Air Materiel Command Report on Unidentified Flying Objects, 1947-1948

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Basic ltr fr -Hq USA.F, 3 Nov 48 to CG, AMC, "Flying Object Incidents in
'•
the United States"
1st Ind
MCIAT/ABD/amb
Hq AMC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio.
8 Nov 48
TO,
Chief of Staff, United States Air Force, Washington 25, D. c., ATTNs
AFOIR
1. In attempting to arrive at conclusions as to the mture of uniden­
tified .flying object incidents in the United States, this Command ha.a me.de
a study of approximately 180 such incidents.
Data derived from initial re­
ports have been supplemented by .further information obtained from check
lists submitted by mail, from interrogations of other field agencies, and
by personal investigation by personnel of this Command in the case of in­
cidents that seem to indicate the possibility of obtaining particularly
significant information.
2.
The objects described fall into the following general classifica­
tion groups, according to shape or physical configuration,
a. Flat disc of circular or approximately o:l.rcular shape.
b.
Torpedo or cigar shaped aircraft, with no wings or fins visible
in flight.
c.
Spherical or balloon shaped objects.
d. Balls of light with no apparent form attached.
3. Some of the objects sighted have definitely been identified, upon
further investigation, as weather or upper air scientific balloons of some
type .
A. great many of the round or balloon shaped objects indicated in
paragraph 2c above are probably of the same nature, although in most cases,
definite confirmation of that fact has been impossible to obtain.
4.
Some of the objects have been identified as beiilg astro- physical
in nature.
For example , in daylight sightings, the planet Venus has been
reported as a round, silvery object at extremely high altitude.
Action is
being taken to obtain the services of a prominent astro-physicist as a oon•
sultant, to study all of the incidents to determine l'lhether some can be
identified as meteors, planets or other manifestations of astral bodies.
s. Arrangements for accomplishing a study of the psychological problans
involved in this project are being made in coordination with the Aero-Medical
Laboratory at this Headquarters.
The possibility that some of the sightings
are halluoir:a tions, optical illusions or even deliberate hoaxes has been con­
.,
sidered.
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T-73017