UFO Report — Adna, Washington, 26 September 1959

This document is a formal report regarding a civilian sighting of unidentified flying objects near Adna, Washington, on September 26, 1959. The report was prepared by Captain Eugene G. Smith of the 337th Fighter Group and submitted to the Air Technical Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The witness, identified as a railroad section hand, reported seeing three round objects with a blue cast flying in a trail formation. According to the witness, the objects were initially sighted at an elevation of 30 to 40 degrees, traveled south, then turned southeast before disappearing behind trees. The witness described the objects as appearing like a match-head held at arm's length and noted that no noise was heard. The report was not received by the military until four days after the alleged incident, at which point Captain Smith contacted the witness by telephone to verify the details. The military investigation concluded that the sighting was likely a misidentification of commercial aircraft. Records from the Portland FAA Tower confirmed that three airline flights were in the vicinity, approximately 15 miles east of the observer's position, between 0700Z and 0730Z. The administrative officer, Major Mary C. Herdina, noted that while there was no definitive evidence of what the observer saw, it was believed the witness mistook lights from commercial aircraft for unknown flying objects. The witness was explicitly characterized as 'unreliable' in the report's identifying information section.