Documents / FOIA release

roswell

Office of the Secretary of Defense · 993 pages · text from the file's own layer

The Roswell Report: Fact versus Fiction in the New Mexico Desert was published in 1995 by Headquarters United States Air Force. It was written in response to Representative Steven H. Schiff's request and a General Accounting Office audit, and it contains Col. Richard L. Weaver's report and 1st Lt. James McAndrew's synopsis, along with attachments, appendices and photographs. The report says researchers found no evidence of an extraterrestrial craft or crew. It concludes that the 1947 debris came from a Project MOGUL balloon train.

  • p. 12 …Memo, with Attachments, Edward C. Mishler, HQ AFOSIIHO, for SAF/AAZ, subj: GAO Review on Records…
  • p. 14 …Spilhaus, C.S. Schneider, C.B. Moore, "Controlled-Altitude Free Balloons," Journal of Meteorology, Vol. 5…
  • p. 15 …Spilhaus and Col Marcellus Duffy Capt Albert C. Trakowski and Dr. James Peoples Charles B. Moore…
  • p. 18 …Albert C. Trakowski, a young Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate, followed Duffy in the leadership role…
  • p. 27 …of their efforts if they did; and (c) the overall effort was the task and responsibility…
  • p. 33 …AQL, Directorate of Electronics and Special Programs (c) AF/SE, Air Force Safety (d) AF/HO…
  • p. 35 …Mexico alone, involving A-26C, P-51N, C-82A, P-80A, and PQ-14B aircraft; however…
  • p. 41 …Moore; and the military Project Officer, Colonel Albert C. Trakowski. All of these persons were subsequently…
  • p. 45 …actually procured was a 1953-manufactured model"C" as compared to the Model B which was…
  • p. 55 GAO UnitedStal:eS General AecolllltiDC omce WashiDgtoo., D.C; ZOMS National Security and Interaatiooal ..urairS Division…
  • p. 59 …SEE DISTRIBUTION Genoral Ac:c:ounti.nq Offic:a (GAO) Latter Dated February 9, 1994, •aeccrds…
  • p. 67 …investigations, and wreckage/debris retention and disposition; (c) identify~ records (unclassified or classified) related to air…
  • p. 71 …Ref para c above. Although we possess no official records related to the subject matter, we…
  • p. 72 …OBSTE'TRI RTIUTY. ~·_._ Freedom of Information Act Request (S O.S.C. 552} Department of the…
  • p. 82 AIRCRAFT DATE A-26C 24 June 1947 P-51N 10 July 1947 C-82A 12 July…
  • p. 94 …1 Atch \nExtracts from AF tV y Records Schedules ~ . ~ c.L- T {(av.r- t;"RAcE…
  • p. 103 …Pursuant to CLuthorj.ty c.::.r.taincd in Hqs. 8th Air Forco 'f;.:x num~.or…
  • p. 104 …Colonel Lur.:c.s relieved. Lt Colonel William C. Kingsl-1~ who then assumed oommand of…
  • p. 106 …Lewis c. Bohanan. former commanding o£ticer of the 3rd Pho to Lab Unit, was trans…
  • p. 107 …Spurgeon, to coordi- nate with Adjutant; 's Section; Lt Colonel Ray- C. 16.ltcn, to coordinate…
  • p. 108 …Jr., Arrrr:r Air Forces, Washington, D. c., .arrived .for investi- gation of the B-29…
  • p. 113 …Copy of SF 135, 19 Dec 75 c!;i.J&£~{ (fftiJl~. EDWARD C. MISHLER Historian 2…
  • p. 114 …C,R1 .01·'~ c INSTRUCTIONS SIG~ATU~ ~. i OAt ~CORe$ RC:V:> Send original and…
  • p. 127 …51 B-0614 BOLLING FLO 342-51 C-5071 BOLLING FLO 342-52-7089 1 OF8…
  • p. 133 …c.c:::·=-:e::.. }.:~~Or'?! £.x~c::::··f-. W.::.::a::-y ?e!'aOnrJel Div:..a! Office Ci…
  • p. 140 …5:30 AI/Z r/J,.;c51/ C?PP.·~?:2/.? _f/' ..50.4/ t ~ rs <,--:.. () fl…
  • p. 141 …1 nG( - · i ' ~-- 1 '-' !? (/.:_ /_,; l-~~i ., I I ' •· 1 i c - t\.: ' .. 1/Vv • i ....- • i…
  • p. 143 …unc ey !eels Gen C&.nnor. ~ not too sure o! hi.Jr.selt, as two Z…
  • p. 144 …Frank Heckett 1 s aame on it. ·i;c are most anxious to explode this thing…
  • p. 168 …I said it was 700 C at Bolling. I believe now that you mentioned Andrews, it…
  • p. 193 …Graul to Commanding General AMC; Brig Gen Tom C. Rives to Commanding General AAF July 8…
  • p. 195 …COITDllal'lding General, Army Air Forces, Washington 25, D.C. THRU& (AC/A5-4) 1. To…
  • p. 196 …lS:~.-ll, priority lA, include dcttarrd.nation of con:;n-oasional wa~ voloc.C..t.y…
  • p. 197 …obta.!..r~:~bla n.l~l t.u'l·->·9 f ..,~~ • ?' ' ..•. . .:···, l•J..w •. '<,-' ..·.;\;~': ~ ··' .· ..-c '''-0. ..·'..,-- ...... · . .' .. ,,' .. ,• .. ..
  • p. 198 Btuic ltr WLAMC., 9 Sop 47, to CO Al!C, aubj: "Research Op:-s in Ala…
  • p. 205 …NM C/3!_4 I, Charles B Moore, hereby state that Jeffrey Buder, was identified as…
  • p. 206 C/3.#/ model I think that flight #4 was the flight that was launched out of…
  • p. 207 C B. ;vi. I can think of no other explanation for Roswell than one of our…
  • p. 208 …saw one of these targets more than 20 years ago . ) c.a. Moore August 28, 1992
  • p. 211 Statement Albert C. Trakowski June 29, 1994 22
  • p. 213 …VA I, i\lbert C. Trakowski, hereby state that Jeffrey Butler, was identified as a Colonel…
  • p. 224 …I think this was a C-45. We did, indeed, have B-17's attached to…
  • p. 228 …we still carried microphones aloft and a C-54 orbited overhead and followed the balloons out…
  • p. 230 …June 1st, "C-47 with Moore, Schneider and others from NYU, also Irewin, Minton, Olson, NYU…
  • p. 247 …Trakowski went over in a c-54 and picked them up. Also radiosonde receivers set up…
  • p. 249 …It looks like Maryalls' "C-54, located on Tulerosa Range by air. Out PM with several…
  • p. 258 …HT SST, whatever that is." July 8th. "C-54 off about 10:30 with 23 people…
  • p. 263 …I had forgotten, but he reminded me that he had gone on the C-54 to…
  • p. 264 …what sticks in my mind as either c-s or an M-5 radar. I knew…
  • p. 266 …A~ I say, these c~me out right at the end of the war. The warrant…
  • p. 268 …This is the c Model. It doesn't show the reinforcements. Q: The young lady I…
  • p. 269 …I thought the B Model was a 1947 vintage and assumed, wrongly so, that the C…
  • p. 271 24 Interview Col Jeffrey Butler and 1st Lt James McAndrew with Col Albert C. Trakowski, USAF…
  • p. 278 …balloon launch-Maj. W. D. Pritchard, Maj. C. W. Mangum, Lieutenant Siegal, and a Capt. L…
  • p. 287 …ltfttf} for ••• ftlu,c.hin1 thwtc. C. au nit} C~r~hff • I Ac.te d…
  • p. 299 …1675 Ms Ruth Fiornartto DSN 992-5781 c) Westinghouse Electronics History Museum, Baltimore MD Mr Robert…
  • p. 303 r--·-- =------------------1-~·;-~ 1 ".::' ,-k-;'~/ r"'\\ _.---® / ~r /~ .L c:.::;?;: /~~~\@ ® /./:/ ' ~ ~,('KMSFMIIL~W/TN r ~/ ;-/~ _ ~@.T,11'£ .IN!'VSIJ7…
  • p. 307 …other· icial, non-judicial, or administrative proceedings. __ c. I have the right to consult with a…
  • p. 308 …70 U.S C BOis. 44 U.S.C 3101. and EO 9397 PRINCIPAL PURPOSES: usea…
  • p. 320 …Crane, spring 1946-July 1946; Col Marcellus Duffy, August 1946-January, 1947; and Capt Albert C…
(although some researchers claim there were as many as 800 sightings during that
period). Interestingly, the "Roswell Incident" was not considered one of these
1947 events until the 1978-1980 time frame. There is no dispute, however, that
something happened near Roswell in July, 1947, since it was reported in a number
of contemporary newspaper articles, the most famous of which were the July 8
and July 9 editions of the Roswell Daily Record. The July 8 edition reported "RAAF
Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch In Roswell Region," while the next day's
edition reported, "Ramey Empties Roswell Saucer" and "Harassed Rancher Who
Located 'Saucer' Sorry He Told About It."
The first story reported that the Intelligence Officer of the 509th Bomb Group,
stationed at Roswell Army Air Field, Major Jesse A. Marcel, had recovered a
"flying disc" from the range lands of an unidentified rancher in the vicinity of
Roswell and that the disc had been "flown to higher headquarters." That same
story also reported that a Roswell couple claimed to have seen a large unidenti-
fied object fly by their home on July 2, 1947.
The July 9 edition of the paper noted that Brigadier General Roger Ramey,
Commander of the Eighth Air Force at Forth Worth, Texas, stated that upon
examination the debris recovered by Marcel was determined to be a weather
balloon. The wreckage was described as a " ... bundle of tinfoil, broken wood
beams, and rubber remnants of a balloon.... " The additional story of the
"harassed rancher" identified him as W.W. Brazel of Lincoln County, New
Mexico. He claimed that he and his son, Vernon, found the material on June 14,
1947, when they "came upon a large area of bright wreckage made up of rubber
strips, tinfoil, a rather tough paper, and sticks." He picked up some of the debris
on July 4 and " ... the next day he first heard about the flying discs and won-
dered if what he had found might have been the remnants of one of these."
Brazel subsequently went to Roswell on July 7 and contacted the Sheriff, who
apparently notified Major Marcel. Major Marcel and "a man in plain clothes" then
accompanied Brazel home to pick up the rest of the pieces. The article further
related that Brazel thought that the material:
12
... might have been as large as a table top. The balloon which held
it up, if that is how it worked, must have been about 12 feet long,
he felt, measuring the distance by the size of the room in which he
sat. The rubber was smoky gray in color and scattered over an area
about 200 yards in diameter. When the debris was gathered up the
tinfoil, paper, tape, and sticks made a bundle about three feet long
and 7 or 8 inches thick, while the rubber made a bundle about 18
or 20 inches long and about 8 inches thick. In all, he estimated, the
entire lot would have weighed maybe five pounds. There was no
sign of any metal in the area which might have been used for an
engine and no sign of any propellers of any kind. Although at least
one paper fin had been glued onto some of the tinfoil. There were
no words to be found anywhere on the instrument although there
were letters on some of the parts. Considerable scotch tape and

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About this file

FOIA release, from the osd collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 993 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.