Declassified UFO / UAP Document
Air Intelligence Information Report: 2D-UFOB-2-56
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AI-Generated Summary
Two USAF pilots reported a highly maneuverable, cross-shaped UAP over Louisiana in 1956. The official investigation concluded the object was a 500-gram radiosonde weather balloon.
This Air Intelligence Information Report details a sighting of an Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (UAP) on May 22, 1956, by two USAF pilots, 1st Lt. Earl D. Holwadel and 1st Lt. Curtis Carley, flying a T-33 aircraft 50 miles northwest of Monroe, Louisiana. The pilots reported observing a brilliantly lighted, egg-shaped, cross-like object at approximately 19,000 feet. The object was described as having a metallic appearance with a rib-like structure, a greenhouse-shaped dome, and an intensely bright white light. The witnesses reported that the object exhibited extraordinary maneuverability, at times appearing to hover, then suddenly accelerating to speeds exceeding 300-400 knots. The encounter lasted approximately 15 minutes. The pilots noted that the object did not emit smoke or exhaust and made no sound. During the closest approach, estimated at 75 to 200 yards, the light was described as blinding. The investigation involved extensive checks with Air Force bases, civil airports, and weather observatories across the region to account for the object. The preparing officer, Captain Louis Monroe, initially suggested that the sighting might be an optical phenomenon caused by a temperature inversion. However, the approving officer, Colonel John M. White Jr., disagreed with this assessment. The final conclusion reached by the headquarters was that the sighting was caused by a 500-gram radiosonde weather balloon launched from the U.S. Weather Observatory in Shreveport, Louisiana, at 2100 CST. The report provides a detailed hypothesis for how the balloon, its suspension train, and the attached light could have been perceived as a solid, maneuverable, cross-shaped object. This explanation accounts for the light's oscillation, the effect of jet aircraft air currents on the balloon's movement, and the illumination provided by a three-quarter moon. The report includes sketches of the object as perceived by the witnesses and diagrams of the radiosonde balloon equipment to support this conclusion.
Inasmuch as the object appeared to become larger as the SOURCES approached it and then appeared to become smaller in size as the SOURCES withdrew from it, the existance of a solid object rather than a type of optical phenomenon is indicated.
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Official Assessment
It is the opinion of this headquarters that this sighting was caused by the radiosonde balloon launched from the U.S. Weather Observatory at Shreveport, La., at 22/2100CST May 1956.
The approving officer rejected the preparing officer's optical phenomenon hypothesis, concluding instead that the object was a 500-gram radiosonde balloon. The report suggests that air currents from a passing jet, combined with the oscillation of the suspension train and moonlight, created the appearance of an erratic, solid, cross-shaped object.
Witnesses
- Earl D. Holwadel1st Lt., USAFOffice of Resident Auditor, Greenville AFB, Miss.
- Curtis Carley1st Lt., USAFAccident Investigation Officer, Flying Safety; Pilot
Key Persons
- John M. White Jr.Colonel, USAF, Commander