Report of UFOB — Columbus-Ft Benning, Georgia, 16 January 1958

This intelligence report details a sighting of two unidentified aerial objects on the evening of 16 January 1958, near Columbus, Georgia. The primary witness, a former Army captain and member of the US Army Infantry Human Research Unit, reported observing two cigar-shaped, bright orange objects with a reddish tinge while driving on Victory Drive near King's Airport. The objects were described as following one another, fading out, and then reappearing. The sighting lasted approximately five minutes. The witness reported the incident to the Lawson Army Airfield Command. During the investigation, it was noted that another individual, Pfc Gabriel SPERA, had also observed what he believed to be two jet aircraft at approximately the same time. The official conclusion reached by the 35th Air Division (Defense) was that the objects were likely non-persistent contrails from a formation of two jet aircraft. The report suggests that the low position of the sun on the horizon at the time of the sighting (1759 hours) likely caused the specific coloration observed by the witnesses. The investigating officer, Captain Edward Wootten, documented that while the primary witness was familiar with jet aircraft, he remained personally unconvinced that the objects were definitely aircraft, though he acknowledged the possibility. The report confirms that there were no radar contacts of anything unusual in the area at the time and no other reports of UFOs were received from other units.