Project 10073 Record Card and Air Intelligence Information Report — 3 August 1957

On 3 August 1957, an Airborne Operation Center mission conducted by the 965th AEW&C Squadron encountered an unidentified object off the Northern California coast. The object was first detected at 1445Z on IFF and subsequently as a skin paint on radar. The crew, including Senior Director 1st Lt. Robert J. Springer and T/Sgt Giles, observed the object on their scopes for approximately one hour and ten minutes. The object exhibited unusual behavior, including a sharp right turn and a high-speed departure that resulted in a loss of contact at 58 miles. It was later resighted at 22 miles, closed to 8 miles, and flew parallel to the aircraft before contact was lost again at 15 miles. Despite the radar tracking, no visual contact was ever made. The intelligence report, authored by 1st Lt. Johnson W. Ackiss Jr., notes that this was the first time such a detection had been made as an actual skin paint, as previous detections had only been IFF points. The report suggests that the object may have been generating a frequency identical to the Mode II frequency, which would be picked up by the APX VII receiver. This theory was supported by observations that the intensity of the radar paint weakened when the object was stationary and increased when it began to move. The final evaluation by the AFCIN-4E1 office concluded that the incident did not fit any logical explanation and was possibly another case of anomalous propagation.