U.F.O. Sighting Report — Gunnison National Monument, New Mexico, 2 July 1965

This document is a formal U.F.O. sighting report filed by the Headquarters Air Force Special Weapons Center at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. The report details an observation made on 2 July 1965 by two witnesses, a civilian salt miner and a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Lieutenant Colonel, Billy Wallis. The witnesses observed a single, white, star-like object at the south rim campground of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument. The object was described as moving in a zig-zag pattern from west to east with varying speeds for a duration of 15 minutes. The initial observation was made at a 75-degree elevation. The report includes a completed UFO questionnaire and a cover memo from Major Saul Faktorow, Chief of Safety, forwarding the information to Captain Quintanilla at the Foreign Technology Division (FTD) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The official conclusion reached by the Air Force was that the object was the satellite ECHO I. The report notes that at 10:54 PM on 2 July, the satellite was indeed over New Mexico, heading northeast at a 43-degree elevation north of Albuquerque. The perceived zig-zag motion and speed variations were officially attributed to atmospheric conditions or optical illusion.