PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD - Sighting of UFOB by B-47 Air Crews

On December 10, 1957, two B-47 aircraft crews from the 40th Bombardment Wing (SAC) reported an unidentified aerial object while flying at 35,000 feet, approximately 20 nautical miles south of Portland, Maine. The sighting occurred at 1130Z and lasted for four minutes. The observers, including Major John C. Irving and Captains Frank F. Mead III and William F. Bretzius, described the object as colorless, resembling a star of the first magnitude, and approximately three-quarters the size of Procyon when held at arm's length. The object maintained an unvarying heading of 170 degrees and did not appear to gain or lose altitude. The crews noted that the object crossed their flight path while they were on a heading of 230 degrees. The weather conditions were reported as having a slight overcast up to 22,000 feet, with a thin layer of cirrus clouds to the right of the track and cumulus build-up to the left, but visibility of the object remained unimpaired. The intelligence officer, Captain Thomas B. Bowdre, emphasized the extreme reliability of the witnesses and conducted a preliminary investigation that ruled out fatigue, meteorological phenomena, or the possibility of a manned aircraft. Following a review of orbital tracks and consultation with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, it was concluded that the object was the Soviet satellite, Sputnik. Subsequent correspondence from the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) confirmed that the characteristics, description, and track of the object coincided with the orbital track of Sputnik Beta for that area, noting a potential discrepancy in the reported time of the sighting.