UFO Report — Keesler AFB, Mississippi, 4 April 1965

On 4 April 1965, at approximately 0405 CST, an Airman Second Class (A2C) serving as a weather observer at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, reported an unidentified aerial phenomenon. The witness described a black, oval-shaped object, estimated to be 40 feet in length, resembling a football. The object featured four high-intensity white lights evenly spaced along its underside. The witness observed the object moving in level flight from the southwest toward the northeast, passing below a cloud layer situated at 1,200 feet. The object was described as moving fast, with no audible sound, trail, or exhaust. The total duration of the sighting was estimated at 15 to 20 seconds. The witness, who was initially shaken by the event, first suspected the object was an aircraft and contacted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which confirmed there were no aircraft in the area at that time. Dr. J. Allen Hynek, a prominent investigator of aerial phenomena, conducted an interview with the witness to re-enact the sighting and verify the details. Various conventional explanations were considered and subsequently dismissed: a balloon was ruled out because the object moved cross-wise to the wind; searchlight reflections were discounted as the witness noted the object was distinct from known light reflections in the area; and satellite sightings were ruled out due to the object's low altitude and the presence of four lights rather than one. A separate report from the Naval Air Station at Ellyson noted that two naval air cadets had observed a 'ball of flame' approximately one hour earlier, though the relationship between these events remained unconfirmed. Ultimately, the Air Force's Aerial Phenomena Branch concluded that the available information was insufficient to provide a definitive explanation, and the case was officially classified as 'UNIDENTIFIED'.