Project 10073 Record Card and Incoming Message — Oldtown, Florida, November 1961

This document consists of a Project 10073 record card and an accompanying Air Force incoming message regarding an Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) sighting that occurred on November 22, 1961, near Oldtown, Florida. Two civilian witnesses, identified as employees of the State Road Department and the Shaw Ford Motor Company respectively, reported observing a round, reddish-orange object. The witnesses described the object as being approximately the size of an automobile tire when viewed at arm's length. The sighting lasted between three and four minutes. According to the report, the object was initially observed just above the treetops at an azimuth of 180 degrees. It moved straight upward without exhibiting any other directional motion. At a higher altitude, the object appeared similar to a star, then brightened significantly before slowly fading and disappearing. The weather conditions at the time were described as clear with bright moonlight. Lt. Lewis R. Stark, a Radar Maintenance and Operations Officer, was contacted by phone at approximately 0100Z on November 22, 1961, and proceeded to the scene to interview the witnesses. Lt. Stark noted that this was the third time this particular phenomenon had been reported in the area, though it was the first time it had been formally reported to his station. The official conclusion recorded on the Project 10073 card is that the object remains unidentified, with the caveat that additional data might have allowed for a definitive determination of the cause. The report was transmitted via military channels to various Air Force commands, including the Air Defense Command and the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC).