Project 10073 Record Card: Sighting Near Hopa, Turkey, 11 September 1958

This intelligence report, dated December 19, 1958, documents a sighting of unidentified objects near the USSR/Turkey border on the night of September 11, 1958. The primary witness, a United States Air Force officer, was aboard a surface vessel near the Port of Hopa, Turkey, when he observed searchlights on the Soviet side of the border. At approximately 2155Z, the witness observed a projectile or object leave the ground from the searchlight area and proceed over the water at an elevation of roughly 300 feet. Upon leaving the ground, the object separated into a cluster of six to nine bright red fireball-like objects. These objects remained visible for approximately four seconds before disappearing. The witness reported three distinct series of these objects occurring at 30-second intervals. The witness noted that no sounds accompanied the objects, and no aircraft were seen or heard during the operation. The weather was described as clear with no moon. The report highlights that this was the seventh trip the source had made to this specific location, and while searchlights had been observed previously, this was the first time the phenomenon was witnessed. The official conclusion provided by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) suggests that the time lapse and duration of each series were typical of tracer fire from large guns. The document includes an overlay to WAC #324 (Black Sea East) to illustrate the location of the activity relative to Hopa and Batumi.