Project 10073 Record Card — Sighting of 3 Lights, Fairborn & Dayton, Ohio, 2 July 1961

This document consists of a collection of reports and a Project 10073 record card regarding a series of sightings on July 2, 1961, in the vicinity of Fairborn and Dayton, Ohio. Multiple witnesses reported observing three bright, fuzzy, white lights, approximately the size of a half-dollar, moving in a counterclockwise motion. The objects were described as oval-shaped and moving from North to South. Witnesses estimated the altitude at a 45-degree angle and described the speed as faster than a jet. The sightings occurred under conditions of thick or heavy clouds. The investigation, documented by Major Michael J. Stroff, Jr., of the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC), involved coordination with the 376th Command Post at Lockbourne AFB and reports from other residents. A key finding emerged that a gasoline station in Springfield had recently opened and was utilizing a searchlight for advertising purposes. It was determined that the reported phenomena were actually reflections of this searchlight on the cloud cover. The reports were consolidated into a summary by the duty officer, noting that the sightings were not considered to be of an unidentified aerial nature once the source of the light was identified.