Project 10073 Record Card — Sighting of 18 April 1964, Manassas, Virginia

This document contains a Project 10073 record card and subsequent correspondence regarding an unidentified aerial phenomenon reported on 18 April 1964 near Manassas, Virginia. The witness, a civilian, reported seeing an object that appeared to be three stars forming a triangle, with erratic motion, at approximately 1930 local time. The object was described as bright, white, and red, and was observed rising in the East before disappearing at 45 degrees elevation. The Foreign Technology Division (FTD) investigated the report and concluded that the sighting was likely a radiosonde balloon train released from Washington, D.C. at 0030Z on 19 April. Major George Mills II, a meteorologist at FTD, provided a detailed analysis suggesting that the triangular shape was caused by oscillations of the radiosonde package, and that the color change was a result of the object being bathed in direct sunlight at high altitude during sunset. The report includes a memo routing slip from Sgt Obenour advising that the reply to the witness should be adjusted to remove tentative language like 'may' and 'might.' A formal letter was subsequently sent to the witness by Major Maston M. Jacks on 13 May 1964, explaining the radiosonde hypothesis.