Project 10073 Record Card — South Salem, New York, 25 August 1956

On August 25, 1956, a 60-year-old housewife in South Salem, New York, observed an unidentified aerial object. The witness, who was sitting on her breezeway in the early evening, described the object as bullet-shaped, resembling polished brass, and trailing a long plume of smoke and sparks. She noted that the object moved in a straight, level path across the sky at a speed comparable to a commercial airliner. Despite its appearance, the object was completely silent. The witness observed the object for approximately five minutes until it faded into the distance. She explicitly compared the object to the commercial aircraft she sees daily, noting that this object lacked the blinking riding lights and engine noise typical of conventional planes. The witness reported the sighting on August 28, 1956, and subsequently completed a U.S. Air Force Technical Information Sheet on September 8, 1956. In a letter dated September 6, 1956, Lt. Colonel Timothy R. Johnson of the Directorate of Intelligence acknowledged her report, emphasizing the Air Force's interest in such sightings as potential threats to national security. The official conclusion recorded on the Project 10073 record card categorized the object as a 'Probable A/C' (aircraft).