Project 10073 Record: Sighting at Ernest Harmon AFB, Canada, 17 July 1966

On July 17, 1966, between 1735 and 1835 Zulu, multiple personnel at Ernest Harmon Air Force Base in Newfoundland, Canada, observed an unidentified aerial object. The object was described as bright silver, capsule-shaped, and reflective, appearing to hover in place. Several high-ranking military officers, including Major Charles W. Lapping III, Major Ignacio J. Barrios, and Colonel Leonard E. Edington, witnessed the object from the flight line while awaiting the arrival of Ambassador Butterworth. Major James H. Beasley also observed the object through 8x30 field glasses. The witnesses noted that the object was visible at an estimated altitude of 40,000 to 45,000 feet, with no flight path, maneuvers, or audible sound. The object was eventually obscured by cirrus clouds. A check with the 640th AC&W radar unit yielded no corresponding radar returns for the time and location. Following an investigation, the Air Force concluded that the object was a weather balloon that had failed to burst at its prescribed altitude.