Project 10073 Record Card and Related Correspondence — December 1959

This document is a collection of reports and correspondence regarding Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) sightings in December 1959, primarily managed under Project 10073. The central case involves a sighting on December 23, 1959, near Albuquerque, New Mexico, where three objects in a trail were observed for one hour and 32 minutes. The objects were described as resembling a 'common pin' on height-finder radar, descending at 700 feet per minute from an initial altitude of 70,000 feet to a final altitude of 11,000 feet. Military personnel, including Major Ralph C. Reynolds and Captain Alfred F. O'Donnel, Jr. of the 67th AC&W Squadron, reported the incident. Despite scrambling one F-86 and diverting one F-89, no identification was made. The Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) concluded that the sighting was likely a balloon, citing wind analysis and distance covered, which resulted in a ground speed of approximately 40 knots. This conclusion was further substantiated by tests conducted by the Rome Air Development Center, which demonstrated that ground radar could detect balloons in flight. The document also includes press clippings from December 1959 detailing various balloon-related incidents, including the loss of a large research balloon launched by Winzen Research for the Navy, which was later found in Mississippi. Other reports included in the compilation describe sightings in California, Ohio, and Massachusetts, often involving reports of lights or unusual objects, which were frequently evaluated as balloons, aircraft, or meteors. The document serves as an administrative record of the Air Force's efforts to categorize and explain these sightings through standard intelligence procedures.