Spot Intelligence Report: Sighting of Unidentified Aerial Object on 18 May 1954 over Oceanside, California

This document is a Spot Intelligence Report dated 10 June 1954, detailing an Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) sighting that occurred on 18 May 1954 near Oceanside, California. The primary witness was Squadron Leader Donald R. Higgin of the Royal Air Force, who was on duty with the Marine All Weather Fighter Squadron 542. During a routine flight exercise at 22,000 feet, Higgin, piloting an F3D aircraft, observed an unidentified object pass between his aircraft and another F3D piloted by Major R. Browning. Higgin described the object as having a dark, gun-metal hue with no visible markings. It was delta-winged with a third fin on its upper half and was estimated to be approximately 22 feet in length. The object appeared to be descending at an angle of 25 to 30 degrees and was traveling at a speed described as 'very high,' at least exceeding 240 knots. Higgin noted that the event occurred with great rapidity and that the object vanished to his left. He immediately contacted Major Browning via UHF, but neither Browning nor the radar observers in either aircraft had seen the object. The report includes a signed statement from Flight Lieutenant Ronald W. Dalton, the radar observer for Higgin, who confirmed that he did not see the object when asked by Higgin at the time of the incident. The official conclusion provided in the Project 10073 record suggests the object might have been a lenticular cloud, but notes that the altitude was unusually high for such a formation and that the object's appearance and behavior made this explanation unlikely, ultimately classifying the sighting as 'UNIDENTIFIED.' The documentation includes correspondence from the 18th OSI District, a formal statement from the pilot, and a sketch of the object provided as an enclosure.