PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD - Fontana, California

This document collection details the investigation of three photographs submitted by a civilian in Fontana, California, in August 1961. The individual claimed the images depicted a flying saucer. The photographs were forwarded to the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) and subsequently analyzed by the Foreign Technology Division (FTD) of the Air Force Systems Command. The analysis process involved multiple internal memoranda between Major Friend, Major William T. Coleman, Jr., and the Photo Exploitation Division. The analysts determined that the object in the photographs was small and had been photographed at close range. A critical finding was that the light source in the images appeared to come from radically different angles across the three photos. The analysts concluded that this inconsistency, combined with the nature of the exposures, indicated that the images were either the result of long outdoor exposures or indoor photography. Consequently, the official conclusion reached by the Air Force was that the photographs were not of an unidentified aerial phenomenon, but rather a deliberate attempt to perpetuate a hoax. The file includes the original project record card, internal routing memoranda, and a final letter from Major William T. Coleman, Jr., to the civilian claimant, returning the photographs and stating that the object was small and that the focus was not fine, resulting in missing details.