Project 10073 Record Card and Related Correspondence — Florida UFO Sightings, March 1961

This document collection details a series of UFO sightings reported in the vicinity of Ft. Pierce, Florida, during late March 1961. Numerous witnesses, including civilians and military personnel, reported seeing strange, high-intensity white lights in the western sky that exhibited cyclic varying intensity and bobbing motions. The reports prompted an investigation by the Air Force, specifically under the purview of the Air Force Missile Test Center (AFMTC) at Patrick Air Force Base. Lt. Colonel James O. Payne conducted an investigation, which included flying a B-57 aircraft in the area to intercept the reported objects. During these flights, the Air Force identified the objects as commercial jet airliners, including Delta Flight 833, which were equipped with new experimental anti-collision strobe lights. The investigation determined that the 'strange' characteristics reported by witnesses—such as the lights appearing to change color or size—were the result of atmospheric conditions, slant range, and the specific nature of the high-intensity strobe lighting systems being tested on civil aircraft at the time. The document includes correspondence between Major William T. Coleman, Jr., the UFO Project Officer, and other officials, including Dr. Donald H. Menzel of the Harvard College Observatory and representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration. These letters clarify that the Air Force was aware of the experimental lighting and used the Florida incidents as a case study to explain how such lights could be mistaken for aerial phenomena by both ground observers and airline pilots. The reports were officially closed with the conclusion that no further action was required, as the phenomena were positively identified as commercial aircraft.