Air Intelligence Information Report: Unidentified Flying Objects, Laurel, Montana, 10 February 1953

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report (OID-3-53) dated 16 February 1953, concerning a sighting of an unidentified flying object near Laurel, Montana, on 10 February 1953. The report details observations made by a civilian ground observer and an Air Force crew chief, both of whom reported seeing a round, blue-green or blue-white object in the western sky. The object was estimated to be at an altitude of 3,000 feet and was observed for approximately five minutes. Witnesses described the object as appearing star-like but significantly larger, noting that it would fade, grow brighter, and occasionally twinkle. The object appeared to move slowly to the west, exhibiting a slight up-and-down motion before disappearing low on the horizon. The witnesses reported that there was no sound associated with the object and that it did not resemble an aircraft. One witness, an Air Force crew chief with five years of service, attempted to contact a local observatory to view the object through a telescope but was unsuccessful. The weather at the time was reported as clear with a slight wind. The official conclusion reached by the 29th Air Division (Defense) was that the object was likely the planet Venus setting on the horizon. The report notes that there was no aerial activity in the area at the time of the sighting and that no physical evidence or photographs were obtained. The document includes multiple copies of the report, including teletype summaries and handwritten accounts from the observers, all of which were eventually downgraded from their original classification.