Incident Report: Unidentified Aerial Object Sighting - Albany, Georgia, 28 January 1953

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report (IR-15-53) dated 3 February 1953, concerning an unidentified aerial object sighting that occurred on 28 January 1953, near Albany, Georgia. The report details that at approximately 2135 hours, a pilot in a T-33 jet aircraft observed an unusually bright, circular, white object. Over the course of a 17-minute observation, the object changed colors from white to orange and back. In the final 15 seconds, it changed from circular to triangular, split into two triangles, one above the other, and then disappeared. The pilot reported that the object appeared to be at an altitude of 10,000 feet, then later at 4,800 feet. Radar contact was confirmed by the Albany airport and a GCA unit, which tracked the object at 27 miles at 300 degrees. The object maintained a straight line between Moody AFB and Robbins AFB. The report includes statements from tower operators at Turner AFB, who were also involved in the observation. Despite the detailed accounts from experienced personnel, including a rated officer with over 3,100 flying hours, the object could not be identified. The official conclusion listed on the form suggests 'Venus' for the visual sighting, but notes the radar contact remained 'Unidentified.' The document includes various administrative forms, including a Joint Message Form and a Project 10073 Weather Data Sheet, which provide technical context regarding the atmospheric conditions at the time of the sighting. The investigating officer, Captain Frank C. O'Bannon, Jr., noted that the source was cooperative and sincere, and that his powers of observation were above average. The report was approved by Colonel Robert P. Montgomery and forwarded to the Air Technical Intelligence Center for further evaluation.