Project 10073 Record Card — 9 Sep 60 Sighting

On September 9, 1960, at 2121 EST, Brigadier General Walter S. Putnam of the United States Air Force observed an unidentified phenomenon while piloting a T-33 aircraft at an altitude of 35,000 feet. The aircraft was positioned on a magnetic heading of 230 degrees, approximately 60 miles east of Kansas City, Missouri, and 111 miles from the Kansas City VOR. General Putnam reported seeing a brilliant 'shooting star' phenomenon. The object exhibited a beginning burn trace approximately 80 degrees above the horizon from the level of his eye. The burn trace increased in intensity until it reached a final burn-out at approximately the eye level of the observer. The trajectory of the object appeared nearly vertical and passed directly over the nose of the aircraft. General Putnam noted that the most unusual aspects of the phenomenon were the vertical trajectory and the pure white intensity of the final burn-out, which he compared to that of a magnesium flare. The incident was documented on a Project 10073 record card and formally reported to the Aerospace Technical Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The official conclusion reached by the evaluating agency was that the description provided by the witness was characteristic of a meteor.