NEv'IORANDU'-1 FOB RJroORD Unidentified Flying Object Conference 1 . A meeting was held at the Department of Air F d?.;::r'A.rCIN, a t 1330 on 17 Feb 1959, for the purpose of discussing t e Ai r Force philosophy toward and policy regarding the Unidentified Flying Objects Program. The following persons associated with the pr~ramrwer .----------~ Mr. A. Francis Arci er , AE'C I N - 4 Col L. T . Glaser , AFCIN I Dr. J . Allen Hynek, Air Force Scientific Consultant UFO Program Mr. B. L. Griffing, ~'CI.N-4E4 Maj J . F . Byrne, AFCIN-Xl.A Maj L . J . Tacker. SA.FIS- 3 l "(... i-iaj J . E . Boland, SAFU. , Maj R. J . Friend, .AFCI.N- 4E4g 2 . Brief on Dr. Hynek: Dr. J . Allen Hynek, Astrophysicist, Ohio State University, presently on leave of absence to act as Associate Director of the Satellite Tracking Program for the Smithsonian Institute. Hynek has been the Air Force' s scientific consultant on the UFO Program for ten years and has been invaluable in this capacity. . Hynek suggested this meeting to allovt him t o air some of his views on the UFO Program and his personal problem of adverse publicity. (Letters and publications intimating his only interest in the UFO Pro~ram was for financial gain. ) Dr. Hynek indicated tha t he felt the Air Force had done a good job of handling a very difficult program with the limited resources availabl e . The purpose of the meeting being to improve on these resource s other facets of the program in an effort to improve on our job. 3 The agend a i s attached as TAB- A 4 Discussion, Conclusions and Suggestions: Officia l Name of ~he Program: It was concluded that the present name of nunidentified .E'lying Objects" was not appropriate and that a name change was desirable. rlowever, it was felt tha t this was not the proper time for a change due t o the possibility of supplying the UFO fanatics with ammunition for a attack. This subject i s to be given further consideration. In this connectio n it \otas decided to no l onger identify the unsolved cases as "unknowns" but rather a s "unidentified. " I~ e.ppe ttla t 8 1no1d t ott ra o 1 t1 a ~ 1952 -'41as 1nt Sigb:t log 1957 RUB S t ll1t Tb t 111 t launched in Oc o sighting r : h y r ~o p n h AND REroRTED /NSUFFICI~Itlr /'-~ORH TIOIV UNiiN(J 'N 2.tli Z.t% Flying Ob e igatlon 1\r tl e ex ete Univera ty Ia th t ear wr IC! ret ry w becauc hf' a Ae a !or e r a a edttor rc h h ; l1e poaeab llty llt t cal ll g 1 o 1 "'"H.e of Pu Information of n denti!l1d 10 year or inveat v r on!irrn th IUb e~l 111 n reply I are IC! OU6 a d 1 over ORt AfCI - ATTJ...CHED IS A PIECE F T !AL FOU WHE2E SO OBJ:rx:T PLO AND FEIJ. ro THE GROW ABOUT 21300 FF..B. 7 1959 ABJUT 1 OF JAC SO ~ o REQUEStED THROUGH lC CQ~ft THIS F WARDED ro lOU. roRTS TOD.A: , INDICATE niAT IT AS THE CE 0 A PRANKS I LAW A BALLOO WITH 00 m KXPWSIVE GAS 'ID ATTACHED A U THE BUR u .,. F U ffiOBABLl APPEARED TO BE A VI L!GHT THEN THE FmE REACI~ m BALLOO -IT EXPLODED WITH FLASH Y JOSEPH L. MYLER UN .L, E.IJ R E.SS INTERNAl 1 ONAL \~ASHINGTON JAN. 27--(UPI>--PECPLE ARE SEEING FEl~ER FLYING SAUCERS, ANl A PSYCHIAtrnsT HERE THINKS ~1AYbE SAuCERS ARE GOING OUT OF FASHION. L THEY ARE, HOWEVER, DR. ADDISON ~1. DUVAL IS SURE SOMETHING ELSE WILL COME INTO STYLE." - DUVAL, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF WASHINGTO~.'S ~AMOUS ST. EL12ABETKS HOSPITAL! TOLD UNITED PRESS INTE.'RNATIONAL THAT SEEll\G THINGS WHICH DON'T EXIST IS A COMMON RESULT Cf ANXIETY GENERATEu BY FEAR OF THE AND THE TIMES AREN'T GETTING ANY LESS A XlOUS OR THE FUTURE ANY LESS UNCERTAIN. OF COURSE, NOT EVERY&ODY WHO SEES wHAT THE AIR }-ORCE CALLS AN UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT <UFC) IS 11E.~TALLY SICK. SUT SOME SIGHTE.RS, DUVAL BELIEVES ARE SUFFERING FR0~1 DELUSlCl S OR HALLUCINATIONS. THE AIR FORCE REPORTED LAST YiEEK THAT UFO REPORTS FELL OFF 14 PER CENT IN THE SECONI HALF OF 1~ "~ TO A TOTAL OF GS.06. i10ST OF THESE WERE SUB.JEOUENTLY IDENTIFlEL AS REAL nnNGS--PLANES, 6ALLOONS, SHOOTING 5TAR PLANETS AN}; EVE! EARTH SATELL11I:.~. THt AIR FORlE F~UND THAT FCUR OF THE UFO'S WERE ARTIFICIAL MOON. SIGHTED AS THEY WINK]; THEIR WAY ACROSS THE SKY. IT LISTED FEWER THA~ ONE PER CENT OF THE TOTAL AS "U1'H11 TNN"--::~ANlNu THAT THE AIR ~ooRCE COULDN'T Fll~IJ OUT WllAT TllE THl~G R PORTE~ AtTUALLY ~AS. AS FOR NON-RATIONAL UFO SIGHTl G_ LUVAL SAID "t,;E SHOULD HAVE BEE ABLE TO PREDIC.,.." T E 1 LYING SAUCEl< ~AZE. WHEt EVER SOMETHING CAPTURES THE INTEREST OF EC.. L GEl'RALLY, tiE .... 1L, lT USUALLY SHOWS UP IN DELUSlONS OF THE ME~.7AJ...LY ILL. DUVAL RlCALL5 A PEklOD \\HE!~ A L01 CF PF.vPL THOUGHT THEY \\ERE PAR1 THE ~AMOS 'N' ANLY~ RADIO TEAM. IF THE FLYING SAUCER DF.Lt;SlON IS : THE DECLINE, GNE REASON MAY BE THAT SAUCERS ARE ~ETTING ftTOO MUCH COMPETITION FROM REAL THINGS- - SATELLITES LUNAR PR ;.)ES , ,," LuV L SAID. AFTER A WHILE ANY WIDELY SHA~ED DELUSIOt\ TENDS, ~E 51\ID, "TO GET OUT OF STYLE." HE THINKS THE NET DELlSIC 'AY F. A. ELABORATlO OF THE SPACE- TRAVEL MOTir. BUT JUST WHAT fORM !T JILL TAKE HE COULDN'T GUESS. b . Dr. Hynek' s Problem of Adverse Publicity: Several solutions for Dr. Hynek' s problem of adverse pub- icity were proposed, the most drastic of which was t o have Dr. Hynek from his present position as scientific consultant for one or two years. It was the consensus of opinion that any solution which cost the services of Dr Hynek would be unsuitable due to his immense value to the program. The course of action decided upon to attempt to correct this problem was to omit the use of Dr. Hynek' s name in any of the offi- cial r e lease on the UFO subject. Further. Dr. Hynek is to forward all letters received by htm on the UFO subject to SAFIS- 3 for reply. Dr. ynek to maintain h i s present status until it can be determined if the new positiv e and more scientific approach to the program would reduce if not e liminate his problem of adverse publicity. The r elease of Dr. Hynek to be only a last resort solution. Education of the Public: It was concluded that the Air Force shoul d direct positive efforts toward taking full advantage of a l l favorabl e publicity associated in any way with the UFO Program. That specific efforts shoul d be made toward producing information which would educate the public and be ad- vantageous to the UFO Program. Pictures and/or descriptions of the phenomena or objects determined as being probably responsible for a sighting should accompany the news releases. It was decided that a collection of such pictures should be wade and filed fer this purpose. Rapid Processing of Information to SA.FIS: In all instances SAFI S should be notified as soon as possible what the probable Air Technical Intelligence Center' s analysis will be and particularly i n the case of those sightings which are being given the "full bl ower" technique by the press. It helps the Air Force' s position if SAFIS can give positiv e information that the investigators are at the location of the sighting and the official investibation Investigation and Reporting: It was decided that the Air Force' s investi~tion and reporting processes i n connection with the UFO Program needed revampin8 The conclusions were that the investigations should be more scientific, faster and more complete. In order to accomplish this in,proverent in investieation techniques , it was decided tLat AFR 200- 2 , dated 5 Feb 1958, which outlines the responsibilities and requirements of t he Air Force Agencies responsible for these investigations be revised. This revision to outline more specifically responsibilities, also to outline the de- sired qualifications of selected investigators, and to list equi!ment with which each investieation team should be supplied. Further, a sugeested training course which should be given to all personnel selected as investigators should be supplied (See TAB-B). It "'as also suggested that the investigators from the l006th AISS be brought to ATIC for a n ASHINGTON1 JAN. 22.--CUPI)--THE AIR FORCE INDICATED TODAY THAT THERE AREN'T AS MAPY FLYl, 'G SAUCERS" AS THERE USED TO E. IT DID NOT PUT IT JUST THAT ~AY OF COURSE BECAUSE IT HAS NEVER ACJ<NOWLEDGED THAT THERE l~AS SU~H A THING ls A FLYING SAUCER. IN FACT, THE AIR FORCE HAS SAID THERE IS NO SUCH THING. ~HAT THE SERVICE DID V:AS TO ISSUE A NEW REPORT or UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS (UFO> IN WHICH IT SAID THAT THE NUMBER OF "UNKNO~N" CAS~ HAD BEEN REDUCED TO A FRACTICtJ OF ONE PER CENT AFTER INVESTlGA- TlON OF SIGHTINGS. IN THE LAST HALF OF 195 .. l TtE AIR FORCE ANALYZED 2SG UFO REPORTS AND CATALOGUED ONLY ~0 AS CASES OF "UNKNOWNS". THE BREAKD0\.., 23 BALLOONSl 6J AIRCRAFT, 96 ASTRONOMICAL PHNOMEN0' Q SATElLITts, 5J "OTHER" SUCH AS HOAXES Ll ~HTS AND BIRDS 61 1 CNORED BECAUSE OF INSUFFICIENT DATA SUPPLU:D BY PERSONS REPORfiNG SlGHTINGS. SATELLITES BECAME A NEW UFO CATEGORY IN 1958. AFR .200. T 'EIDIDARY 19_58. A.N:L CHANG TH.EP. '0 D .'l J JULY 19.)8 l. Tb.i r eul t on a 1 t tand n a w ll the purpose for vhich 1 vritt n. HOlt. ver. the Air Foroe invc tigatora ar cSoing little UJ1;1JLl10 r quire prompting by tn 1tr T o.hnical Int ll'-8 deliver Ttm ~hi minirm.w dat 2. Tho Bhortcom1J16 of ttle UFO inv stis tion procedure pro blJ ar du l'lOstl.,y to th Air Ba e aa 1BD1fl8 in xperi need end/or nnq\!D..I. peopl to thi t k, l o t ec ot intere t in the P.rogr It 1a ditt1cult to become fir d up ov r in hi t~ boea ova 11 tl 3 'lhe ATIC propoeoa the folloving 1 ted ith 0 iu tigation. A.aaignmant t c petflll.t per one b. Short tr: ining Prot;ra.D~ for the por nnel propo ed tor a in e tigatora. he lenatb. of thi tre.ining progr should d p d upon io qual1f1oat1ona or the personn l leot nt,y (20) our In all iatence he onl4 inclui hours of instruction on t tollovill6& ( 1) Hi tor) end phl. lo ophy of th oro Proer (2) Introiuotion to de r1pt1 ot tb (3) thode of interrogation. ot quipnont. (B io t :rm1nology ~ c bolii ) o. Th following ia PmJil t vi th vh ioh very UFO in tigation team hould be (3) Tape r {4) Binooulara Ma.gnit,ying glase ould b uthorized to mak phone o lle directly to toe A.ir Tecbn1oal Int 111 P.Dc Cent fro th in ati tion e.r for t'rl purpo or ren/W' preltminar.y conoluaiona 1ng h18h ~iority tindingB or l t l J . U{hfl!. ,lg\.lr.il~ntl Int 111 en ol t flyil~ obj et t a. Held no 1 b. r n f r gn d v c. Contiu..u""d a b.. Tb t v indoctrination course outlinin6 those factors of investi~ation poculiar to UFO cases. Analysis and Ev~luation: It was felt that i n the past many cases \'!ere given an un- scientific and "fas t brush" treatment in an effort to ~et them fil ed. was decided that the approach should be more scientific and positive. Unless the analyst could be sure of his conclusions beyond doubt, then a statement in t he vein of the foll owing shoul d summarize his analysis: There is no evidence available to indicate that the object sighted in this case was not a meteor" or In view of all the availabl e evidence, the object of this sie,hting \'tas probabl y a meteor " It was also suggested tha t a panel of qualified men, in diversified fields b e formed and used for consultation. The men on this panel to be qualified in the followine areas: Astrononzy Psycholoe,y Public Relations his panel to be used on an "on -call " basi s , but to meet at least once each month; at which time a summary of the months activities will be presented to them. The purpose of this panel i s to revie"l some of the more troubl esome cases, spot trends in the program and make suggestions as to the future outlook. The formation of this panel t o be give n further consideration by the ATIC. Re- evaluation of Old Cases: ny UFO organizations have been constantly reopening the more s~nsational of the ol d cases to the furthe r embarrassment of the Air Force. I t was decided that the Aerial Phenomena Group , Ai'CIN- 4E4g, would r eview these old cases, which in vi ew of greater scientific know- edge and experience, may be removed from the " unknO\m " category and reclassified as a probable. " Claims of UFO Organizations: In many instances the private UFO organizations, or their sponsors, have made claims th~ t some individual , usually a person held in h i gh est eem by the public, has made some statement sympathetic with the views of the organization . It v:as decided t hat SAFIS- 3 would write letters to each person so quoted and ask for corroboration o r denial, for further det ail if in the affirmative. 5 Su!II!'n6ry : a . That the Air Force needs to take a more positive approach t oward t h e UFO Prot,ram. b . The Air Force investigations be more scientific and thorough. c . 'rhe analysis be scientific and thorough. d. The public be kept more abreast of the UFO Program by an approach of pre-education. An expansion be made of the resources available to the ATIC to he l p with the overall analysis of the program. Prepared by: Major , USAF AGENDA FOR Ul!~O POLICY Ml:e:riNG 1 . Introduction. a . Purpose of meeting -to discuss the Air ~orce philosophy toward ani policy regarding the UFO Program, with an aim toward correcting deficiencies. Statistics . Cost and manpower estimates for January 1959. 2 . Areas of Interest. a . Public Relations. Unidentified Flying Objects a misnomer, possibility of using Unidentified Aerial Phenomena as official name. (2) Dr. Hynek' s problem of adverse publicity. (J) Education of public -advants~e taken of all favorable publicity. (4) Rapid processing of information on reported cases t o prevent possible "snow-balling " at SAFIS. 3 Attacking the Problem. (2) Accuracy and completeness. Investigations. (1) Speed. (2) 0ompleteness. Analysis and evaluation of reports. Suggested changes to AE'R 200- 2 , dated 5 February 1958, and change thereto. Re- evaluation of old cases catalogued as "unknown" when bringing Blue Book" up to date. The unknown cases, especially the more sensational, are being exploited over er by organizations and individuals with some specific axe t o grind. f . Possible investigation of UFO Organizations and key personnel that hav e proved the most troublesome. 4 Future Outlook. What appears to be the normal extension of the "Flying Saucer" b . What can we do to lessen the impact of this new problem? c . Conclusions. 5 Sumuar,y AFR 200- 2 DATEJ 5 JfEBRuAR~ 1958, ALfD C""riANGE TdffiETO DATED 3 JULY 1958 1 . This regulation as it stands serves well 1..he purpose for vlhich it was wri tten . However , t he Air Force investigator s are doine little more t han meeting the minimum requirements of this document, and i n many instances require prompting by the Air Technical Intelligence Center to deliver even this minimum data. 2 . The shortcomings of the UFO investigation procedures probably are due mostly to the Air Bases assi~ning inexperienced and/or unlualified people to this task, and also to lack of interest in the Probram. It is diffl.cul t t;O become fire l up over a Prot;.ram in wnich tile boss shows little or no interest 3 The ATI C proposes the foll owing as a solution to tne problems associated with UFO investi~tion. a . Assi~nment of competent persons as investigators. Short training program for the personnel proposed for use as investigators. The lengt h of this training prot;.ram should depend upon the basic qualifications of the personnel selected. However, it is suggest ed that such a training program not exceed twenty (20) hours. In all instances the program should inclll.de hours of instruction on the followint:~,:: ( 1) rlistor y and philosophy of the UFO Program. (2) Introduction to Astronomy (Basic terminology and description of the more common astronomical bodies). (3) Methoas of interrogati)n. (4) Use of equiprrent. (5) Reporting. c . 'rhe follo,iing i s a lis t of equipment With which every UFO investigation team should be supplied;. (1) Geiger Counter (2) Camera (3) Ta.Pe r ecorder (4) Binoculars (5 ) Magnifying gla ss 4 The investigating teams ehoul d be authorized t o make phone calls directly t o t he A