Project 10073 Record Card and Air Intelligence Information Report — 1 November 1956

On 1 November 1956, at approximately 2330Z, an Unidentified Flying Object was sighted by two experienced military pilots, Lt. Colonel Walter A. Rosenfield, Jr. and Captain Orville H. Daniel, while flying a T-33 aircraft at an altitude of 35,000 feet. The aircraft was en route from Springfield, Illinois, to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and was located 60 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri, at the time of the incident. The object was described as a round, very light yellow light, approximately the size of an F-94 A/B light viewed from one mile away. The witnesses reported that the object had no tail, no discernible exhaust, and no blinking navigation lights. The object moved across the sky from the 10 o'clock position, rising from a few degrees above the horizon to 35 degrees above the horizon at the 12 o'clock position, before continuing to the 3 o'clock position. The estimated speed of the object was in excess of 1200 knots. The weather conditions were reported as CAVU (Ceiling and Visibility Unlimited) with clear skies and no clouds. The pilot, Lt. Colonel Rosenfield, attempted to track the object until it disappeared in the light and haze over St. Louis. The duration of the sighting was approximately two minutes. Both witnesses, who were highly experienced, explicitly stated that the object was not a meteor. Captain Daniel, the Aerial Weather Reconnaissance Officer, provided a formal statement regarding the event. The report was prepared by Captain William M. Lyons of the Intelligence Division at Eglin Air Force Base. Captain Lyons noted that the observer was a serious and conscientious pilot who was initially reluctant to report the sighting. The official conclusion of the report, submitted in compliance with AFR 200-2, is that the sighting remains an 'unknown' until further data becomes available.