Correspondence Relating to Project Blue Book, 1955

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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

OFFICE OF NAVAL RESEARCH

WASHINGTON 25, D. C.

IN REPLY REFER TO

USS1453N/WM

For 1945

24 January 1955

Mr. Donald E. Leyes
214 Fort Head
Alexandria, Virginia

Dear Mr. Leyes:

This will acknowledge your letter of 2 December 1954, in which you requested information about unidentified flying objects.

Many of the questions contained in your letter concern sighting reports by naval personnel. This office does not receive such reports and is in no position to comment on matters related thereto. All reports of unidentified objects originating within the armament forces are sent directly to the competent group of bright Patterson Air Force Base in Gold, since the Air Force is the responsible agency in this investigation. You are advised to refer to the Air Force all information concerning such reports, regardless of their source.

Both the navy and the navy are actively cooperating in the expeditionary planning of sighting reports and supporting to the best of their ability when requested by the responsible group within the Air Force. This office maintains liaison with the Air Force in order to keep advised of the status of the investigation, according to the information received to date, there is insufficient data available to provide any single hypothesis regarding this possible phenomenon. There is no indication whatsoever that any danger may be involved.

With reference to your question concerning a statement by Dr. Outer Liddal that was published in Look Magazine in 1951, it should be stated that the opinions expressed in that article were based on the information available to him at the time. There is no doubt that many unidentified objects noted during that period were high altitude research balloons. The Air Force is not informed of all such balloon operations under compliance of the law.

For your further information the Office of Naval Research is currently interested in many applications of magnetism and magnetic fields, including base factors affecting them. However, no work in the field of "magnetism power" is being done, is under consideration to its possible uses of propulsion for guided missiles and/or space vehicles.

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