Project 10073 Record Card and Air Intelligence Information Report — UFOB Sighting, 7 September 1955

This Air Intelligence Information Report, dated 13 September 1955, details the investigation into an Unidentified Flying Object (UFOB) sighting that occurred on 7 September 1955 in the vicinity of Baltimore, Maryland. The report, prepared by Captain Chester B. Hanson of the 4602d Air Intelligence Squadron (AISS), documents the accounts of two primary witnesses: 1st Lt. Hurlbut E. Bonnie, an Air Force officer, and Mr. Albert Merkel, a line draftsman for Westinghouse. Both witnesses, located in Glen Burnie, Maryland, reported observing an object with an indefinite shape and blinking red, blue, white, and green lights. The object was observed for approximately 37 minutes, beginning at 0252Z, and was described as moving at a moderate speed in a north-northwesterly direction at an estimated altitude of 20,000 feet. The witnesses noted that the lights appeared to shoot out from the sides of the object at five-second intervals, and no sound was associated with the object itself, although aircraft sounds were heard in the distance. The investigation included inquiries with the CAA tower at Harbor Field, the Air Traffic Control tower at Friendship Field, and the 95th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Andrews AFB. These inquiries revealed that multiple F-80 and F-86 aircraft were conducting practice intercepts and Instrument Landing System (ILS) approaches in the Baltimore area during the time of the sighting. The lighting systems on these aircraft were known to blink in a sequence of red, green, and white. Furthermore, the investigation confirmed that no radar contact of an unidentified object was recorded in the area. Local astronomers consulted during the investigation could not provide an explanation for the phenomenon other than suggesting it may have been an aircraft. Based on this evidence, the preparing officer concluded that the sighting was likely caused by the blinking lights of jet aircraft from Andrews AFB. This conclusion was concurred with by the approving officer, Colonel John M. White Jr.