Results of a Search for Records Concerning the 1947 Crash Near Roswell, New Mexico

This report, issued by the United States General Accounting Office (GAO) on July 28, 1995, details the results of an extensive search for government records concerning the 1947 crash near Roswell, New Mexico. The investigation was initiated at the request of Representative Steven H. Schiff, who was concerned that the Department of Defense had not provided all available information regarding the incident. The GAO examined a wide range of classified and unclassified documents from the Department of Defense, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the National Security Council, covering the period from July 1947 through the 1950s. The GAO found that many administrative records for the Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF) from 1945 to 1949 had been destroyed, and the disposition forms did not properly indicate the authority for this destruction. The search identified only two records originating in 1947: a July 1947 history report by the combined 509th Bomb Group and RAAF, and an FBI teletype message dated July 8, 1947. The RAAF history noted that the public information office was busy answering inquiries about a 'flying disc' that was later determined to be a radar-tracking balloon. The FBI teletype reported that an Eighth Air Force official had informed the FBI of the recovery of a hexagonal-shaped disc suspended from a large balloon, which was being sent to Wright Field for examination. The GAO concluded that the Department of Defense's July 1994 report, which identified the wreckage as part of the classified Project MOGUL, represented the extent of available official information. The GAO was unable to locate any additional government records or evidence of command personnel involvement in the examination of the debris.