USAF Historical Archives ASI(ASHAF-A ) Maxwell AFB, Ala 36112 tm'O ADVIJ RY Z7 J u l y ~EL ~FfiNG I. r~embcrs Present -Dr. L . V . Hobj nson, .Ali'CI.1.~-1JJ~, Astrono r Mr . Theodore J . Hi oat t , ~"CIN-l 3, Publ:l c; Relations flo:-. V. J . Handma cher, RD XD, Plzysicif-'t MD jor Leroy D. Pi ., , WClliPHv1, Psycholo ist CE\pt ain Pritz, l!."'VlH, Cho.pl nin 11/'iD jor Robert J . li'riend, A]'CD -/.J..E4g II Intrcrl uc ti on. 'fh.e purpose of t hi~ meet in was s f' oll ows: Introduce Dr. Hynek, ir Force c onsultant on the UFO Pr ram, to the punel. Hear an accoWlt of Dr. Hyn e k s meeti vri th Aime Michel, French of "~"lyin ;r Sauce r s and the Straight Line lV'zy-stery". c . Discuss the trends in the program as derived from the statistics of the six month perj od 1 J anuary 19.)9 to 30 June 1959. d . Discuss the outstandin{ cnRes for the month of July 1c)9. e . Discus~ l atest acti viti s of the uri vate ID"Oi tes III. Discussion: \':as a . 'The meeting ti ves of the meetiup:,. o ene'"' by ' jor :b'riend, who outlined the objec- Dr. Hynek related the e vents of his visit with Aime !u chcl, ]'rench writer on the subjec t of l.Jl''O' s , and author of Flying Saucers and the Str a ig!1t Line 1yst er y " . It \las pointed out that !Vri.chel i s an en ineer with the brench telephone company, i s very ~harp, very defi.nitely not a crackpot, but i s indeed v er y biasc in his attitude toward U~'Oo. Aime lvlichel ' s opinion i s that scientifj c investi{utivn was not tl..e province the eovernment, but coul d be done better by private individual s . In anS\Ter to a q uery as to \lha 1,. shoul d be done, lvJichel replied th ""~t someone Hho had access to 'lll the data s i t down anl think about it. nynek a lso b r oUfht out the follo\linf facts resul t in from his .. n-..eting v:i th r-lichel: ( 1 ) IVlore serious scientists interested ir, the UFO France than in the United States. 1bis group iG, however, (2) Report of di~c-shaped objects began in France in 1942. (J) French general public docs not take much interes t in lJlt'O' s while i.n the United States it does c . Fri:l point d out to th panel tha t th most significant i n formativn gaine from the a i month statistics 1 J nu 1ry 19.59 to ::, 30 JW1e 1959, was the fact th t th s lope of the curve-'tas gencralJ; the aome as for the same period in 1958, and that the number of ceses was approxirrr-a tely 50% of the 1958 tota l for the period. d . 'l'he outGtandin cases for the month which were d isc\1 Red are as ( 1 ) Airline pilot .Jiehting, area. of Hauai). 11 July 1959 .. '!1he panel a reed ui th the concl u.;,jon th 1t the ohject resnonsible for this s ighting was a meteor of the fjlebs 11 c lass. (2) 1:-boto aph of an unidentified flying object taken by V!rs. Hill iam li' . Barrett of Great Barrin ton, ~ssa.chusetts \lhile vis i tin Nor,.rny 2h Jul y 10'57. The pane) coul d com to no conclusion on the cause anrl recomr. nded that the photograph be sent to Eastm n Kcx1ak for possible anolysj s . c . The publicity beinG ~iven to the UFO n~ hted by Captain KilJien, Amc.ricun AirlineJ pilot, hin c . :'cH and 39 passcn{ ers, and other 'lj rline pilots o n 25 February 19.)9, was discussed. r.l'he punel, vTh.J.l e reeine; tha t t'1e rrobe.bl e c<Juse of the sicJttinc uns jet refueling , fel t tha t his c'lse, os do others, indic,,tes incomplete investigation dtte to the fact tha t no Air Force representative ever interro 1ted the principal vri tnessea. The panel reconuncnded that even fter tu i s lapse Captain l ... j 11 ian and his co-pilot be c1uestioned for t;he record. (See attaciunent IV. Suggested Actions: a . :'b. tt ~ :a,uc..lifi.r-i individual representing t h e ~-r~ be sen t o question Capt11in Kil l ion o!' American Airlines e ve n a t t!. ... l a t e date, and a ful l report be made t o the nanel :1t an earl y dote . b . Th1t in the future the OIC of :T0 iect Bh.le BooJ.~ be authorized to inRt.i Ate aim) 1 r lvePtie.ati()n.~ a t ti1f ::1.rli P.St momr--n~ \oJhc:m, in his judgment: ~ cAse "' rrants ~'Jch i d 't.e attention. ~iajor. uu.fl.E AFCIN-'E4g 'rl e A ri 1 Phenomena A visory Panel , t 1 t;s r~')r:u r mcetin on 27 Ju 1959, r view d in detail current crit,ical c ses of portel ri J sieht i s ; in the cours ~ of the r d sen s on it became app ent that th current nro ram of UFO investi ation rem-=tins open to serious pot ntia1 criticism by the public anr..1 ca11 possibl y p l "'co th Arri C :in an in cusable li""ht i n the event of c lose cxam:in1t1on. 1'o \it; it occu s too " quently th.':lt i eel equate investi ations have 1: t r m;1de of c sea that coul d become ( f nd :in m ny cases h l V ~ alr ady becomP) c le bra ted co ces. In somn ce es, indeed , the princi e l s in the case \'rcre not interrogated because of 1 .ck of adequate personnel . A case in po'nt is that of Capt: in Killian, his cre\v, md 39 p.gssence n , ,.,ho on 25 Febrt1ary 1959, ,., tnessed an unE>xplained sir hti of three li h t,s that r ~putedly followed their American i1lin .. s Th case has: lt~ady become welJ-publicized cuse and is likely to rennin one o!.' the perplexing " unknov:ns" in the eyes or tbe :public to harass ATI C i!1 future years. There is some e vidence, h.O\'Iever, that~ th i::; s ightinp may h Av e been the result ol' a r~fue in oper tion. The panel therefore recomnends that e ven e:1fter the 1 l.pse of six months, it i s gent thn t the .rinciPdl n in this case be interroeated by a competent individual or l.ndividu l s yepresentin \.'r i C , f'nd. tnot a full repor-t be made to th c panel a t an car ly d te. It furth .,.. recommends that lv1:'3.jor ]'riend be authorized to insti~ate simila investitations a t the earliest ooJ~ible moment vrhen, in his judgroont, a case warrants such inm1ediate ttention in vie\/ .-.ith i-cs nuisance or scientific value. Dr. L . V . Robinson, ~CIN-hE4. Astronomer iX. 'J.lheodore J . ieatt, ArCIN- 4X, Public Rel~tions Jv1ajor Leroy D. Pigg, vlCLDPRJi, Ps,chol og i s t CC}rytain R . Pritz. EVIH, Ch1plain !~ajor Robert J . Friem, AF'CIN-l~ h.g, Aerial Phenomena Dr. J . Allen Hynek. Air Force Consultant a kly Act ity Repo~t i n tho ofi'ic of th Aeria). Ph nom~1r~ G:roup n honday. 25 \ ...... _, 19.59 Poe i b t e ppro ch which ould p-..>. , ~ ' l!k'lke n xt ns ion of S oo ul Rf por 4 mor a:lin~fll wcr a.i cussed. I w a cono lu.ied the th r~ Grot! 1' would nnt-U.yais oi Jk l.'tJ. ..... \1 .,. v ent to determine their pc ... :11 b l e f ct on b.e J")\!:~ber of m'c .I epor t s . A talk ))y Fla n k Et\w l.rdS Ull (, iune 1959 . at Akron, 0..\'l.o Jas decided to be .;tudy on UFO a . ~ed as an initial event for t1is ( UNCLASSIFI E tistj.o 1 ot y t ho :xamit: t!ion o Ur. obinon- U..U\oi.Ol t 1 b ... ~Ol"'n oul o bly not be ob !Jl' OgrEllll ~OIN-4E4g Weekly Activity Repor t StrJJ:.CT: UFO Pr~r m 1 . On Wo .ueod ' 5 'iY 1~.5Je the D.!J-1:&._, .t\.?C'l4!d UFO AdviSvl 'Y Panel had its t1r ct !Ir'Ct1~.. The purpo.H. ot t h 1s Jll}~tint,. woa to brief t~e me:nber~ on tb. U 0 Profrom '" .. poeo :>f t h e pa ne .... The P'-".JJ.e l C\?~.Jl.St l or me n que.li f iec:i i n div<:r ified fields ; Lt. Col. J.i"'n. l. d u. rallum, Cb.~pl~i,l , }'''Iii Mr. Tn.c,:l'ior-e 1 . d i e .. ltt, Public Rel:lt1ona, lt.X3 ~..aj. Leroy D. Pie_g, lsy~hology, Gl!J. p. 1~. V . T . H ndmnchcr, Pb,ysi c i s t. RD7.34\D Dr. L . V. Robinson, AstroPom.el, hid~ T'ne organizations t o which t hese men bejolg gc~r-1">t: ) l allo~N d t ... oir ervices on _ voltJ..lt r ba3io;J. 3 'l'h.e puz j.V~ 0 0 th(~ pane l i s tJ t V i W t C ulO~C trou.bleSC"Q3 cases, spot treni~ in :,he ploc,ram, a nd JD3..ce sugge ationo as to tne future ootlook . ' ne regu r m cting time o f thi~ pone l 13 tenta t i ve l y the lo.st Monday of , .h mvnt h . ( JNCU~.3IFIED) CYS ENT TO' WCLDPF, Maj Pig IDZSXD, Mr. HaDdDB.cher A TTh; GhL~l>lR in Gr.t hll1l 1 . A e py ol' t h e brie 1'i Ill! p~nel, and ll fold<,r c o t fl n~nL D m~l B or your 1nformntion u l'C-;~<:Ll 1 Il. 2 . 'l'hc i n tent i on of" . v J t h e la t ~ 'U a.y o~ euc,~ t"' n c. at t he ini ~ia '-:3ti Jf or tha u 0 n 1 1 ata t.isticf;\l lnrorn e-t:ton arc i to sch t!ulc ti a vi. ,ory in ... losud Hun~r " 'outh, r-oom ,,r. J . 4. The lOa i n to1 i c oi' '.i ( cussl J J B .. tef~ng c f 3 t 1iS 111 be r cc.,t..du e i: OI z~ Statistica l ..>t.Jd;t SECURITY C flCAfiOfl ((f ezt) DISPOSITION FORM Unidentified Flying Objects Advisory Panel WCLD'l' FIOM ATTN: Lt/Col rarris AFCirl-4E4/ j F iend/ac/69~16/Blde 828 1. The Air Technical Intelligence Center i s responsibl e for the Air Force' s nidentified Flyin8 Objects Program. The interest in this area i s threefold, to determine if UFO' s constitute a threat t o national security or ere a danger in any way, t o determine i f ther e are any areas of scientific interest and the public r el atio ns aspects. 2 . In an effort t o improve our method of handlin g this ses t h e formation of a n advisory p:1.ne l composed of persons followine areas: Psychology Relie i on Publi c Relations. proeram the ATIC qualified in the personnel for this panel t o be pr ovided on a voluntary basis by Wright- Patterson Ai r Force Base and the tenant organizations. 3 This panel to mee t one day eact. month for tne purpose of detecting possible trends in t he pr ogram and t o make recomnendations for possibl e improvements in t he ethod of operation. Tentati v~ly the pane l will rr~eet on the last I"Jonday of each month . Members of the panel will be notif]ed by phone and/or D. F . when a meeting i s scheduled. 4 It is requested that wcLDT support this effort wit h the service of a Psychologi s t t o be utilized as sti pulated above. 5 It is further requested that this office be notified i f the requested support is t o be granted, end the name and t el ephone number of the individual assigned, if in the affirmative. 9 6 REPLAcEs NME FORN , OCT . wHicH MAY IE utlD Col onel, USAF \ Deputy for Science and Components Air Technical Intellienc e Center U.S. OOYaRIIIIOICT PIUIITDIO OPPIC!: ltiJ 0- .,~ SECURITY C DISPOSITION FORM A'l'i'Na AFCIN-4E4 Maj. Friend to participate on Subject Unidentified Flying Objects Advisory Panel COMMENT NO.1 Mr. R. D. Hodge/ jem JlJ24/Bl4/Rml24 her, Space Systems Otfice, (RDZSXD). will be available RALPH D. HOOOE Chief, Space Systema Otfice ot the Deputy Advanced Systems Directorate of Systems ~nagement D D I 0 9 6 REPLACES NME FORM 96. I OCT 48. WHICH MAY BE USED U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1852 0-88e8'75 SUBJECTt Unident:i.fied Flying Objects Advisory Panel FRa-t 1 WCLDPP DATE t 27 March 1959 CCMffiNT NO. 2 Mr. Warric bao 1. The Behavioral Sciences Division of the Aero Medical Laboratory nominates Major ~roy D. Plgg, 24724A to serve as a manber of the subject panel. ~1ajor Pigg is a trained psycholoe;1.st and is rated a Canmand Pilot. He has a clearance for Secret granted 24 Harch 1951. 2. It is urxlerstood that participation in the activities of the a dvisory panel is voluntary and subject to limitation by priority obligations on the t ime of the ncninee 3. Major Pigg , symbol: WCLDPPM, extension 38278, should be advised directly of the details of the first meeting. HOWARD L. r ARRIS Lt. Col. USAF . Di' i.!ion . f ueha vi oro 1 Scunrcs Aero 1\tedical La ora o r ATIC, Subject: Unidentified Flying Objects Advisory Panel, 16 Mar 59 AFCIN-4E4~' J DATE: 20 Mar 59 COMHENT 1 t . 2 Ch (Lt Col) Graham/60317/ac The Chaplains Section is very much interested in basic communica- lain (Captain) Mervin R. Johnson or the undersigned will be responsible for attending all called meetings of the pr oposed panel. The telephone extension for both i s 6- 0317. IU CHAH.D AH Chaplain (Lt Colonel), Installation Chaplain ~d~ en~1UJlGStico1ly 1nuorses tis ro~osal ~nd cor1curo i n op ointment llr ... i~at to l..u.t, ... anc.l . , e ~ st ~ at 'tr ... heoon be l i s tcu as an a l t r ate. SECURITY C.. ION (1/el) DISPOSITION FOR Unidentified : '1yin Objects Advisor y Panel TO EWH FROM A riC E 1 IVar !J9 COMMENT NO. 1 ATTN s Lt/Col R .IvJ. Graham ~'CIN-4E4/Ma j iend/ac/69~16/Bld~ 828 1. The Air Technical Intellieence Center is responsible for the Air ~orce's Unidentified Flyine Objects Proe ran1. The interest in this area i s threefold, to deter.mine if os constitute a threat to national security or are a denser in a ny way, to determine if there are any areas of scientific interest and the publi c relations aspects. 2 . In a n effort to i mprove our method of handline this pro~ram the ATIC proposes the formation of an advisory panel composed of persons qualifjed in the followine. areas: Psychology Astronoiey Public Relations The personnel f or this panel to be pr ovided on a voluntary basis by ~frieht-Patterson Air ]force Base and the tenant or ganizatio ns . L'his panel to meet one day each month f or the purpose of detecting possible trends in the progr am and t o make reconmendations f or possibl e impr ovements in the method of operation . Tentatively the panel will rr~et on the las t Monday of each month. 1v1embers of the panel will be notified by ph one and/or D . li' . when a meeting is scheduled. 4. Many of the cases reported to t n e ATIC have as a basis religious belief or a t least strong religiou s overtones. It i s requested that E~frl suppo r t the ATIC with the services of a Chaplain to be utilized as stipulated a bove . 5 It is further requested tha t thib office be notified if the requested support is t o be granted, and the name and telephon e number of the individua l assigned, i f in the affirmative. D D 1 50 9 6 REPLACES NM[ fORM I OCT 41. WHICH NA'f IE UIID H . K . GILBERT Co lob~ 1 , U3AF Deputy for Science and Components A~r Technica l Intelligence Cent er U. L OOVKR)UOifT PRINTDIO Of PIC It : ltU 0 -ttu DISPOSITIO FORM Unidentified Flyine Objects Advisory Panel AFCIN-4E4 <..). )..-DATE 16 Mar 59 COMMENT NO. 1 4E4/Maj t/iend/ac/69216/Bl dg 828 1. The Air Technica l Intelligence Center is responsible for the Air Force's Unidentified Flyine Objects Program. The interest in this area is t hreefo l d , to determine if UFO's constitute a threat t o national securjty or are a dan~er in any w~, to deterndne if there are any areas of scientific interest and the public relations aspects. 2 . In an effort to improve our method of handling t h i s pr ogram the ATIC pr o- poses the formation of a n advisory p:tne l composed of persons qualified in the following areas: Public Relations Psychology The personnel for this pan e l to be provided on a voluntary basis by \/right- Patterson Air Force Base and the tenant organizations. 3 This panel t o meet one day each month for the purpose of detectiU possible trends in the program a nd to make recorranendations for possible improverent s in the method of operation. Tentatively the panel will meet on the last Monday of each month. v'lembers of the pane) will be notified by phone a nd/or D. F . when a meeting scheduled. 4. It is requested that AFCIN-4X3 s upport AFCI N- 4E4 with the services of . Hieatt. Mr. rlieatt will serve as the Public Relations expert on the panel described 5 . It is further requested that AFCI N- 4E4 be notified if 4X3 is unable to support this effort. 9 6 REPLAcEs NME roRM . , OCT ... wHicH MAY IE uao Colonel, USAF AFCI N- 4E4 U. &. OOYiatiiOifT PIUNTDIIO OPPICI: ltll 0 -ten AkCia-J,lJv&- j .itrienll/ "4c/69 216/Hl dt~ OJ.<, '0 I Rl.ilS:XD A'.rl'l:h -;lr. .f el !"h LJI')(t r~e 1. The Air 'l'ec h rt1'!'l l In.,.l11:./ ' c ,;-.nter ie re~ro,si.ble for l...e ir ~orce's Ua1den'titied Fly in!..: Ob j~ct8 ~i:'Of ,..q:"'. ' '! intcr,..st :\ n t~ t e E' ..... -,e. :l ~ t. r~ fol c tc 4e~erm1ne if Ul!'O' a oout1 'u' e thr~ot to nat~.ot"~l securi t .: or are a nger in y way. to deternnne if there Uf:i MDY a.rees of scient if c intt'reat L ud tue bli c rela,iona uapoots. :r:. Ir.. .~n ett'ort to j.mpro-e our metll~d 0.f l-tanii l tt~f th i 3 -r ~ r 'l~ the '1'IO proposes tlle to-rntition of H U v1 " Orr Tfl,~'>1 cc"J1l'posed of netr rc.'l qu"'l; !'i od i n -;,he following areas' .~o l i ~"ion .t'sycholoey J stron o:f\Y [:.UbliC fj~).Atio~.R The pereon.ne t toT' thi ~ J'(ll',.,., r Air .r~oroe He ~ ttnrl t h e te"'l~nt mothod 0t ope.C!l(..J..OU. I~u.tativ~l the pbllel will u:e~t ('n thE' l~st .~. .. ond9y of ea.oh. montn. lv~embe!'S o1' the pan:1 ,111 ts notifieu L:t J'u~ne SYf;-/':.T ~-. :.. ;. ,; :l me cti!!t:. is ache:l'.llea. It i e re~t~Gf:te t.'1.~t l ::.xD support tb.e Air ljChnlc~l JL t c 111 r r c\2 Centet ~erYices o