Incident #258 Sighting Report — Sandia Base, New Mexico, 17 February 1949

This document consists of a series of reports and correspondence regarding an unidentified flying object sighting at Sandia Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico, on 17 February 1949. The primary witness was M/Sgt John P. Mitchell of the 6456 M.P. Co., AFSWP, who observed the object at 0552 hours. Mitchell, a former anti-aircraft gunner, described the object as a globular, ball-like shape with a trailing tail, appearing approximately one-third the size of the moon. The object was colored orange-red like fire, with a blue gas-flame tail that was four to five times the length of the object itself. The witness reported that the object followed a straight descending course from 35 degrees to 5 degrees, moving from the northwest to the southeast. The duration of the sighting was estimated at five to seven seconds. Mitchell noted that the object resembled a plane hit by anti-aircraft fire, gliding out of control, and stated that it was within range of a multiple .50 caliber anti-aircraft weapon. No identifiable sound was heard, though the witness noted that motor noise from Kirtland Air Force Base may have obscured other sounds. Transit measurements taken at 0730 hours provided specific vertical and horizontal azimuth readings for the object's appearance and disappearance. The report was forwarded by the Headquarters Fourth Army to the Air Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base for further action. The document includes a summary of information form, a narrative summary, and technical data regarding the transit measurements. A handwritten note on the first page identifies the object as an 'Astro (meteor)'.