Project 10073 Record Card — 16 July 1963 Sighting, Baker, Oregon

On 16 July 1963, at 0957 hours Pacific Daylight Saving Time, a T-29 aircraft piloted by Major Altman L. Sherrell and co-piloted by 1st Lt Allen L. Fox, both of the 3535th Navigational Training Wing at Mather AFB, observed an unidentified object 45 nautical miles south of Baker, Oregon. The object was described as triangular with rounded corners and dark brownish-red in color. It was sighted at an altitude of approximately 18,000 to 19,000 feet and appeared to be stationary relative to the aircraft, which was traveling at 200 knots. The observation lasted between five and eight minutes. The pilots initially suspected the object might be a modern fighter in a banking position, but it failed to change its position or maneuver during the encounter. The object eventually appeared to grow smaller and was observed to be drifting with the wind, which was blowing at 35 knots from the west-southwest. The crew reported the incident to the Salt Lake City Center, which confirmed there was no other aircraft in the vicinity. Despite the pilot's professional experience with balloons and his assertion that the object was not a balloon, the official Air Force evaluation concluded that the object was a balloon. The report notes that no attempt was made to identify the specific balloon due to the delay in receiving the initial report, which was not processed until 29 July 1963.