. Knox, Ky., (37°54'23"
N. 85r58"00" W. about 725 ft elevation) as
"metallic and tremendous in size." USAF 1st. Lt.
Orner, Commander, 733-5 Detachment. AACS,
tracked unidentified white light with red
coloration by weather tracking theodolite from
Godman Field hanger at azimuth 8-degrees:
elevation at 5:35 p.m. which disappeared over
the horizon at 250° azimuth See later sightings
at Lockbourne AFB and Clinton County AFB,
Ohio.
Jan. 7, 1948; Lockbourne_AFB, Ohio (BBU) 7:15 p.m. (EST). Lockbourne Tower operators, Air Traffic Controller and pilot Alex A. Boudreaux and VHF DF Operator and amateur astronomer Frank M. Eisele, 103rd AACS Sq, sighted an bright object to the SW of the airfield which appeared and disappeared intermittently. Fighter pilot USAF Capt. Charles E. McGee, Asst. Operations Ofcr., Lockbourne AFB, sighted the object on runway 23 landing approach when he was at about 1800 ft and the light seemed to be at about 3,000 ft to the SW about 4-5 miles away, later on the ground sighted it to the W about 6-7 miles away. USAF VHF Direction-Finding (DF) Operator and pilot Albert R. Pickering, Detachment 733, 103rd AACS Sq, Lockbourne AFB, was awakened by the sudden emergence of a lighted amber-color round or oval object about the size of a C-47 or larger [60+ ft] dropping out of the overcast bank 10,000 ft overhead. Lockbourne Control Tower at the same time radioed report of the object, which then maneuvered over to Commercial Point about 3-5 miles away to the WSW, then made 3 full 360° circles over one spot in 30-40 secs per turn diameter about 2 miles [about 600-700 mph at 7 g’s centripetal acceleration] over the runway, at a speed of 500+ mph, leaving a luminous amber-colored tail or exhaust about 5x its length. Then the UFO went to another location and did more 360° turns. Disappeared into the overcast at one point for 1 min then reappeared. Just before departing UFO hovered or “appeared to touch down” on the grass extension past the end of the Lockbourne AFB runway for 10 secs then left at 120° (ESE) heading into the overcast. Also sighted by pilot of USAF 9944 a C-45 at 5,000 ft off right wing at 7:53 p.m. (Sparks; APRO 1977; BB Sign Microfilm Roll 1, pp. 245-265; NICAP) 11:30 p.m. Eastern Airlines DC-3 airliner pilot?
DuBose saw a blue circular flame pass the plane,
turn, then blink [out?]. (Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
Jan. 10, 1948; Wildwood, New Jersey (BBU)
8 or 10 p.m. Knitting designer saw a "saucer" or
"queer light" approach from the ocean then rise and
fall slowly, departed at high speed. Previous
sightings of the same or similar phenomenon Dec. 27,
1947, Jan. 3, 1948, "all" at 8 p.m. (McDonald list;
FOIA)
Jan.
11,
1948; Hartford, Conn. (BBU)
4:30 p.m. Pilot USAF Capt. Helton and copilot
Pargoe in transport plane saw fast moving disc
with bluish center and red edges dive at 45° angle
to the E. (Project 1947; FOIA; FUFOR Index)
Project SIGN Report, NARA-PBB85-7: "Project 'Sign'
was initiated by the Technical Intelligence
Division, Air Materiel Command, and assigned
Project Number XS-304, 22 January 1948, under
authority of a letter from the Deputy Chief of
Staff, Materiel, USAF."
Jan. 27, 1948 nr. Eglin AFB, Florida Midnight. An Air Force officer (an engineer and chief of the aircraft branch at the base) and his wife were the witnesses.. He had also recently been part of the intelligence group at AMC, having transferred to Eglin in the fall of 1948. The object was similar to that seen in 1947 by Chiles and Whitted: an elongated fat cigar or cucumber-shaped structure with what the observers felt were one or two rows of windows along its length. It seemed to pulse its light, and made many maneuvers before disappearing. Dur, 25 mins. (The witnesses thought, because of the pulses accompanied by "sparks," that the object was rocket-propelled. The sudden "right-angle" changes of direction were an early case of a class of sightings that involved "impossible" non-inertial motions. One can imagine what excitement this would have caused 6 months earlier during the Chiles-Whitted affair. As it was, no one now was interested. The case received a minimal filing). (UFOs A History, Gross) 2 a.m. C. Bruce Stevenson saw a large 60 ft
domed disc, with bright orange-amber glow from
within, approach slowly to about 100-150 ft away
and just above his tool barn and then continue to
slowly move away. (Project 1947)
Feb. 18, 1948; Stockton, Kansas 4:56 p.m. A farmer saw a 4-foot wide disc that approached to within six feet and appeared to aim some type of tube or pipe at him. The UFO then wobbled and emitted some flames. It shot away flying toward the northwest. At 5:05 p.m. a Mr. Wray took a photograph of an irregular-shaped UFO north of Norton, Kansas. (Sources: Omaha Herald, February 18, 1948; Harold Wilkins, Flying Saucers on the Attack, p. 91, Kenneth Arnold and Ray Palmer, The Coming of the Saucers, p. 179). Feb. 20, 1948; Emmett, Idaho 1:15 pm. local. Six surveyors saw a small flat, heart-shaped UFO flying in the sky. It was fuzzy across its back edge as if "dipped in cream", and was flying point first below the cloud level at between 2,000 and 4,000 feet. (Sources: Emmett (ID) Messenger, February 26, 1948; Aime Michel, The Truth About Flying Saucers, p. 69; UNICAT database, case # 206, citing Kenneth Arnold, Fate Magazine, July 1948, p. 13). March, 1948; Aztec, New Mexico Alledged UFO crash. This is a hoax. March 1, 1948; Coast of Sweden (BBU) SECRET
March
3, 1948 Memo transcription
Actual document
March 10, 1948: Aleutian Islands While on a routine flight to Cape Air Force Base, Umnak Island, Alaska, the pilots of aircraft AF 2537 observed from 5 miles distance and 3000 feet a white vessel at 167° 50' W, 53° 27' N proceeding outbound from the shore of Umnak Island on a course of 30°. No curiosity arose upon the sighting of the vessel, except that it appeared to be proceeding exceptionally fast with a long narrow wake trailing behind. (Interest was taken on the above report for the following reason: the shape of the vessel as described by the pilot was identical to the description as submitted by the pilots of #1 sighting, who sighted an object which resembled a submarine.) The key word here is "resembled". See Keith Chester's comments below and the actual 5-page SECRET document. (Keith Chester) Memo from
Maj-Gen George C. McDonald, USAF Director of
Intelligence, to Commanding General AMC, W-P
AFB regarding the use of fighter aircraft to
gather information on flying discs.
Meeting of Air Force Science Advisory Board reveals missing reports. Col. McCoy mentions 300 reports, also mentioned in other documents. Project Blue Book files only show about 130. April 1, 1948; About 9 miles SE of Sorsogon, SE Luzon Island, Philippines (BBU) 9:55 a.m. USAF Lt. Meyers leading a flight of 4 P-47 fighters of the 67th Fighter Sq was flying S heading 180° at 1,500 ft altitude when he saw a half-moon shaped "flying wing" about 30 ft wide 20 ft long, with a barely perceptible dorsal fin, flying on a N heading 360° at about 1,000 ft about 3 miles to his E [evidently silhouetted against the surface 9 miles away at a depression angle of about 2°]. He immediately made a 270° left turn to identify the object when it made a 90° left turn [banking evidently] leveled out on a W heading 270° accelerating rapidly to disappearance in 5 secs, no trail [assuming 10x distance increase to reduce apparent size below visual resolution limit, and constant acceleration, terminal velocity would be about 11 miles per second or 39,000 mph at about 350 g's]. (FOIA; FUFOR Index) April 3, 1948; in San Martino, Lombardy, Italy 6:35 a.m. Bus driver Guiseppe Langiano and railway stationmaster Sr. Bavota saw a luminous orange domed disc hovering about 10 meters above the ground at Fara Di Cigno which stopped 12 meters away from them. It was shaped like an inverted bowl, about 10-15 meters in diameter, and surmounted by a transparent looking dome or “upside-down cup.” It was also emitting a very bright beam of white light. A humanoid being floated down to the ground from the object. He wore a stiff, metallic looking one-piece garment with heavy metallic gauntlets. He looked like a "big puppet" about 1.5 meters (5 feet) in height. He had "two round holes in place of eyes.” When Sr. Langiano approached, it re-entered the UFO, which then took off. (Sources: Solas Boncompgni, UFO in Italia, p. 94; David F. Webb & Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case 1948-06 (A0145), citing Solas Boncompgni; Verga Maurizio, ITACAT: Italian UFO Catalogue). Afternoon. Geophysics Lab and/or AMC Watson Lab
balloon observers Olsen, Johnson, Chance, saw 1 to 2
irregularly round, gray-white or golden objects,
indistinct in outline like a majors insignia ...
slightly concave on top, one [?] estimated 100 ft
size. Both were rising straight up then one veered to
the right, dropped, made a large loop, went upward
again, then disappeared suddenly not due to distance.
The other object arced off to the W at terrific or
tremendous speed made 3 vertical loops or violent
maneuvers then disappeared suddenly not due to fading
away in the distance. (Berliner; cf. Ruppelt p. 71;
Vallée?; Loren Gross Jan-July 1948 orig ed p. 25)
April
8, 1948; Ashley, Ohio [Delaware?]. Paines (BBU)April 7, 1948; Longview, Washington
Mid afternoon. Three men in dark drab flight suits were seen flying through the air at 250 feet altitude. They circled the city as fast as a freight train. They had apparatus on their sides that looked like they may have been wearing guns in holsters. They were seen briefly by three witnesses with the last names of Johnson and Pittman. (Sources: Longview (WA) News, April 8, 1948; John Keel, Operation Trojan Horse, p. 207; APRO Bulleltin, June 1980, p. 4). 2:00 pm to 2:30 pm. Various witnesses reported a clearly-outlined object, first observed at an angle and slowly southwest. Object was cylindrical and seemed to have a vapor around the top and the sun shining off of it. One account states it was opalescent like a mother of pearl. It was also described as apparently very large, about the size of a full moon in height but smaller in width, but very high up.. Air Force analyst suggested a vertical meteor trail but witnesses stated the object was first moving at an angle then righted itself flying vertical. Duration 10 mins +- (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) April 9, 1948; Holloman AFB?, Alamogordo, New
Mexico (BBU)
2:06 p.m. (MST). (Trakowski GRUDGE rpt)
3:10 p.m. Lt. Col. Hughes, Air Tactical School
instructor, Tyndall AFB, Panama City, Florida, while
flying a P-51H fighter at 16,000 ft and just before
completing a 180° left turn spotted a silver
parachute-shaped 8 ft disc with a 5 ft long cable or
shroud underneath suspending a silver canister or
ball, at his 10 o'clock position (to the SE) off his
left wing headed NW, about 300-500 ft away and 200300
ft below him. He banked sharp left to try to follow
the object, at 310 mph IAS, but it disappeared in 5
secs without dropping in altitude. (FOIA)
April 11, 1948; Alton, Illinois (BBU)
Siegmund. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Popular
Science Article Tells All About Skyhook
Here the "secret" is emblazoned on the cover of
Popular Science for May 1948 as a bit of publicity
hype since obviously it was not "secret" if it was
being published openly. (Keyhoe's book cover
two years later looks a bit like this magazine
cover.) The issue must have hit the
newsstands in April possibly as early as March
1948, and written up in maybe Jan/Feb 1948.
(Brad Sparks/Ole Jonny Braenne)
April 18, 1948; 1 mile N of
Fairbanks, Alaska (BBU)
1:06 p.m. USAF member Johnson of 375th Recon Sq-Very Long Range, Ladd AFB, in the Chaechako Hotel saw a noiseless object with a flat discus shaped object 8 inches in size [at arm's length??] rapidly oscillating in flight at about 2,0003,000 ft altitude about 1 mile away traveling NE to SW at about 250-300 mph visible only when the flat side was toward the observer reflecting high intensity sunlight (?). (FOIA; FUFOR Index) few mins or 15 secs ? April 18, 1948; N Atlantic bet. Iceland and
Greenland (BBU)
(McDonald list)
April
19, 1948; Greenville AFB, South Carolina (BBU)
4:15 p.m. 2 Lts. Henning (Henning?) and Loomis
heard jet fighter(s) and when looking for it saw a
stationary silvery or white sphere directly overhead
at about 15,000-20,000 ft, which looked like a
weather balloon (but none had been launched), and
after 1 min it was joined by an identical object at
15,000+ ft which remained relatively stationary
(about 1 min) then both suddenly accelerated to high
speed off to the NNE in trail formation disappearing
in about 30 secs, while the original object drifted
N [?]. Size estimated at slightly smaller than a 42
ft AT-6 at the indicated altitude. (FOIA; FUFOR
Index)
April
23, 1948, A Preliminary Project SIGN Report (56
pages in pdf file)
Intact
copy found in 900 pages of documents released in
1997 with the Roswell inquiry, published by the
Fund for UFO Research.
April 30, 1948; S. of Anacostia
NAS, Maryland (BBU)
10:15 a.m. Pilot Lowe of Navy aircraft SNJ Buno 90731 flying S at 180° magnetic at 5,500 ft saw yellow sphere in opposite course S to N at constant altitude about 1,000 ft below. (Jan Aldrich; Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
Routing and Records Sheet by Miles Goll describing
the excellent work of Alfred Loedding, monitor of
Project SIGN.
May 5, 1948; Adapasari [or Adapazari], Turkey
(BBU)
(McDonald list) May 6, 1948; Near Wake Island, bet. Kwajalein and
Hickam Field, Hawaii (BBU)
9:05 a.m. USAF pilot Barnes of MATS plane saw a
ball of fire explode like a shell. [Probable meteor
bolide.] (McDonald list; Project 1947; FUFOR Index)
May 7, 1948; Memphis, Tenn. (BBU) Bray and Kaiser. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
May 12, 1948; between Westfield and Clare, Indiana A private pilot found that he was sharing his air space with something unknown but resembling, he said, the "Graf Zeppelin" in appearance, but slightly smaller in size. It had bright finish and zoomed faster than an airliner. (Gross UFOH 1948,31; Blue Book file 129???) May 25, 1948; Wesserbillig, Luxenborg Jumping from a coal train at night, 45-year-old Mr. Klotzbach suffered severe leg injuries and experienced a lot of bleeding. He fainted, but surprisingly when he woke up he found himself inside a UFO. The UFO occupants spoke to him in German. They shared with him some undisclosed messages, and he next experienced a further loss of time. He awoke again four days later in Luxemborg, legs fully healed. (Sources: Thomas E. Bullard, UFO Abductions: The Measure of a Mystery, case 59; Gordon Creighton, FSR, September-October 1969, p. 20; David F. Webb & Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case A0148). May 28, 1948, 6 miles east of Monroe, Michigan (BB) 3:00 p.m. (1500 hours). 1st Lt. Alexander Kokolonis, USAFR, while flying in a USAF C-47 at 6000 feet altitude observed out of the navigator's window three disc-like objects two miles to the left. The objects were approximately 300 to 400 feet in size, silvery-gold in color, and traveling at well over 500 m.p.h. The objects were in sight approximately 10-15 seconds. Approximately 10 seconds later, Kokolonis observed two more similar objects approximately 2 1/2 miles to the left and he alerted M/Sgt Ernest Davis, Jr.who also observed the two objects. (Dan Wilson, BB files) Late May, 1948; Oxford/Bicester, Great Britain 11:40 AM. Four officers and two crew aboard a York transport aircraft, accompanied by a formation of six meteor jets, encountered a 100' oval with three bumps or protrusions on the bottom. Ground radar tracked the object which was stationary and above 25,000 feet. The object departed at an incredible speed of 1500 mph. (See detailed account from a letter to Jenny Randles linked above) May 31, 1948; Wilmington, North Carolina (BBU) At 1:20
in the afternoon a cigar-shaped object moved through
the sky at terrific speed over Wilmington, North
Carolina. Mrs. H. D. Alspach [and two others, one by
name of Colvin], reported that the object emitted
smoke, appeared about three feet long, veered, slowed
down, and then sped away toward the east at a high
altitude. ((McDonald list; FUFOR Index, Don Johnson:
Source: Wilmington, North Carolina Morning Star, June
1, 1948).
June 16, 1948; Kapustin Yar test flight facility in Astrakhan, Soviet Union A banana or cucumber-shaped object with beams of light was tracked on radar when it descended across the course of Russian test pilot Aprasksin flying over the Kapustin Yar test flight facility in Astrakhan, Soviet Union. The experimental aircraft he was flying experienced a total electrical failure when it was hit by a cone of light, with the engine and controls failing. Although temporarily blinded, he was able to glide the plane to a landing. (Sources: Felix Zigel, unpublished manuscript, p. 124; Geoffrey Falla, BUFORA Vehicle Interference Project, p. 004; Jacques Vallee, UFO Chronicles of the Soviet Union: A Cosmic Samizdat, p. 137, Lara Elliott). June 20, 1948; Scott AFB, Belleville, Illinois (BBU)
(McDonald list)
June 29, 1948; W Uniontown, Penna. (BBU) 11 p.m. Mrs. Catherine MacDonald and Mrs. Margaret
Hollar saw an oval luminous object "rolling"
vertically on its edge in level (or climbing) flight
at about 5,000 ft, below the clouds, with a short
trail (about 1/2 length of object), in the SW moving
SW to NE (to the S of witnesses?). 2 similar objects
seen at 5-min intervals, the 2nd seeming transparent
as lightning could be seen flashing behind it. Police
were then called so 2nd/3rd objects were seen by
police Sgt. Charles Schulz [Schuh?] and Mrs.
MacDonald's daughter Catherine. Another neighbor woman
and her daughter were brought out, when a 3rd object
was seen, height estimated 6,000-9,000 ft (climbing?),
same SW to NE path. (FOIA; FUFOR Index) 5-10 secs + ?
+ 6-7 secs
June 30, 1948; S Knoxville, Tenn. (BBU)
Whitehouse. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
June 30, 1948; Hecla, South Dakota (BBU)
Pfutzenreuter. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Summer 1948; Erie, Pa.
Engineer saw elliptical UFO which flew horizontally, then ascended rapidly. [UFOE, VI] Summer of 1948; Goose Bay, Labrador UFO tracked on radar at 9,000 m.p.h. [UFOE,VIII]. Major Edwin A. Jerome, USAF (Ret.) reported the incident to NICAP in 1961. Major Jerome was a Command Pilot, Air Provost Marshall for about 8 years, and also served as an Intelligence Officer and CID Investigator. Summer 1948; Easton, Pa.
Physicist watched 3 luminescent greenish discs cross sky. [UFOE,VI] July 4, 1948; Dravesburg, Penna. (BBU)
Jannicky. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
July 4, 1948; Nr. Longmont, Colorado
Revolving silver circular object soared upward at ''terrific speed." [UFOE, XII] July 8, 1948; McKeesport Pennsylvania (BBU) Morning. Mrs. Nell Veway and Mrs. Elizabeth Geltz observed a round silver plate-shaped object moving noiselessly overhead. It disappeared into a cloud bank but reappeared on the far side. They followed the disc until it was out of sight. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index) July 9, 1948; Alaska
Two Air Force officers reported approximately 20 discs or spheres milling around in formation and making a jet-like sound. (Fund Report C-7; 2 pp.) July 9, 1948; Fielding Lake, Wash. (BBU) Caramia. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
July 1948; Pasco, Wash. Private pilot saw disc diving and climbing away at high speed. [NICAP, V] July 9, 1948; Osborn, Ohio (BBU)
9:47 p.m. AMC Technical Intelligence Division
officer and pilot, Lt. C. W. G., of MCIAXO-4,
saw to the N about 70° elevation a luminous
yellowish-white object traveling E to W at estimated
3,000-4,000 ft about 500-600 mph, illuminated at
regular intervals, first 1-2 secs, then dark 3 secs,
lit 1-2 secs again, dark 3 secs, then lit 1-2 secs
again disappearing to the W slightly above the horizon
N of Patterson Field. No sound or trail. Moon 1/4
illuminated seen rising to the WSW (actually setting
to the W at 272° azimuth 21° elevation 15%
illuminated). (FOIA)
July 17, 1948; 5 miles S of San Acacia Dam, New Mexico (BBU) 4:50 p.m. 2 Kirtland AFB Sgts. on a fishing trip
with their families saw a group of 7 aluminum circular
possibly spherical objects approach from the S at
20,000 ft pass overhead at 1,500 mph if the altitude
was correct (5°/sec angular velocity), at first
appearing like snub-nosed jet fighters of unknown
type, shifting from V formation to L formation to
circular formation to no regular formation, at which
point a regular pulsating flashing light appeared in
the group at 30° from zenith to the N, and at this
oblique angle the objects did not appear circular. No
noise or trail. (FOIA) [10-30 secs?]
July 20, 1948; Arnhem, Netherlands (BB) 1:30 p.m. local. Drawings made by pilots (Chiles/Whitted) very closely resemble a flying object reported to have been seen by A. D. Otter, chief investigator of Court of Damage Inquiry, and his daughter at Arnhem. This object appeared to be a wingless aircraft having two decks. The craft, sighted four times through scattered clouds and unlimited visibility, was traveling at high speed at high altitude. A sound similar to that made by a V-2 was reported. (Paragraph "q" of Top Secret Air Intelligence Report 100-203-79, "Analysis of Flying Object Reports in The U.S." 10 Dec 1948.) This sighting occurred 4 days prior to the C/W case. (Fran Ridge, BB files) July 21, 1948; Van Nuys, Calif. (BBU)
(McDonald list)
July 24, 1948; Altoona, Penna. (BBU)
Griebel. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
July 24, 1948; 20 miles SW of Montgomery, Alabama (BBU) 2:35 a.m. Eastern Airlines pilots, Captain
C.S. Chiles and First Officer J.B. Whitted, reported
that a cigar-shaped object with lights like
portholes approached head-on, accelerated, climbed
away. (Sparks lists this as possible meteor fireball.
[Battelle Unknown No. 5] 5-10 secs) Ruppelt describes
this incident in his book:
Captain Edward J.
Ruppelt:
"On the evening of July
24 (Ridge: Actually the 23rd), 1948, an Eastern
Airlines DC-3 took off from Houston, Texas. It was on
a scheduled trip to Atlanta, with intermediate stops
in between. The pilots were Clarence S. Chiles and
John B. Whitted. At about 2:45 A.M., (now the 24th)
when the flight was 20 miles southwest of Montgomery,
the captain, Chiles, saw a light dead ahead and
closing fast. His first reaction, he later reported to
an ATIC investigation team, was that it was a jet, but
in an instant he realized that even a jet couldn't
close as fast as this light was closing. Chiles said
he reached over, gave Whitted, the other pilot, a
quick tap on the arm, and pointed. The UFO was now
almost on top of them. Chiles racked the DC-3 into a
tight left turn. Just as the UFO flashed by about 700
feet to the right, the DC-3 hit turbulent air. Whitted
looked back just as the UFO pulled up in a steep
climb."
July 24, 1948;
Robins AFB, Georgia
02:50 a.m. (Eastern) Walter C. Massey, a member of civilian alert, observed a squash-shaped object with flaming exhaust headed south at terrific speed. Seven other witnesses from Augusta, Georgia, also observed the object. (BB Microfilm). "In none of these instances does a meteorological or astronomical explanation suffice to explain the sightings." (McDonald) July 25, 1948, Yakima, Washington At 2:00 P.M. and at 4:20 P.M., a silvery moon-sized flying blob was seen by hundreds of witnesses over the city of Yakima. Hundreds of calls flooded into the CAA office concerning the flying object. 8:45-9 p.m. 5-15 (?) students outdoors at Georgia
Tech at Chamblee saw a green light with a silver tail
about the size of a football [at arm's length??] in
steady flight to the SE slowly descending as if for a
landing, completely silent. At 9 p.m. Atlanta Naval Air
Base tower observer saw a blue-white object in
horizontal level flight at high altitude travel from NE
to SE in a few seconds then gain altitude and suddenly
turn to the S, completely noiseless. Independent
witnesses include City Editor of Atlanta Chronicle
newspaper and 9 others. (FOIA) few secs?
July 27, 1948; Albuquerque, New Mexico 8:35 a.m. A University of New Mexico scientist saw a flat metallic disc-shaped object that hung motionless in the sky for ten minutes. (Source: Jacques Vallee, Anatomy of a Phenomenon, p. 54). July 29, 1948; Indianapolis, Indiana (BBU 185) 9:18 [9:55] a.m. James Toney and Robert Huggins, both
employees of a rug cleaning firm in a truck headed W,
saw a shiny propeller shaped aluminum object, with 10-12
small cups protruding from either blade, 6-8 ft long,
1.5-2 (or 12) ft wide, above trees about 30 ft altitude
to the NW about 300 ft away heading S about 170°
approaching to about 100 ft at closest. Object glided
across the road at 25-30 mph in a slight descent then
made a 20° bank to the E, went down in a wooded area;
witnesses stopped truck got out to look but object
disappeared behind trees; later search found no traces.
No sound or trail. (Battelle Unknown No. 1; Vallée
Magonia 65) [15 secs]
July 31, 1948; S Central Indianapolis, Indiana (BBU 190) 8:25 a.m. Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Swigert saw a cymbal
shaped or domed disc object or rounded coolie hat to the
W, about 20 ft across, 6-8 ft thick, 3:1 ratio 10 secs
noted, white without any shine but shadowing on upper
right (sun from the left or E), fly straight and level
from horizon to horizon W to E heading 90°, first
through window facing W then window facing S, altitude
estimated at 2,000 ft covering distance of 5 miles
(1,800 mph? distance 2 miles? elevation 10°?),
shimmering in the sun as if spinning. No sound or trail.
(Battelle Unknown No. 8; FOIA, Dan Wilson)
Shortly after sunset. Max Abbott, flying a Bellanca
Cruisair four-passenger private airplane, saw a single
bright white light [take off?] accelerate [to 300 mph?]
and turn up a valley. (Berliner; cf. Project 1947)
Aug. 1, 1948; South China Sea from Hong Kong to Saigon, Vietnam Morning. Everyone on a Air France airliner flying over South China Sea saw a huge metallic cigar-shaped object flying south, and then make a 90-degree turn into the clouds. Later that day at Clark Field in the Philippines American military observers also sighted a wingless cigar-shaped object with a row of lights. (Sources: Jacques Vallee, Anatomy of a Phenomenon, p. 54; Donald E. Keyhoe, Flying Saucers are Real, p. 72). Aug. 2, 1948; Columbus, Ohio (BBU)
Saunders. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Aug. 3, 1948; Moscow, USSR (BBU)
8:00 a.m. A long metallic cylinder with no wings flew at a very high altitude and was seen in the skies 25 kilometers northwest of Moscow in Russia. It moved silently and very fast towards the northeast. (McDonald list; Don Johnson: Sources: Project Blue Book, August 1948; Larry Hatch, U computer database, case 1338, citing Loren E. Gross, UFOs: A History. 1948, p. 48). Aug. 4, 1948; North Powder, Oregon (BBU)
(McDonald list)
August
5, 1948, Top Secret EOTS
The Top Secret
"Estimate of the Situation," concluding UFOs were
interplanetary space ships, sent to Air Force Chief
of Staff. (Brad Sparks: .....specifically Aug 5,
1948, the date Keyhoe gave after actually seeing a
copy in 1952.)
Ruppelt:
"According to the old
timers at ATIC, this report shook them worse than the
Mantell Incident. This was the first time two reliable
sources had been really close enough to anything
resembling a UFO to get a good look and live to tell
about it. A quick check on a map showed that the UFO
that nearly collided with the airliner would have
passed almost over Macon, Georgia, after passing the
DC-3. It had been turning toward Macon when last seen.
The story of the crew chief at Robins AFB, 200 miles
away, seemed to confirm the sighting, not to mention
the report from near the Virginia North Carolina state
line."
"In intelligence, if you
have something to say about some vital problem you
write a report that is known as an 'Estimate of the
Situation.' A few days after the DC-3 was buzzed, the
people at ATIC decided that the time had arrived to
make an estimate of the Situation. The situation was
the UFO's; the estimate was that they were
interplanetary! "
Aug.
11, 1948; Near Hamel, Minn. (BBU)
Bet. 12 and 12:15 p.m. (CDT). 2 Leuer boys playing outside saw a round, dull gray or silver object 2 ft diameter, 1 ft thick, like inverted plates approach from the NW drop down between the boys from a height of 12 ft and land 8 ft away from one of the boys like a balloon with a metallic clinking sound and a train whistle noise. It spun once, shot up 20 ft, made the whistle noise again, hovered, shot up to a height of 30 ft maneuvering to avoid phone lines and trees, flew away to the NE. CIC Special Agent Capt. Charles L. Victor, 113th CIC Det., found an area 2 ft in diameter where the ground showed signs of extreme pressure. (Vallée Magonia 66; FOIA; FUFOR Index) Aug. 15, 1948; Phoenix, Arizona Early afternoon. Many people witnessed four silver disc-shaped objects that flew fast from east to west, then flipped in sequence. Three of the objects were seen again later. (Sources: George Eberhart, A Geo-Bibliography of Anomalies, p. 208, citing MUFON; Larry Hatch, U computer database, case # 1341, citing Ronald D. Story, Encyclopedia of UFOs, p. 17). August 17, 1948; Hamel, Minn. Small, two-foot-diameter object touched down, quickly rose to height of about 20 feet, flew away. Depression found at landing site. Soil samples sent to FBI laboratory for analysis. (Fund Report C-10; 7 pp.) (Dated Aug. 11 in Project Blue Book files. Project GRUDGE Report Case No. 152) Aug.
29, 1948; Maplewood, Ohio (BBU)
5:30
a.m. Mr. Faby Niswenger, a farmer, saw a large
silvery sphere rise from a wooded area and hover
above his farm, dropping a silvery substance that
disintegrated before touching the ground. While
still viewing the object it disintegrated in
midair. (Vallée Magonia 67; FUFOR Index)
Sept. 11, 1948; over San Francisco, California
11:30 p.m. A yellow glowing teardrop-shaped object was seen for several seconds flying toward the west at 800 miles per hour, against the wind. It was lost from view in the fog. (Sources: Bruce D. Berry, Fate, February 1958, p. 58; Loren E. Gross, UFOs: A History. 1948 (volume 2), p. 75). Sept. 18, 1948; SE Shreveport, Louisiana (BBU)
5:00 p.m. Draftsman at home using high-power
binoculars to watch an L-6 aircraft at 10,000 ft
altitude at 60° elevation to the SE traveling 100 mph,
for Air Force Day, saw a bright white aluminum
half-spherical object traveling the opposite direction
in level flight at about 20,000 ft altitude 21/2
miles away ground distance at 100-150 mph heading S,
no trail, lost when he tried to view it without
binoculars. Object appeared to be 1/3 size of the L-6
(35.5 ft) but 2x the distance, or about 24 ft. (FOIA)
Sept. 22, 1948; Near Turner AFB, Albany, Georgia (BBU) 3:30 p.m. (EST). USAF Lt. Martin G. Rubisch, Asst.
Combat Ops Ofcr. at Eglin AFB, Flor., the copilot of a
C-47 flying from Eglin heading NE into Turner AFB at
2,000 ft when he saw a shiny metallic object about the
size of a radio controlled target drone, but with no
wings or rudder, approaching from about 1,500-2,000 ft
away about 35° to the left heading 335° (or 155°?) at
about 250 mph at 1,500 ft altitude, no trail. (FOIA)
Sept. 23, 1948; Los Alamos {Santa Fe?], New Mexico (BBU) 9:40 a.m. Group of Los Alamos Scientific Lab
personnel, Angier, Fairchild and others, waiting for
an aircraft at the landing strip saw a sun-reflecting
glint in the sky from a flat circular metallic object
high in the N sky appearing like a flat dime on-edge
slightly tipped as if 50 ft away. (Case recounted in
unpublished Ruppelt manuscript said to be included in
the TOP SECRET AMC Estimate of the Situation,
apparently a revised version of the Aug. 5, 1948,
initial draft. FUFOR Index.)
Approx. 12:02-12:03 p.m. Retired U.S. Army Col. Horace
S. Eakins and Sylvester Bentham saw a 2-engine bomber
aircraft pass low overhead to the SE then saw far beyond
and high above it, possibly 1 mile higher, a strange
fast-flying irregularly shaped translucent white amoeba
headed E, the size of a 4-engine bomber, with 3
appendages in front 2 trailing with a dark grey spot
possibly spherical near the center which remained stable
in motion, the arms of the amoeba undulating, the object
wobbling, disappeared suddenly, no trail. [Another
object sighted?: a buff or grey rectangle with vertical
lines.] (cf. FOIA) Sept. 23, 1948; 4 miles E of San Pablo, 4.1 miles S of Pinole, Calif. (BBU 208) Sept. 23, 1948; Los Alamos, New Mexico (BBU) [AESS security guard Hanson ?? saw an oval orange luminous object, length/width ratio about 1.5:1, to the E crossing the sky in level flight from right to left, trailing flame, disappearing in a cloud bank to the NE.] Sept. 28 [18?], 1948; San Simeon, Calif. Patterson
(BBU)
(McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
JANAP 146 reporting regulation issued and then tabled by Major General Cabell Oct. 1, 1948; Fargo to 25 miles SE of Fargo, North Dakota (BBU) 9:00-9:27 p.m. (MST). Air National Guard fighter
pilot Lt. George F. Gorman plus 4 others including 2
CAA tower controllers saw a small 6-8-inch round white
ball of light with a flat, no-depth disc-like
appearance, blinking off and on at slow speed. First
spotted by pilot Dr. A. D. Cannon and passenger Einar
Neilson aboard Piper Cub aircraft at 1600 ft AGL, N of
Hector Field moving fast to the W above them at about
250270 mph, spotted by Gorman shortly after. Gorman
radioed tower and began pursuit at 9:07 p.m. Cannon
and Neilson landed, went up into airport tower and
with binoculars watched Lt. Gorman attempt to chase
the light in his F-51 fighter, closest approach less
than 500 ft distance on his first pass at about 5,000
ft. Gorman climbed to 14,000 ft but stalled out unable
to intercept light at about 16,000 ft. Light made
evasive and aggressive maneuvers, such as seeming to
try to ram the F-51, that outperformed the F-51 at a
top speed 600+ mph. Light dropped to 11,000 ft, Gorman
attempted to dive on it, light pulled up, rose
vertically until it disappeared. 27 mins (Sparks)
Covers period 5 Oct to 11 Oct (Courtesy of Project
1947)
Oct. 11, 1948; Neubiberg AFB, Munich, West Germany
(BBU)
Swap and Ingelido. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 12, 1948,
Clingerman's Request
AMC Intell Dept Acting Chief Col. Clingerman's
request to AFRD (Gen. Donald Putt) asked for RAND
study of the possibility that "some of the
unidentified aerial objects that have been
reported both in the United States and in foreign
lands may have been experimental
spaceships.... it is believed more likely
that they represent the effort of a foreign
nation, rather than a product from beyond the
Earth."
(See Nov. 18 and Dec. 13, 1948, documents
concerning the study of the spaceship
possibility. RAND's actual study on Dec. 13,
1948, completely disregarded Clingerman's
suggestion about a foreign nation testing
spaceships and concentrated on possible spaceship
visitations from Mars or Venus or planets in other
star systems and what performance characteristics
might be expected from such vehicles.) http://www.project1947.com/gr/48randufostudy.htm
Oct. 13, 1948; South Bend, Indiana (BBU)
Brooke and Thompson. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 14, 1948; Between Dayton, Ohio, and Indianapolis, Ind. Air Force pilot, major, saw a UFO flying in an oscillatory path, up and down motions. Intelligence report missing. (Fund Report C-13; 2 pp.) (Project GRUDGE Report Case No. 181) Oct. 15, 1948; Fukuoka, Japan (BBU 218) 11:05 p.m. USAF pilot 1st Lt. Oliver Hemphill Jr.
and radar observer 2nd Lt. Barton Halter flying a P-61
Black Widow night fighter made 6 interceptions of the
same or different objects tracked on airborne radar,
only one seen visually. Dull or dark translucent
object shaped like a dirigible with a flat bottom and
clipped tail end. Speed varied from 200 to about 1,500
mph. Pilot tried to close on visual object, but it
dove away fast. (FOIA; Jan Aldrich)
Oct. 15, 1948; of Le Havre, Seine-Maritime, France 4:00 p.m. (approx). A domed disc hovered over the city. It moved away slowly at first, then sped up and shot away very fast. There were three witnesses who reported the sighting, which lasted about a minute. (Source: Lumieres dans la Nuit, issue # 123). Oct. 15, 1948; E of Virginia coast (BBU) 5:20-6:10 p.m. (EST). Ship's observer aboard SS Wolfport, about 50 miles E. of Virginia coast, saw a bright nearly moon-shaped object with distinct bright center about 1/4 moon's angular size at 350° azimuth (nearly N) 40°18' elevation heading SE becoming darker with nightfall, at 5:30 p.m. at 358° azimuth 43°41' elevation, [passing near the North Celestial Pole by about 10°], at 5:54 at 50° azimuth (nearly NE) 57°5' elevation. (FOIA) Oct. 16, 1948; 1 mile S, 8 [5?] miles E of
Sterling, Utah (BBU)
11:45 a.m. Airplane mechanic and used car dealer
Mr. Nash on a hunting trip on a mountain at 9,000 ft
MSL heard a fluttering, throbbing or purring noise and
saw a flattened football or lozenge shaped black
object with wide silver longitudinal stripe 9 x 6 x 3
inches, with blunted opening in the rear but no
exhaust, pass 500 ft overhead on a NNW path at 4+ secs
300 mph. (FOIA)
Oct. 17, 1948; Crescent City, Calif. (BBU)
[4:10 p.m.?] (PST). Blimplike object much
too fast and maneuverable for a blimp. [Siler, Haley
and 2 other witnesses saw bright silvery oval object
heading SE at 6,000+ ft altitude moving faster than an
aircraft.] (FOIA; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 18, 1948; Pacific Heights, Oahu, Hawaii (21.31° N, 157.87° W). 5:05 p.m. (AHST). USAF rated pilot Major Robert C. Drum, wife and daughter, saw a round or elliptical bright silver object 10-15 ft in size [or 4-5 inches at arm's length??] about 10,00014,000 ft altitude heading NE on a steady course horizontal to the ground about 200 mph, no trail or sound, no markings of any kind seen, observed intermittently for up to 10 secs at a time [due to cumulus clouds?]. (Dan Wilson) FOIA) Oct. 24, 1948; 10 miles SW of Junction City, Kansas
(BBU)
Huber. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 24, 1948; Phoenix, Ariz. (BBU)
Peterson. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 24, 1948; 4 miles SE of Moorhead, Minn. (BBU)
5:45 p.m. Mr. Sanders and his wife while driving NW
on Hwy 52 towards Moorhead and Fargo (46.88° N, 96.78°
W) saw a brilliant golden-white round object suddenly
appear as if a light switched on, about 3 miles away
to the NE at 1,000 ft altitude in a gradual climb
traveling at high speed, estimated 600-1,000 mph,
heading W towards Moorhead, no trail or sound, about
1/2 full moon angular size [moon and sun both below
the horizon]. When they reached the N of Moorhead the
object, which was slightly to the left of directly
ahead, suddenly made a right turn to the N then 1 sec
later disappeared by suddenly switching off. (FOIA;
McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Oct. 29, 1948; Goose Bay AFB,
Labrador, Canada (BBU)
4:12 AM. A target was picked up on scope #2, also subsequently found on the search scope #1. Goose tower was queried about possible aircraft in the area but gave a negative reply. GCA shop was called and a S/Sgt was asked to come over immediately. When he arrived the target had disappeared after being observed for about five minutes. At 4:19 another target showed up and both men watched it 4:25 AM when it faded from view. Again, at 5:16 AM, they sighted a target which faded into the ground clutter after about 4 minutes. Targets were small but very clear. Alerted by the previous operator, the next operator at the GCA unit observed as many as three blips at one time. He recorded a speed of 30 mph for each blip with the objects moving into the wind or crosswind. One blip was described as a very strong target. (Fran Ridge, Dan Wilson) Oct. 30, 1948; About 15 (25?) miles WNW of Grays Harbor/Pacific Beach, Washington (BBU) 4:20?-4:30 p.m. (PST). While flying in an
F-82 fighter headed N at 8,000 ft at 240 mph on a GCI
intercept mission initially directed by the ADC radar
site 634th Aicraft Control Sq., Neah Bay, Wash. (505th
AC&W Group, Everett, Wash.) radar observer AF 2nd
Lt. Robert L. Kunzman, 318th All Weather Fighter Sq,
325th Fighter Group, McChord AFB, Wash., saw as he
headed toward an interception point a single compact
group of yellow objects in the WNW at 10 o'clock
position which burst into an in-line formation of
about 10-20 or 25 white egg-shaped objects that
crossed over in front of aircraft to 1 o'clock (in the
NNE) heading W to E still in line formation at about
8,000 ft heading S and dropping back to 3 o'clock
position in the E, which he first thought might be
seagulls. Objects maintained same altitude and
horizontal flight throughout. Objects then
doubled back heading N paralleling the F-82's course
while moving back up to 2:30 o'clock position at high
speed, turning translucent part of the time just
before disappearing by fading out or dissolving
without going far enough to have vanished due to
distance (some fog with visibility 5 miles may account
for disappearance). [If at 5 miles objects
covered 15° from 3 to 2:30 position in possibly 5-10
secs, time assumed not reported, then relative
velocity was possibly 500-1,000 mph greater than
F-82's 240 mph.] He called attention of the
pilot Maj. Homer William Morris who missed seeing the
objects. Ground radar lost object at this same
time. AFOSI interviewed radar controllers at
635th AC&W Sq at Pacific Beach, who tracked "no
unidentified objects at high rate of speed" (leaving
unstated what about unidentifieds at moderate speed)
but did not interview at 634th AC&W Sq at Neah Bay
which did the tracking. (McDonald list; BB
Maxwell Microfilm Roll 4, pp. 630-657; NARA Roll
88 pp. 144-149) ? (radar) + 20 secs (visual) 2+
witnesses RV
This was .Incident #195, the object reported in
this incident has no astronomical explanation; speed
was too slow and time in sight too long. The object,
observed on a GCI radarscope with PPI.. If the speed
indicated the radial velocity of the object or true
space velocity it is obviously too slow for
conventional aircraft. One document mentioned the
target was as large as an aircraft and was observed
for a total of 8-1/2 minutes. There was no visual
sighting but eight witnesses were involved in the
radar tracking. (BB documents, McDonald list)
Oct. 31, 1948; Azores (BBU)
(McDonald list)
In November of 1948
there was a sudden flurry of reports from our air
bases abroad.
Nov. 1, 1948; Goose Bay AFB, Labrador, Canada (BBU) According to a USAF Intelligence Report mentioned
in NICAP files, on November 1, radar men at Goose Bay
Air Force Base in Labrador picked up a strange object
flying 600 miles an hour. VIII) (Ruppelt manuscript)
Memo from Maj. Gen.
Cabell, Department of the Air Force, to Commanding
General, Air Materiel Command (Courtesy of Gildas
Bourdais)
Nov. 3-4, 1948; 10 miles E of Vaughn, New Mexico (BBU) [U.S. Army Col.?] Hayes. [Green fireball?]
(McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
"They have been
reported by so many sources and from such a variety
of places that we are convinced that they cannot be
disregarded and must be explained on some basis
which is perhaps slightly beyond the scope of our
present intelligence thinking."
Nov. 6, 1948; Wakkanai, Japan (BBU) At 11:57 a.m. local time, a radar operator at a
ground radar station observed a blip on the radar
screen. The target first appeared as one object but
at times appeared as 2 targets. The speed of the
object(s) was estimated varying from 160 mph to 240
mph. The target circled the radar site
continuously for one hour and five
minutes. No interception action was taken
due to adverse weather. (McDonald list, Dan
Wilson)
Three
page letter from Colonel McCoy to Chief of Staff.
(Courtesy of Gildas Bourdais)
Nov. 10, 1948; in Ervalla, Orebro province, Sweden 10:20 p.m. A 40 meter high cone of multicolored lights enveloped a farmer in Ervalla, Orebro province. The witness received ultraviolet burns to his exposed skin. No object was seen as the source of the cone of lights. (Source: Larry Hatch, U computer database, case # 1357; Andre Liljegren, AFU Sweden News, issue # 23). Nov. 12, 1948; Clark AFB, Manila, Philippines
(BBU)
Bet. 1 and 2 p.m. Airman Wright with 18th
Maint. Sq saw a white speck flying in the distance
to the NE, then N, then fly into a cloud bank and
emerge to the NNW, approaching closer so that he
saw it was a very large 300 ft long 140 ft
wingspan snow-white aircraft with low wings
darting in and out of clouds much faster than any
jet, about 20-30 miles away about 3-6 miles high,
leaving an exhaust trail like skywriting and
making loud aircraft noise. (FOIA; FUFOR Index)
Meeting at National Bureau of Standards between
AF Intelligence Collections Branch, Project SIGN
and NBS members re saucer problem. SIGN turns
over its case files (summaries only) to AF
Intelligence and MIT air defense expert AFSAB
member George Valley.
Nov. 17, 1948; Peace River, Alberta, Canada
(BBU)
6:18 a.m. (PST). Pilot and radio [radar?]
operator of military aircraft saw a bright orange
flaming egg-shaped object flying on a SW heading.
(Project 1947; McDonald list)
Nov. 18, 1948
Nov. 18, 1948; Andrews AFB / Camp Springs, Maryland (BBU) 9:45-10:03 p.m. USAF Lts. Jackson and Combs, 2
reserve pilots, aboard an Andrews AFB T-6 aircraft
traveling 150 mph and 2 independent ground
observers saw a highly maneuverable whitish-grey
oval lighted object smaller than the T-6 cross
over Andrews AFB from NE to SW and back again in a
circular pattern from 4,000 ft dropping to 1,700
ft then climbing to 7,000 ft. T-6 followed object
to identify it, made 3-4 passes at the object
while climbing, dove on the object at 240 mph but
it dropped down and came up behind the T-6 and
continued circling the base. T-6 was able with
difficulty to put object in front of city lights
on the ground to try to make out details, and came
within about 300-400 ft turned on landing light
and object responded with a dull glow, then sped
off to the NE at 8,000+ ft and 500-600 mph
disappearing. Object's speed varied from 80 to 600
mph in multidirectional or omni-directional
flight, with vertical maneuverability, highly
evasive with high acceleration. Another reserve
pilot, a USAF 2nd Lt. in another aircraft over the
NE corner of Andrews AFB at 1,000 ft saw the
object directly overhead. A further independent
witness, USAF Staff Sgt. John J. Kushner, observed
object from the ground. (FOIA; Ruppelt p. 46)
Nov. 23, 1948; 10 miles E of Vaughn, New Mexico About 10 p.m. U.S. Army Col. Hayes. Bright
white round light "larger than a basketball"
descended slowly vertically until exploding
400-500 ft above ground. (Sparks; BB NARA
Microfilm Roll 91 p. 407; McDonald list;
Saunders/FUFOR Index)
Nov. 23, 1948; Furstenfeldbruck AFB, Munich, West Germany (BBU) 10:20 p.m. USAF F80 jet fighter pilot Capt.
Slater, another jet pilot Capt., and a 1st Lt. of
23rd Fighter Sq from the ground saw a reddish
star-like object to the E moving S over Munich at
200-500 mph, turning slightly SW then SE. Slater
called the Racecard DF Station equipped with radar
which tracked an unidentified target at 27,000 ft
and 30 miles S of Munich, climbing to 40,000 ft at
40 miles S of Munich then circling around. (FOIA)
Nov. 26, 1948; Washington and Oregon (BBU)
Young. (McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Letter from Hq AMC, Wright-Patterson Air Force
Base, Dayton, Ohio, to Commanding General, Air
Defense Command, Mitchel AF Base, Mitchel Field,
New York. "It is requested that all reports of
unusual sightings by radar stations of your
command be made directly to this Headquarters by
the most expeditious means."
Beginning of
the Green Fireball Mystery
Dec. 3, 1948;
Fairfield-Suisan AFB, California (BBU 257)
8:15 p.m. A silent round unidentified white light was first sighted two miles north of the tower at by two air traffic controllers. Its speed was 400 mph while approaching, but it slowed to 200 mph and finally left at 500 mph with a vertical climb. The sighting lasted 25 seconds. (Source: Project Blue Book files counted in official statistics, case # 257; Donald E. Keyhoe, Flying Saucers Are Real, p. 79; Richard Hall, The UFO Evidence, p. 130; UNICAT, case # 626). Dec.
5,
1948; W of Las Vegas, New Mexico (BBU)
9:05 p.m. (MST). USAF pilot Capt. William
Goede, copilot Major Roger Carter, and S/Sgt.
flight engineer, flying a C-47 from Lowry AFB,
Denver, to Williams AFB, Chandler, Ariz., at
18,000 ft saw a green fireball. 2nd green
fireball sighting E of Sandia Mtns. (10 miles
E of Albuquerque) at 9:27 p.m. shot up from
the ground to 500 ft height. (Sparks; FOIA)
Dec. 5, 1948; NW of Las Vegas near Montezuma Mission, New Mexico (BBU) 9:35 p.m. Pioneer Airlines Flight 63 pilot
Ernest Van Lloyd and copilot James Smith saw a
pale green (later said to be white or
whitish-orange) fireball with pale green trail
at 9:35 p.m. coming head on, while flying W on
272° heading at 9,000 ft in a C-47, attempted
evasive action but object dropped close to
ground level. (FOIA) few secs
Dec. 6, 1948; Albuquerque, New Mexico (BBU) 10:55 p.m. AESS officer Joseph Toulouse
driving W saw a green fireball almost directly
overhead above Sandia Base nuclear weapons
assembly site, slightly to the NW arching
slightly downward from E to W, about 1/3 full
moon, with a flaming tail. (FOIA)
Dec. 8, 1948; About 20 miles E of Las Vegas, New Mexico (BBU) 6:33 p.m. 2 AFOSI Special Agents, Capts.
Melvin E. Neef and John J. Stahl, Jr.,
returning from investigation of green
fireballs in a Beech T-7, heading E at 90° and
190 mph at 11,500 ft altitude and 5,000 ft
above ground, saw green fireball 30° to the
left of their flight path, to the ENE at 60°
azimuth, at an estimated 2,000 ft above their
flight altitude of 13,500 ft., which shot past
them maintaining almost level flight until the
end to the WSW at 240° azimuth when it seemed
to burn out and drop suddenly with
reddish-orange glowing fragments which lasted
less than 1 sec. Later aerial search of the
ground site in daylight found nothing. (FOIA)
Dec. 8, 1948; Chanute AFB, Illinois. (BBU)
McDonald list; FUFOR Index)
Dec.
9, 1948; Near Pittsburgh, Penna. (BBU)
3:20 p.m. (EST). USAF officers Mulling and Col. Brown flying in a C-45 saw round object to the N on converging course then at 250° then 270° in the W at 12,000-16,000 ft about 2 miles away traveling about 250 mph. Angular size about 2°. (McDonald papers; Jan Aldrich; FUFOR Index)
TOP SECRET analysis was completed but
secretly released within the government on
April 27, 1949, updated with a different
cover. The "Ghost of the Estimate", report
100-203-79.
Dec. 12, 1948; Starvation Peak near Bernal, New Mexico (BBU) 9:02 p.m. ±0.5 min (MST). Dr. Lincoln
LaPaz, USAF Capt. Charles L. Phillips, and CAP
intelligence officer Lt. Allan B. Clark,
returning from green fireball investigations
while looking to the NW saw a green fireball
at least stellar magnitude of -4 traveling E
to W low above the horizon about 3°-4°
elevation in almost perfectly level flight
until the last 0.1 to 0.2 sec when it slightly
curved downward, disintegrating into 3-4
pieces, no sound. Based on independent
witness, an AESS guard at Los Alamos, LaPaz
triangulated object's flight path at about
8-10 miles height along a 25-mile path, speed
39,000 to 43,000 mph. (FOIA)
Dec. 13, 1948: Letter to Office of Chief of Naval Operations Project "SIGN" files sent to the Navy by Col. Clingerman. "Special
Design and Performance Characteristics That
Are Believed To Distinguish Spaceships"
1:30 a.m. 2 witnesses in the railyard,
a train conductor Hildebrand and the
yardmaster Werner [?], saw a formation of
8 white luminescent rotating spherical
objects, like wheels revolving around
hubs, approaching from the N high above
horizon, 45° elevation, headed S, just
before reaching overhead they made a
controlled dive and a sharp 90° right turn
to the W, with the topmost object leading
the others, fading from view while still
high above horizon. (FOIA; FUFOR Index) 30
secs
Dec. 20, 1948; Air Intelligence Information Report on Chiles-Whitted Case Capt. Robert Sneider,
project chief, Project SIGN, continued to
believe that the
Chiles-Whitted case was
undeniable evidence
AESS observation post sighted green
fireball with a triangulated 7-8-mile W to E
flight path calculated by LaPaz based on
another independent observation at a different
site. (FOIA)
4:31 a.m. An inspector at Los Alamos sighted a
fireball. It was not falling as fast as a
falling star (meteor) he continued to watch. For
several seconds, at an estimated altitude of
6,000', the object disappeared with a green
flash, lighting up a small cloud between itself
and the witness. (AFOSI Case 15; brad Sparks)
Dec. 28, 1948; Los Alamos, Nm (BBU) Dec. 30, 1948; Sweden. (BBU) (McDonald list)
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