Report of Unidentified Flying Objects — Uruguay, 7 July 1958

This intelligence report, dated February 18, 1959, details a series of unidentified flying object sightings that occurred in Uruguay on July 7, 1958. The investigation was conducted by the C.I.O.V.I. (Investigating Center of Unidentified Flying Objects), a civilian group, and the findings were provided to the United States Air Force via the Uruguayan Air Force. The sightings were reported across several departments, including Rocha, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Canelones, Montevideo, San Jose, and Soriano. Witnesses described a spherical, autoluminous object that emitted a bluish-white light and was accompanied by sounds similar to explosions. The report notes that the object performed maneuvers suggesting it was directed by an intelligence. Specific incidents included reports from an Air France crew and an Iberia airlines flight, as well as a ground-based observation by a resident and his family on the road to Minas, where the object allegedly caused an electrical failure in their vehicle. The committee explicitly rejected the explanation that the sightings were caused by natural phenomena such as meteorites or thunderbolts. Instead, they drew parallels to the 'foo-fighters' reported by pilots during World War II, noting that the object's luminosity, sound, and potential propulsion methods—possibly electromagnetic—were highly unusual. The report concludes that the object was an unidentified flying object with an estimated diameter of 20 to 30 meters. The committee emphasized that the study was not considered finished and that further information would be incorporated as it became available.