Project 10073 Record Card and Air Intelligence Information Report — B-36 Sighting, Davis-Monthan AFB

This document consists of an Air Intelligence Information Report and subsequent correspondence regarding a UFO sighting on May 1, 1952, near Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona. An air intelligence officer, while standing on the steps of the base hospital, observed two circular, shiny-metal objects approach a B-36 bomber. The objects, estimated to be 20 by 25 feet in size and 10 to 12 feet thick, overtook the B-36 at three to four times its speed. They then slowed to match the bomber's speed, maintaining formation for approximately twenty seconds. One object was observed to hover near the B-36's starboard side, specifically between the pusher-type propellers and the leading edge of the starboard elevators. The objects were described as having a symmetrically convex shape with sharp edges. After the encounter, the objects departed at high speed in a southerly direction, appearing to gain altitude until they disappeared. The B-36 crew reported being shaken by the event and requested immediate landing permission upon arrival at the base. The intelligence officer noted that there was no aerodynamic disturbance to the B-36, nor were there any contrails or exhaust trails from the objects. Later correspondence from 1966 between James E. McDonald and Major Hector Quintanilla of Project Blue Book highlights the difficulty in locating the original, detailed report in the Blue Book archives. McDonald provides additional context from the original observer, who recalled the incident as the thickest report he ever filed, including interviews with the B-36 crew and other ground personnel who witnessed the event. The observer noted that the objects' behavior—specifically their ability to hover and perform sharp, high-speed maneuvers—was highly unusual. The document includes sketches of the relative positions of the objects and the B-36, as well as estimated dimensions of the craft. Despite the detailed accounts provided by the crew and the intelligence officer, the incident remains categorized as an unexplained or significant UFO event within the context of the Project Blue Book files.