Declassified UFO / UAP Document
PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD — Lanett, Alabama, 5 Mar 61
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AI-Generated Summary
A private pilot in Lanett, Alabama, reported a high-speed, disk-shaped object on March 5, 1961. The Air Force investigated the sighting as a potential Echo I satellite observation but found the provided data insufficient for a definitive conclusion.
This document contains a Project 10073 Record Card and associated correspondence regarding a UFO sighting reported by a private pilot in Lanett, Alabama, on March 5, 1961. The witness, while sitting in his backyard, observed an object at 12:21 P.M. EST that was round or disk-shaped, orange with silver edges, and roughly the size of Venus. He reported that the object moved from the southwest to the northeast at high altitude with no noise and no vapor trail. The witness estimated the object's speed to be approximately four times that of the Echo I satellite. The official conclusion noted that while the object might have been Echo I, the witness's perception of speed and appearance made a positive identification difficult, especially given the lack of confirmation from Space Track data. The Air Force, through the Aerospace Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC), determined the initial information provided was insufficient for a formal conclusion. Consequently, the Air Force requested that the witness complete an ATIC Form 164 to provide more detailed information for further investigation. The correspondence includes letters from the Air Force to the witness and internal memos between military offices, including the Public Information Division, regarding the handling of the report.
The speed, as indicated, was terrific. Atlanta, the general direction in which it traveled, is about 80 airline miles from Lanett. I estimate the thing could have reached the Atlanta area in less than four minutes from the time I saw it.
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Official Assessment
No evidence to indicate that this was not Echo I, although data not obtained from Space Track to confirm this as a positive sighting of Echo I.
The object was initially suspected to be the Echo I satellite, but the observer's report of speed and appearance led to uncertainty. The Air Force requested further information via ATIC Form 164 to reach a definitive conclusion.
Witnesses
- [illegible]private pilotCivil Air Patrol
Key Persons
- TackerL/Col
- WILLIAM T. COLEMAN, JR.Major, USAF, Public Information Division