UFO Sighting Report and Correspondence — Lakeland, Florida, August 1964

This document contains a report of an Unidentified Flying Object sighting in Lakeland, Florida, on August 6, 1964, and the subsequent response from the United States Air Force. The witness, who was camping at the time, reported observing a bright object at approximately 10:30 P.M. that appeared to move from a southwest position toward the north. The witness estimated the object was at an altitude of 12,000 feet and traveling at approximately 200 miles per hour. The witness explicitly stated they were familiar with airplanes and jets, suggesting they were capable of distinguishing them from the observed object. In a follow-up letter dated August 10, 1964, Major Maston M. Jacks of the USAF Public Information Division responded to the witness. Major Jacks provided an official explanation, stating that the witness likely observed the ECHO I satellite, which passed overhead at 9:24 P.M. on the same date, moving northeast at an altitude between 31 and 43 degrees above the horizon. The document includes a hand-drawn diagram by the witness illustrating the object's path relative to a tree and cardinal directions.