Project 10073 Record Cards and Correspondence — Chicago, Illinois, August 1963

This document collection contains Project 10073 record cards, correspondence, and official reports regarding multiple UFO sightings reported in Chicago, Illinois, during August 1963. The primary witness, a civilian woman, reported observing an object resembling a chain of electric light bulbs that changed shape multiple times. She provided detailed accounts, including drawings, to Dr. J. Allen Hynek, the director of Northwestern University's Dearborn Observatory. The Air Force, through the Foreign Technology Division and the 64th Troop Carrier Squadron, investigated these reports. The investigation revealed that the sightings were consistent with aircraft operated by the Priester Aviation Company, which were towing electrical advertising signs over the Chicago area. Pilot Robert Burmeister confirmed that he was operating a plane with a 350-light advertising sign during the period in question. Dr. Hynek supported these findings, noting that the reported 'mysterious lights' were indeed the advertising signs. The official Air Force response to the witness, signed by Major Maston M. Jacks, concluded that the object was an aircraft towing an electrical sign. The documents include the witness's completed U.S. Air Force technical information questionnaire, which details her observations, including the object's color, movement, and her perception of it as a 'floating colored light' that eventually sped away. The file also contains internal correspondence between the Foreign Technology Division and Hq USAF regarding the appropriate response to the witness's inquiry.