Report of Investigation: Unknown Aerial Phenomena - Holloman AFB, 12-13 January 1950

This document comprises a series of investigative reports conducted by the 17th District Office of Special Investigations (OSI) at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, regarding sightings of unidentified aerial phenomena by a member of the 3024th Air Police Squadron at Holloman Air Force Base. The investigation was initiated in compliance with an AFCSI directive dated 12 August 1949. The primary witness, a file clerk in the Air Provost Marshal's Office, reported observing an unusual aerial phenomenon on 12 January 1950 at 1900 hours and again on 13 January 1950 at 0605 hours. The witness described the object as a brilliant, starlike light, comparable in size to the planet Venus, which appeared white but changed erratically to green and red. During the 12 January observation, the object was seen moving from east to west, with erratic movements up, down, and laterally, though its overall path remained level. The witness noted that while the sky was extremely cloudy in most directions, the object was clearly visible in the north where there were no clouds. The investigator, Special Agent Russell O. Womack, Jr., noted that the witness was reliable and had reported similar sightings on 6 January and 12 January. However, the investigation was hampered by the fact that the reports were filed only after the object had disappeared, preventing a real-time 'fix' on the phenomenon. Furthermore, no radar was in operation at the base during the sightings. Inquiries made with the Base Weather Squadron, the Operations and Projects Section at Holloman AFB, and the Research Branch at White Sands Proving Ground confirmed that no testing devices had been released that could account for the sightings. The reports were formally closed by Lt. Col. Doyle Rees, with the conclusion that the nature of the object remained undetermined. The documentation reflects the standard military procedure for handling UAP reports during this period, emphasizing the collection of witness testimony and the verification of potential conventional explanations, such as military testing or meteorological phenomena, before closing the case files.