Project 10073 Record Card — Crete, Illinois, 29 August 1960

This document details the investigation of an unidentified aerial phenomenon reported on 29 August 1960 near Crete, Illinois. The primary witness, a farmer in his sixties, observed a gleaming, football-shaped object while driving north on Illinois Route One between Crete and Steger. The witness described the object as silver or chrome-colored, hovering over the ground before rising rapidly and disappearing overhead. The sighting lasted approximately 18 seconds under clear, dry weather conditions. The witness reported no sound associated with the object and noted that its light was so intense it was difficult to determine its exact shape, though it appeared spherical. The report was initially brought to the attention of the Air Force by Lieutenant John T. Cizek of the USNR, who wrote to the U.F.O. Investigation Unit at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base on 30 August 1960. Lieutenant Cizek expressed his belief in the witness's credibility, noting that the man was not prone to hallucinations and had only one other unexplained sighting in his life. Following the initial report, the Aerospace Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) requested that the witness complete a formal Air Force questionnaire. The witness complied, providing detailed sketches and descriptions of the event, including his estimation of the object's angular size relative to a match head. The official Air Force evaluation concluded that the observation did not fit any known pattern of aircraft, noting that the object's rate of ascent was significantly faster than that of a balloon. Consequently, the case was officially listed as 'unidentified.' The file includes internal correspondence between the 5th District Office of Special Investigations and ATIC, confirming the administrative handling of the report.