Project 10073 Record Card — Spangdahlem AFB, Germany, 22 April 1958

This document is a Project 10073 record card and accompanying message regarding a UFO sighting reported by the crew of an RB-66 aircraft on April 22, 1958, near Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. The seven-man crew, including pilots and electronic countermeasures observers, reported observing a luminous white sphere approximately 72 feet in diameter, accompanied by a black smoke contrail. The object was sighted for approximately ten minutes while the aircraft was at an altitude of 36,500 feet. The crew reported that the object maintained a straight and level flight path before fading out. The sighting occurred during dusk, with an undercast layer present at 25,000 feet. The crew members were considered qualified and reliable. The official assessment, as noted by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC), suggests that the sighting could have been a reflection from clouds or the aircraft's shadow, or potentially another aircraft in the area that was not identified. The crew themselves speculated that the sighting might have been caused by meteorological conditions they had not previously encountered. The preparing officer concurred with the belief that the phenomenon was likely meteorological or a reflection, and ATIC concluded it was 'Prob. A/C' (probable aircraft). The document includes detailed coordinates and the names of the crew members involved in the observation.