Incident #144 Sighting Report — Montgomery, Alabama, 24 July 1948

This document compiles reports and investigations regarding a high-profile UFO sighting on July 24, 1948, involving an Eastern Air Lines DC-3. Captain Clarence S. Chiles and Co-Pilot John B. Whitted reported encountering a large, wingless, cigar-shaped object while flying near Montgomery, Alabama, at approximately 0245 EST. The pilots described the object as having two rows of windows, a blue glow beneath the fuselage, and a 50-foot red-orange flame trailing from the rear. The object was estimated to be 100 feet long and traveling at 500 to 700 miles per hour. The pilots observed the object for 10 to 15 seconds before it pulled up sharply into a cloud. The report includes detailed transcripts of interviews with the pilots, as well as statements from a passenger on the flight who observed a flash of fire. The investigation, conducted under Project Sign, also considered other sightings in the region, including reports from Blackstone, Virginia, and Augusta, Georgia. While the pilots were considered competent and qualified observers, the Air Force investigation, including analysis by Dr. J. Allen Hynek, eventually concluded that the object was most likely a meteor. The document contains extensive correspondence, teletype messages, and checklists used to verify air traffic in the area at the time of the sighting, confirming that no other aircraft were in the vicinity. Despite the official conclusion that the object was a meteor, the case remained a significant point of discussion within Project Sign and later Project Grudge, often cited in contemporary media as a classic 'space ship' sighting.