Project 10073 Record Card and Incoming Message regarding Rocket Sighting in Karachi, Pakistan

On April 22, 1961, at 232040Z, two officers from the Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) in Pakistan, Major Merlin Lima Chardi and Lieutenant Colonel James Ciazdke Larse, observed an unidentified aerial phenomenon over Karachi. The witnesses, looking north toward the Big Dipper, observed three distinct, oblong, pink-colored objects traveling in a close formation, echeloned to the right. The objects moved in a straight line across the lower portion of the Big Dipper's handle toward the North Star. The duration of the sighting was estimated at eight to ten seconds. The witnesses described the objects as having a gaseous appearance, being less bright than a star, and exhibiting a slight 'jerkiness' in their movement, which they attributed to atmospheric distortion. The objects appeared to be at a tremendous altitude, as if traveling directly beneath the stars. The report notes that the objects appeared to be cigar-shaped and that their apparent length decreased toward the end of the sighting. The official assessment suggested that the sighting might have been the 'Sputnik man in space' rocket body, referencing a specific intelligence document (AFCIN-1B1-62370). The report concludes by requesting the anticipated orbital time over Pakistan for the object if it had not yet decayed.