Project 10073 Record Card — Biloxi, Mississippi, 16 December 1956

This document is a Project 10073 record card and associated correspondence detailing an unidentified aerial phenomenon sighting reported on 16 December 1956 in Biloxi, Mississippi. The witness, a 15-year-old student from Notre Dame High School, reported observing two round, cream-to-white objects, each the size of a half-dollar, appearing as fuzzy, bright balls. The objects were observed for approximately 3 to 5 seconds, moving from south to north. The witness reported that as the objects approached a jet aircraft, they paralleled its course momentarily, disappeared for a second, and then rose rapidly to join a second similar object that appeared suddenly. Both objects continued to rise until they faded from sight. The observer also noted the sound of a jet in-flight. The official investigation, conducted by ATIC, noted that a weather balloon had been released by the New Orleans Weather Bureau at 1500 hours and could easily have been in the area of the sighting. The investigating officer noted that while the short duration of the sighting (3-5 seconds) conflicted slightly with the balloon hypothesis, the description of the objects' motion and appearance was consistent with a cluster of balloons. Consequently, the case was officially classified as a possible balloon. The report includes technical data regarding the weather conditions and the flight path of an Air National Guard T-33 aircraft that was in the area at the time, which had changed its flight plan to land at Gulfport Civil Airport. The pilot of this T-33 was queried by flight service and reported no unusual sightings. The document concludes that light reflections from the balloon could explain the sighting.