Project 10073 Record Card and Supplement to AF Form 112 — Temple, Oklahoma, 10 October 1958

On 10 October 1958, an elderly couple in Temple, Oklahoma, discovered a rectangular, opaque white plastic object, measuring approximately 7 by 7 feet, caught in a tree on their property. The object was described as having its corners tied together with string in a parachute-like configuration. Attached to the string was a note written in Russian, which translated to 'I do not understand Russian - How are you?' The witnesses reported that the object was beating against the tree due to a brisk wind. They did not observe the object in flight but assumed it had arrived from the northeast. The witnesses eventually turned the plastic sheet and the note over to U.S. Army officials at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. The incident was investigated by the 3750th Air Police Squadron at Sheppard Air Force Base. Captain Martin S. Doria, the investigating officer, conducted a search of the area and found no unusual or clarifying data. The physical evidence was subsequently forwarded to the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) for analysis. ATIC analysts determined that the plastic sheet was a standard polyethylene balloon of the type used by weather stations. They concluded that the small size of the balloon precluded the possibility of it having crossed the Pacific Ocean on prevailing winds. Furthermore, intelligence officers determined that the Russian note was a prank, as the phrases were unrelated and appeared to have been copied from a standard foreign language phrase book issued to U.S. troops. The official conclusion of the Air Force was that the object was a grounded weather balloon and the attached note was a hoax.