Project 10073 Record Card — Long Island, NY, 29 Oct 52

On October 29, 1952, at approximately 1010 Zulu, two F-94A aircraft from the 5th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, while on a training flight over Long Island, New York, at an altitude of 28,000 feet, encountered an unidentified aerial object. The pilots, 1st Lt. David H. Goodnough and 1st Lt. William F. Hamilton, along with their radar observers, 2nd Lt. Doyle C. Williams and 2nd Lt. Norman W. Booth, reported observing a bright white light moving in the opposite direction. The pilots initially mistook the object for another F-94A aircraft. Upon attempting to intercept, the pilots initiated a hard port turn, during which the object performed tight orbits and climbed rapidly before disappearing. The pilots noted that the object's rate of climb and speed were exceptional, and they were unable to close the distance. The aircraft's A/I radar was inoperative during the encounter, and no radar contact was established by Ground Controlled Intercept (GCI). The pilots, particularly 1st Lt. Goodnough, who had 1,200 hours of flight time including Korean combat service, expressed the opinion that the object was controlled by an intelligent entity, as its maneuverability exceeded that of known U.S. aircraft. The weather conditions were reported as clear with unlimited visibility. The official investigation, conducted by 2nd Lt. James B. Donnelly, considered the possibility that the sighting could be attributed to an unscheduled balloon release from Mitchell AFB, noting that the event occurred 3 hours and 50 minutes after a scheduled rawin balloon release. However, the pilots' statements explicitly rejected the possibility that the object was a balloon or a star, emphasizing its controlled, intelligent movement. The report includes a map and overlay detailing the flight paths of the aircraft and the unidentified object.