Project 10073 Record Card — Aripeka, Florida, 12 February 1956

On February 12, 1956, at approximately 0210Z, a Ground Observer Corps (GOC) post in Aripeka, Florida, reported a sighting of an unidentified aerial object. The witness, identified as the supervisor of the GOC post and the local marshal, observed a single, round object described as resembling a tire or hubcap. The object featured red and yellow rotating lights and was observed through binoculars for approximately ten minutes. The witness reported that the object appeared to be at a very low altitude and either landed or passed over the horizon. The sighting occurred under clear weather conditions. Following the report, the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) conducted an investigation. They contacted Strategic Air Command (SAC) and determined that a B-47 and a KC-97 aircraft were operating in the vicinity of Aripeka at the time of the sighting, although they were not engaged in refueling operations. Radar data from the 667th Aircraft Control and Warning (AC&W) squadron indicated no radar contact with the object. Based on the presence of the military aircraft in the area, the official conclusion reached by the investigators was that the object was an aircraft, likely one of the two identified military planes.