Air Intelligence Information Report — Grand Rapids, Michigan, 27 April 1952

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report dated 1 May 1952, detailing a sighting that occurred on 27 April 1952 near the Kent County Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The report, authored by Captain Franklin A. Fenner of the 30th Air Division, describes an incident reported by a civilian witness to a Civil Aeronautics Administration controller, Captain McDell. The witness, while driving west, observed a bright white, spherical object in the sky. The object was described as traveling in a pronounced arc at a very high rate of speed, covering approximately five-eighths of the horizon in roughly 16 to 17 seconds. The witness estimated the object's size to be equivalent to a ping-pong ball held at arm's length. The report notes that there was no audible sound, no vapor trail, and no visible exhaust gases. The witness estimated the altitude to be between 40,000 and 50,000 feet and the speed to be at least 1,500 miles per hour. Weather conditions at the time were reported as clear with good visibility. A check of radar stations in the area yielded no electronic record of the object, and the report confirms that no military or commercial aircraft were active in the vicinity at the time of the sighting. The official conclusion provided in the status report extract suggests that the phenomenon could have been an aircraft distorted by the morning sun. The document includes distribution details for various Air Force commands, including the Air Materiel Command and the Air Defense Command, and is marked as unclassified with instructions for downgrading at three-year intervals.