Declassified UFO / UAP Document
Project 10073 Record Card — Lajes, Azores, 20 February 1963
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AI-Generated Summary
A 1963 UFO sighting at Lajes Field, Azores, involving a spherical object observed by military personnel. While officially classified as a balloon, the reporting officer suggested the possibility of an unknown aircraft.
On 20 February 1963, at 0640Z, a sighting of an unidentified object occurred at Lajes Field in the Azores. The primary witness, A2C Paul K. Wilkinson of the 1605 Air Police Squadron, observed a single, pale white, spherical object approximately the size of a grapefruit. The object, which emitted no sound and left no trail or exhaust, was observed for five minutes moving in a wavy pattern in an easterly direction before disappearing behind cloud cover. The sighting was verified by eight other air policemen on duty. The reporting officer, LCDR D. T. Lasowski, noted that while the Lajes Technical Control Center confirmed no known aircraft were in the area, he personally believed the presence of an unknown aircraft was a definite possibility. However, the official conclusion reached by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) under Project 10073 was that the incident was a balloon sighting. This conclusion was based on meteorological data, including wind speeds and directions, which suggested the object could have originated from a launch at the Horta Naval station, located 60 miles to the west.
REPORTING OFFICER, LCDR D. T. LASOWSKI, USFORAZ, BELIEVES UNKNOWN AIRCRAFT TRANSITING AREA OF SIGHTING IS A DEFINITE POSSIBILITY.
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Official Assessment
Case evaluated as a balloon sighting.
The object's description and motion were consistent with a balloon sighting. Winds from the west at speed supported this analysis, including the possibility of a launch from the Horta Naval station 60 miles to the west.
Witnesses
- Paul K. WilkinsonA2C1605 Air Police Sqd.
Key Persons
- D. T. LasowskiReporting Officer