Project 10073 Record Card — Plainview, New York, July-August 1961

This document is a collection of records related to Project 10073, primarily focusing on a sighting report filed by a 12-year-old boy in Plainview, New York, in August 1961. The witness reported two separate sightings of an object on July 31 and August 1, 1961. He described the object as a silvery, cylindrical device, approximately 40 feet long and 10 inches in diameter, traveling at an estimated speed of 1000-1500 mph at an altitude of 40,000 feet. The witness noted that the object was preceded by a 'flare of fire' and eventually disintegrated. He expressed his belief that the object might have been a malfunctioning defense missile or a jet, noting his proximity to Grumman Aircraft. The official Air Force evaluation concluded that the first sighting was likely a bolide (a bright meteor) and the second was likely an aircraft. The file also includes correspondence from the Aerospace Technical Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, acknowledging the boy's report and providing instructions for further documentation. Additionally, the document contains a compilation of other reported sightings from August 1-9, 1961, across various locations, including reports from Poland, Japan, and several U.S. states. These entries categorize sightings as balloons, aircraft, satellites, or meteors, with some marked as 'insufficient data.' A separate news clipping regarding a UFO encounter with a Brazilian airliner in July 1961 is also included, along with an astronomy article from Science News Letter discussing the visibility of Jupiter and Saturn in July 1961, which may have been provided as reference material for evaluating potential astronomical misidentifications.