Declassified UFO / UAP Document
Project 10073 Record — Sighting in Natrona, Pennsylvania, April 19, 1968
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AI-Generated Summary
A civilian report of a bright, cigar-shaped object in Natrona, Pennsylvania, was investigated by the U.S. Air Force. The Air Force concluded the object was the satellite Echo I.
This document contains a U.S. Air Force sighting report and subsequent correspondence regarding an unidentified aerial phenomenon observed by a civilian named Leighlitner in Natrona, Pennsylvania, on April 19, 1968. The witness reported observing a cigar-shaped, bright white object moving from the southeast to the east at approximately 8:10 PM. The witness, who was at the Natrona Post Office, noted that the sky was clear and that the object traveled in a straight line, ruling out a star. The witness also reported a second sighting on April 20, 1968, in the same location, during which they heard movement in nearby bushes, causing them to return home. The Air Force investigation, conducted by Lt. Col. Hector Quintanilla, Jr. of the Aerial Phenomena Office, concluded that the sighting was likely the satellite Echo I. The official response explains that Echo I was in the southeast at the time of the observation, traveling toward the northeast, and possesses a stellar magnitude of approximately +1, making it as bright as the brightest stars. The Air Force noted that this satellite is frequently misinterpreted as an unidentified flying object.
This satellite has often been misinterpreted as an unidentified flying object.
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Official Assessment
Although your sighting may have been caused by a plane with its landing lights on, our analysis indicates that you were probably watching the satellite Echo I.
The object was identified as the satellite Echo I, which was in the southeast at the time of the sighting and traveling toward the northeast.
Witnesses
- LEIGHLITNERCivilian