Project 10073 Record — Onchiota, New York, 18 April 1966

On 18 April 1966, three students from the White Fathers Seminary in Onchiota, New York, observed an unidentified object in the sky for approximately 15 minutes. The witnesses, who were outdoors for chapel, described the object as round and saucer-like, changing colors between white, red, and green. They reported that the object exhibited erratic flight, including hovering, looping, and moving rapidly from the east to the south before rising nearly overhead and fading over the hills. One witness used 7x35 binoculars to observe the object. Another observer, identified as Nemeth, reported seeing a shooting star in the east shortly after the object disappeared. Major Allen H. Doyal of the 380th Strategic Aerospace Wing investigated the report. He determined that a KC-135 aircraft (number 836) was operating in the vicinity of Plattsburgh AFB at 24,000 feet during the time of the sighting. The aircraft had its red rotating beacons and white and green navigation lights activated. Major Doyal concluded that the observers likely witnessed a meteor, and their attention was subsequently drawn to the KC-135 aircraft. He suggested that the aircraft's navigation lights, when viewed from a considerable distance, could create the illusion of a saucer-like object, especially given the lack of engine noise heard by the witnesses.