Sighting of Unidentified Object in Bermuda — 20 June 1949

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report (AF-85546) dated 11 July 1949, concerning a sighting of an unidentified object over Bermuda on 20 June 1949. The primary witness, an architect residing in Paget, Bermuda, reported observing a spherical, brilliantly silver object at approximately 1805 local time. The witness stated the object was initially sighted 45-50 degrees off the horizon due north of the observation point. It traveled due south, increasing slightly in size, before decreasing in velocity and disappearing straight upward in a matter of seconds. The duration of the observation was estimated at 5 to 10 minutes. The witness's account was corroborated by three other individuals. The report includes an investigation into the possibility that the object was a weather balloon released by the 8/9 Weather Squadron Detachment at 1800 on the same day. However, the intelligence officer, Captain Clarence V. Schmitz, noted that the plotted path of the weather balloon differed from the witness's account and that, according to the balloon's trajectory, an observation from Paget would have been impossible. The report includes several enclosures, including a map, statements from Captain R. A. Lambie and the witness, and a newspaper article from the 'Sunday Royal Gazette' titled 'Flying Saucer Seen Over Bermuda'. The document concludes with the official classification of the object as a 'BALLOON', despite the discrepancies noted in the flight path analysis. The report was processed by the Intelligence Division of the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) and addressed to the Bermuda Base Command.