UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT REPORTEDLY SIGHTED NEAR WOOD COUNTY AIRPORT, OHIO

This document is a memorandum dated 9 December 1953 from the Department of the Air Force regarding a sighting of an unidentified flying object near Marietta, Ohio. On 20 November 1953, at approximately 0830 hours, three individuals were driving west on US Route Alternate 50, about ten miles west of Marietta, when they observed a luminous object. The object was described as moving slowly from east to west at an altitude of approximately 8,000 to 10,000 feet, with a lateral distance of 1,500 feet. The witnesses reported that the object suddenly made a thirty-degree lateral turn to the south and then accelerated rapidly out of sight. Due to the object's luminous surface and the distance of the observation, the witnesses were unable to determine its specific shape or size, though they were of the opinion that it was not a conventional aircraft. One of the witnesses initially reported the incident to a Federal Bureau of Investigation Resident Agent in Marietta, who directed him to contact the Air Force. The information was subsequently forwarded to the Air Technical Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The report notes that the information was verbally coordinated with the Deputy Director of Operations of the 801st Air Division at Lockbourne Air Force Base. It was determined that the available information did not warrant further inquiry or investigative action, and the office concluded that no further action would be taken regarding the matter.