Spot Intelligence Report: Reports of Unconventional Aircraft

This Spot Intelligence Report, dated 7 November 1950 and issued by the 9th OSI District at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, compiles several reports of 'unconventional aircraft' observed in Louisiana during October and November 1950. The document serves as an intelligence summary for the Director of Special Investigations at the Headquarters of the United States Air Force. The report details multiple sightings, including a simultaneous observation by a father and son in New Orleans on 10 October 1950 of a noiseless, bright object at high altitude. Another report describes twelve bright, round, diving, and spinning objects seen from a window in New Orleans. A third incident, reported in The Shreveport Times on 7 November 1950, involves a family in Jonesville, Louisiana, who observed hovering objects on 5 November 1950. Descriptions of the objects vary, with witnesses describing them as saucer-shaped, cigar-shaped, or resembling a joint of stove pipe. Common characteristics reported across these sightings include a lack of noise, the absence of visible exhaust trails, and high brightness. One witness, a former military service member, noted that the object he saw was composed of bright lights that glistened like facets on a diamond. The document also includes a letter to the editor of The Times-Picayune from a witness who claimed to have seen a 'rocket ship' in 1947, which emitted puffs of flame and smoke. The report concludes that for the Jonesville incident, the object was 'most likely A/C contrails,' but ultimately states there was 'insufficient data for evaluation' for the cases presented. The document notes that no physical evidence was obtained and that no meteorological conditions could account for the sightings. The report was signed by Lt. Colonel John C. McLendon, District Commander, and indicates that no further action was contemplated by his headquarters.