I -lot I t Z:aro und o.ddr oss of obsr.>rv~r: L&Fuyetto, Indio.n~ Ocoup~tion ~d hobbi o s Commen t s of Interrogo.tor r o lo.tivo to intolligencv and ch~racto r of obser~or(s) l!ARRATrv~ Sill.!hiARY s Latter, 7/24/49 --The unders i r,ned anu both of LaFayette, were tiehin~ at thu .!err ill ~tone liuarry just bu.ck o~ the ~.ionon R~ ilroad station o.t Delphi, on the evoning ot s~turd~y, July 2jrd. . ap!)roxico.t~ly 11 P.~.t. Duyli~:ht ~avine Time, t(ooortaon cullud to mo, &a.yint,z "r':ha t aro those 1 i :hte flyiq; around in the sq?" I o~mo ov0r a nd lookud whore he pointod. ~t.ore wer~ two luminous objoots i n the sky to the north of Dalphi, at lll1 approxim.uttJ olov:...tion of 1,500 feet. Theao ~o objoots were sourinG in circles. Tho one on the ri;ht was flyinG horizontally tn an orbit, cloo~1ise. Tho object on tho 16ft w~a flying ir. an orbit , oount~r a "Thoae must be tho flyinr; diake o: which 1 have heard." ,:a watohod tho obj'Jcts. hS they approached the noar portion o f' the orbit they would emit a phosphorent hl are. Thoy were flying at a territfio s peed, un~ as thoy flashed arounJ they would appear face toward us, then as they disappeared on the far swin~ ot the orbit, would appour to show the fla t portion which appea~d as a glowing atraicht line until t hey faded fro~ viow. The course which those objocts took, while flying in circles, was eo hut erratic. They would dip and dive just as would a plano takin~ evasive action. Yle had two tlashlichts, aDd we tocuest:td the two a pots to ;etht~r o.nd led the obje!~ts as t hey cam paat, just ae a hunter leads a flying pheaeunt. Then it wa s that we could makt out tt~t they were to.n~ible obJocte. They app-ared to be made ot eo!J8 ahin1n~ motal, alumir:um or Dlllf:ll&lium, and &iJpo&rnd to be, as woll as we oould judf:8 trou their estimated hoi&;ht, about the ai&e ot a t1ve room house 1D the area they ~:'overed. I then went acrose the road to a house and round a man aittinc on the porch. I got hi 1 to cot".& out and look at the objeots. lie said that he was goine; to call the editor of the Delphi paper am tho police deptArtment. Shortly attor thia aevurnl pov.orful selirohlit;hts swept the alcy, tollowin~ the diaka J tho so of' tho police or fire depo.rtment, I preaum. Shortly after this the objoots ~radually kept ~;ett1n ; farthiJr away until they diaappeared trom view ova r the horizon. ~vproximatoly 30 minutes later they re- appoarod, this tioe to the left of the pluce in the ~ whero th-.y ~d tirat been seen. They tlow in orbita 1D tha t aroa until, I would ~ about 1 A.~. ~yl1cht [u~ a nd addrvss of obsJrv~ r: Occup...~. t ion :md h ob b i u s : Comments of Interrogator r c l utivo to intolli{;c;ncu a rld cha.r!l.c t o r of obs~rrvr(s) HARRAT! \-: SilllhiARY s Savinr; Ti:.lOJ then disappeared for a few minute!. o.nll t ook up their pat hs i n tht:~ ori:inal plaice in the hea vens, whor e 'Ole first not i cod them. wt~.tch~d thom as we c ast for bo.sa in the;, stona ~uarry until .3 A . l . 1) ylli-;l':t Sa.,1n~ Time, u t whi oh time they faded froa sight c.nd YIO saw the!Jl no .aora. rhrou.:..h the entire time we viewed the objocta they wore continually flyin& mt.~;ht state tha t noithur I nor my companion u.ro in the loast imq~inative or neurotic. ,:e ha1 not ptirtaken of aey atirm.tltLnts or nt~.rcotioa whatsoever ...Lnd so were able to view these objocts in the full posaossion of ou r fuculties. This we will attost. Tl~y were r ual, t~nGible objects, p rosurJably of aet~l, aluminum or magnesium, a a 1 have stated before, a s ;.e could plain l y see in the combined spot s ol' our flashliGhts, t~.nd the searchli~hts which wero tr..4inod on the objects confirmdd this. fle had at first a dvunoed tho theory that they mir;ht be northern 1 i..-hta. \.e discarded this theory since northern li~hts do not o ove in regular orbits in a regular diroction. Then we apacult~.ted as to their being aearchli,;hta tried out. I vte.l d out in an open fi9ld and looked, but could oee no rny o r li~ht '':hioh will ahir.o up from the ground ~sa luminous banu whon a eenrch-licht or beacon i s truin~d l~uvonward. They could not be l~r.din~ field be~cons. Tho ne~reat landing fi~ld is at Logansport, a connidorable distance fro~ U8lphi. The thou~ht th:..Lt they miv,ht be lur-;e bats or birds, whose vlin&a reflected rays ot the oity 11 :hta or wlphi tL~ thoy flew, enter~d our minds. I went t o the edz e of the road, and placad ~solf betwuon the noaroat etrout li. :ht und the objvcta anu t hey still showed th9 sana r;low a a they s pun around in their orbits. \~ took thooe precautions 4& there has been a lot or jokinc talk and news ator1ea ~ a ppearinP, about thtt "flyinc ~ucera'' beine; ~ various plclJlets which ahine brilliantly, due to favorable Clt:noapherio condi tiorss, or their proxi:ni ty t o the earth. Planota, whilo they move, their moven~nt 1& only noticeable on th~ direction tindor ot a larr,e'teloecope, and can not be deteoted by the naked eye alone. Yle t1ako tho atateoent that the objeota Yle aaw tlyin: throur,h tho sky aru of aolid construction. There have been so many reports o r aeei.Dt thon t htit there ia bound to bo found~tion ot tuot concerning thean, just aa the rockets which not ao long a~o a ppoarod ove r ~'weden. This statement ia given to yon tor auch ou aee tit to m&ke. tJ~C[ASSIF1ED DEPARTMENT O F THE AIR FORCE HEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES AIR FORCE WASHINGTON TI-4E IN SPECTOR GENERAL USA!= 12 th DISTRICT O!=FICE 0!= SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS OET ACI-4MENT ,.8" CI-4AN UT; AIR !=ORCE SASE, ILLINOIS SUB~BCT: ~lying 0bjects TO: District Com~a er 12th JSI District (IG) cott Air Force Bas e B3lleville , Illinois 1 . On 25 July 1 49 Captai Jl!rdt,;.d lniversity, Lafayette , Indiana, called at tL'3 j!'flcs of .... '!'"~cial Investi(ations, Chanute S3se, Illino:s a s~ata - ment executPd by :.:r. of Lafayette, Indi a f riend of Be,mett' s . ad ~en a}:proached by on 24 July 191.9 with the inforrr.ation that on 23. July 194 and a fri end had s~en object!:) i1~ t i.e s~y. ~osser beli eve his duty to rc9ort t~e incidon~ t Frcper hor!.ties and, therefore, exec ntad a stat~"ient. :~rta~n aeur.ett a greed to t ur n the st3te~ent over t o the 2ff:~A Z~clcial Inv~cti gations, Chanute Air force Sase, Illinois. has faith in compet ency a nd s ten he is !!osser 1as sincere ir. his convictions . 3 . The information ~as brought t~ re stto~tion of General Aubry ":oor e , Commanding General, Chanute Air Force ~aso, I llinois. No investiga t i on was requested by hi:n. 1 . S t executed by retachmont Commander USI !Jetachr.:(3 "lt IJNCtf\55\f\ED Lafayette, The un ders i e ne d end were f ishin g at the Merrill stone quarry just rlailroad station a t Delphi, o n the evening of b oth of Lafayette , beck of the I.:onon Saturfay, July ~.jrd. At a pproximately 11 P . 1~1 . Dayli ght Saving Time, alled to me, saying:"\,iha t are those l i ghts flying eroun I came o\er end loole d where he pointed. There ::e r e t wo luminous objects in the sky to tl'e north o f Delphi, a t a n ap- proxin:.ate elevation of 1,500 feet. These t wo objects we r e soari n c in circles. The one on the r i~h t w~s flying her izon tally in an orbit, clockwise. 'rhe o bjec t on the left was flying in a n orbit, counter-clockr;ise. s aid: "Those must be t he flying d isks of VThich I have heard." We watched the objects. .n.s they a pproache d the ar portion o f the cr bit they would emit a phosphor en t c:lare. They were flying at a teriffic speed, and as they flashed a~und they would appear face toward us, then as they disappeared on the far s wing of the orbit, would ap""'ear t o s how the i.la t per tion which appeared as a glowing straight line until they faded from The course which these objects took, while flyiug in circles, was some;,hat er"atic. They would dip a nd d i ve just a s ~uld a plane taking evasive action. We had two flashlibh ts, and we focussed t he t .,o s pots together and led the objects as they csme IB st, just as a hunter leads a fiying pheasant. Then it was that e could make out tha t they were tangible objects. They appeared to ue m.de of sor:1e shining metal, aluminum or magnesium, end a p peared to be , as well as we could judge from their estimated height, about t he size of a five room house in the area t hey covered I then went across the road to a hruse and found a man sitting on the porch. I got him t o cone out a n d look at the ob- jects. He said that he was going to call the e ditor of the Delphi paper, and the police department. Shortly after this several po~erful searchlights swept the sky, following the disks; those o f the police or fire department, I presume. .IJNCU\SSlFlEO DNCLASS1FfEO - Shortly after this the objects r a duully kept r ettinL farther o.-1ey until they d i s o ppearec: f r om vieTI over t he hori.'on . A.pproximu tely 3 0 minute s l ater they r e - appear e d , t hi.' tir.:e t o tl1P ~ f t o f the p lace in the sky where they had firs t been seen. ey flew in orbits in thn t area until , I ~auld ~uy, about 1 ;, . : . De y l i ght Saving Tin:e; the n disappeored for t. : ev; minutes end t ook up t heir paths in t he oric i na l place in t he avens, \th ere we firs t noticed t he m. ,7e natched them as we cast f o r bes s in t he s t one quc r::-y until 3 a . :t;1. Jayli ght Saving Tirre, at wh i c h tirre they faded frcr:1 s i ght a nd we s e w them n o more. Thr out:h t he e n tire t iire \7e v iew,.ed the objects they were continuLl~y flyin . ht state that neither I nor my comnanion ere in the lB ast imaginative or neurotic. 'iie had not pc; rtnken o f any stimulants or n arcotics r;hatsoever a nd so vere a ble to v iew t he s e objects in the full pos~ess ion of our f a cul t ies This we v:ill attest. They Y?ere reel, tan r 1ble objec t s , presumably of ne tal, aluminum or magnesium, as I haYe stated bei'o"re, a s we could plainly see in t h e combined spo~s of our ~leshli;hts, and the searchlights which were t r ained o n the objects C'n~irmed 7ie had at first ad vance d the t heory th:-J t t he y mif.h t b e northern lights. :;e dis carded this theory since n:::lrthe r n _ i ::hts do not move in regular orbits in a regul a r direction . Then we speculated as t o their being S::!archlights tried out. I walked out in an open field and loo ked, but could s e 3 no r a y of l i g ht which will shine up from the gr ound a s a lumi no :>us bend: Whdn earch-lieht or beacon is troined heavenw~:lrd. They could not be l a nding field beaoone. The nearest din g field is at Logansport, a considerable dista n c e f r om Del phi. thought that t hey mi ght be l a r ge b a t s or birds , whose wings re.:'lected rays of the city lights of Delphi a s t he y flew, en- tered our minds. I went to the edge of the road, a n d placed myself bet\o:een the near.Jst street light end the objects and they still showed the same g low as they spun around in their orbits. We too k these precautions a s there has bee n a lot of joking talk aoo news stories appearing about the"nying s aucers" being various planets which shine brilliantly, due t o favor able atmospheric conditions, or their proximity to the earth. Planets, while they move, their movement is only noticeable on the di~ection finder o f a large telescope, and can not be detected by the naked eye We make the st~tement thut the o bjects v1e rur1 ~::L:1t:: thro u c h the sky are of s olid constructi.m . ':'h ere h ove be ~n .:o reports of s e i n c t hem thu t there i s l"Jound to be f .n::.ti n of fact concerning t hem, just as the r oc kets wh i c h no t so o nc:.- a go uppeared over Sweden. This steterr.ent i s give n t o y ou for such e v lunti.)n a s see fit to make. Subj I PLY11iG OBJECTS ~ OSI Ditriot (IG) WrJ.pt-Po.tteron AFB Dayton, Oh!o. 2 ..&.ugust 1949 !Oa General Air Materiel Command W'rlght-Patteraon Air Foroe Bae Da~n Ohio, ATrNa KICAXS 11NCl.AsSIFJED UNCLAS5UlEQ, DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE HEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES AIR FORCE JAC I tUN.' WASHINGTON SUBJECT: F~ing Objects THRU: District Commander 5th OSI District ( I G) right-Patterson AFB Dayton, Ohio Commanding Air Aateriel Command ~right-Patterson AFB Dayton, Ohio ATTN 1 l.CIAX0.3 THE INSPECTOR GENERAL USAF 12TH DISTRICT OFFICE OF SPECIAL. INVESTIOATIONS ICOTT AlA FORCE BASE, ILLINOIS 1. Attached correspondence forwarded in accordance T:itb i'aragraph 3<:, Air Intelligence Requirements ~morandum r umher 4, 15 February 1949 . 2. Uo action has been taken by this office pending instructions from 7our Headquarters Ltr, Det. B, 12th OOI Dist, o .c. Dir. Intelligence JAj.5 C. RI CHA ~ Lt. Colonel, U...:u' -..r District Commander UNITED STAlES AIR FORCE THE INrE.AO~ GlNER,\L OFFICE OF SPECikl INVt STIGA liONS 51 H DISTRICT DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE HEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES AIR FORCE gam WASHINGTON THE INSPECTOR GENERAL USAF 11TH DISTRICT OFFICE OF SPECIAL. INVESTIGATIONS ICOTT AlA FORCE BASE, IL.L.INOIS 25 January 1950 SUBJECT: AERIAL PHENOLIENA SPECIAL TilQUmY TOI Director of Technical Air Materiel Command Wright-Patterson AFB Dayton, Ohio Intelligence 1. Transmitted herewith for your information are four copies ot the report f investigation of Special Agent FERDmAND L. GOETZ, of 1 thia office, dated 25 January 1950, two copies of which are for a ppropri- ate transmittal by your Coomand to Director of Intelligence, USAF. 2. This case has been given a "closed" status inasmuch as all logical leads have been developed by this office Rpt or S/A GOETZ dtd 25 Jan 50 {4 cys} JA64ES C. R C RDSON Lt. Colone , USAF District ommarxier UNITED STATES AIR FORCE THE INSPECTOR GENERAL O,..,..ICE 0,.. SPECIAL INVESTIGATION S ~8 October 19L!9 REPORT OF INVESTIGATION REPORT MADE IY FERDINAND L. GOETZ REPORf MADE AT DO #12, Scott 1\FB AERIAL FHENOMENA 20 September 1949 OFFICE OF ORIGIN DO rjl2, Scott AFB SFECIAL I~UIRY IU:fREHCE Ltr, Hqs, OSI, dtd 10 Aug 49, file no. 2~-185 Unidentified aerial phenomena observed b7 two intormaDta tor a period ot approximatel7 tour houre on 2.3 July 1949. DIIT1U IU'T10ft Dr,Tech Intell, A!~ Dr of Int. ell, USAF AfMQ FOIII ~ AChOM cart POI'WAADED TO P1U STAMP 2, Director of Technical In ~,, - 2 Air Materiel Command 2 Wright-Fatterson AFB Da)ton-; Ohio 1. Iavestigation was requested by Headquarters, United States Air Force, The Inspector General, (Jffice of Special Investigaticns, i1ashington 25, D.c., pursuant t o a letter from the 12th OSI District (IG dated 28 July 1949, concerning the sighting of flying objects by t~. Lafayette, Indiana, on 23 July 1949. 2. This investigation wae conduct~d by Special !gent tENZIL F. WILDlUR. Department ot litanon R~e Railroad, and clerk , rt.anon Route Railroe.d, were interviewed by Special Agent DE IL F. fiiLDMAN and furnished him wi the following information concerning air phenomena at i, I ndiana at approxi- aatelJ 23.90 hours.JC.~T) on Satur<;ay, 23 JulY. .1949: were old atone -qiiari at the northeast edge of Delphi, Indiana, when ned to look in the a