Project 10073 Record Card and Incoming Staff Message — 14 March 1961

This document consists of a Project 10073 Record Card and an associated incoming staff message regarding an aerial sighting reported on March 14, 1961. The witness, a 38-year-old copilot for Eastern Airlines, observed a dark object with an orange tail while flying a DC7-B aircraft at 18,000 feet. The sighting occurred at 0250 local time near the Elkins VOR in West Virginia. The witness described the object as having the size and shape of an F-86 or F-94 aircraft, approximately 15 feet in length. The object was initially sighted 45 degrees forward of the aircraft's right wing and was later observed 45 degrees to the rear, traveling from the northwest to the northeast. The observer estimated the object's altitude at 60,000 feet and its speed at 5,000 mph. The observation lasted for five minutes before the object faded away. The report notes that the sky was dark with no moon and a star background, and the weather conditions included scattered to broken clouds below the aircraft. Following an evaluation by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC), the official conclusion was that the object was a meteor of the 'fireball' class. The report suggests that the observer's lack of experience with this specific type of phenomenon led to the misidentification, stating there was no evidence to suggest the object was anything other than a meteor.