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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. 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report and publication would not have been possible without the expert assistance and outstanding…
  • p. 6 balloon files; Neal Stark and Jack Griffin, of the Geophysical Directorate's Aerospace Engineering Group, whose…
  • p. 17 …the Roswell Incident, this event has become the most celebrated UFO encounter of all time and…
  • p. 19 …such amusing events as the one reported by the New York Times in which a secret…
  • p. 21 …Nevertheless, the attached report is a good faith effort and the first time any agency of…
  • p. 25 …until the 1978-1980 time frame. Prior to that, the incident was dismissed because the AAF…
  • p. 27 …times, most research- ers will not dispute that anything in UFO history can compare with the…
  • p. 28 …the "Roswell Incident" was not considered one of these 1947 events until the 1978-1980 time…
  • p. 29 …weather balloons on the ranch, but _that what he found this time did not in any…
  • p. 30 …the persons interviewed were, in fact, stationed at, or lived near Roswell during the time in…
  • p. 31 …Collectively, the above represent the "pro" UFO writers who allege that the government is engaged in…
  • p. 34 …at Roswell Army Air Field during the period of time in question. It is anticipated that…
  • p. 35 …Since much of this testing done at nearby White Sands was secret at the time, it…
  • p. 36 …the 509th Bomb Group was the only military unit in the world at the time that…
  • p. 37 …If such a system had been in effect at the time, it would 21
  • p. 38 …Marcel, MD (son of the late Major Jesse Marcel; 11 years old at the time of…
  • p. 39 …Brazel; 14 years old at the time of the incident). Affidavit dated September 22, 1993. " ... The…
  • p. 40 …He thought at the time, and continued to do so today, that what he found was…
  • p. 42 …of the project, but they did not know of the project nickname at the time. They…
  • p. 43 …Additionally, a copy of a professional journal maintained at the time by A.P. Crary, provided…
  • p. 45 …first generation) prints of the photographs taken at the time by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram…
  • p. 46 …Although that project was Top Secret at the time, there was also no specific indication found…
  • p. 47 …good faith but in the "fog of time," misinterpreted past events. The review of Air Force…
  • p. 56 …time periods (1947 to present) to determine whether proper procedures were followed. {3) For the incidents…
  • p. 73 …Why have I decided to write at this time This is the 45th year anniversary of…
  • p. 77 …Also, the Blue Book records and the Condon report do not mention the Roswell incident, though…
  • p. 81 …of time, but in some cases, it is advantageous to do while in others the wreckage…
  • p. 82 …Please note that mishaps involving unmanned air vehicles (which during the 1940s included remotely piloted aircraft…
  • p. 94 …for the 1947 time frame in their holdinqs. They noted that the histories for the 509th…
  • p. 99 …the crash of a weather balloon near the base in the June/July 1947 time frame…
  • p. 113 …held in the Southwest U.S. concerning subject (atch 2). At that time, District 17, Kirtland…
  • p. 143 …that time make a deciaicn as to approval of KeMey's orgar.izatian and howr extensive…
  • p. 149 …Amerson tlla t he was definitely againSt his l.eating Washingtan at the present time and…
  • p. 159 …What Marcel did with this material at the time was unknown to me. although I know…
  • p. 163 …the Counter Intelligence Corps (CIC) (at that time ofthe US Army) in 1947? SC: Yes ... the…
  • p. 164 …Well, there again I couldn't swear to the dates, but in that time, which must…
  • p. 165 …Were you familiar with weather balloons at the time? SC: I had seen them. I had…
  • p. 166 …t think at that time we might not even been taking the paper. We heard no…
  • p. 167 …Do you remember at the time the article or the photo of General Ramey and Marcel…
  • p. 168 …incident occurred until the time he left? Or, anywhere up until the time he died? SW…
  • p. 169 …He use to be a mechanic at one time, Rick did, in the Air Force; the…
  • p. 170 …I assume .. .! assume when I read this thing for the first time that they sent me…
  • p. 172 …Which at one time was on the Plains of San Augustin and now it has apparently…
  • p. 175 …No, .. .I didn't spend any extended time down there at the site. RW: O.K…
  • p. 176 …In the mean time, the CIC man would head back to the crash sit with some…
  • p. 177 …at that time, just like in OSI, you did not wear uniforms for the most part…
  • p. 178 …derivatives of the V-2, that we were playing with at that time). Schmitt asked if…
  • p. 179 …He said the ranks ofCIC agents were all classified at the time" (I know that's…
  • p. 181 …royalties for a long time. RW: Oh, this wu out of the Global Reliance. I don…
  • p. 183 …But at the time a portion of it was Top Secret. It bas since then be…
  • p. 184 …At the time I thought this was sort of stupid. They had a list back at…
  • p. 185 …When did all of this first surface, in your life? After you picked up the original…
  • p. 187 …Apparently at that time, as near u we can tell, one of the baBoon manufactures did…
  • p. 188 …Haut? The public affairs guy at the time? SC: Just vaguely. What was he, base information…
  • p. 191 …period of time and all of a sudden they change the period of time. MC: Well…
  • p. 201 …At one time I was sent by the US government to assist the South Africa meterological…
  • p. 202 …The radar reflectors were sheets of reflective material and they changed over time but I don…
  • p. 205 …GeNII was the Project Engineer for the NYU balloon project during the 1947 time frame. I…
  • p. 206 …of the 1883 Krakatoa explosion where the pressure waves circled the earth seven times. Dr Cracy…
  • p. 217 …One of the individuals, Sheridan Cavitt, who at that time was a Counter-Intelligence Corps officer…
balloon files; Neal Stark and Jack Griffin, of the Geophysical Directorate's Aerospace
Engineering Group, whose corporate knowledge of Air Force ballooning answered many
difficult questions; and to historian Ruth Liebowitz for sharing her files and photographs.
Many. thanks also to Sheilagh Banacos in Information Management and Evelyn Kindler
of the Public Affairs Office.
At the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC, it was a
pleasure to collaborate with archivist Edward Reese of the Military Reference Branch. Mr.
Reese, who retired in October 1994 after more than fifty-three years of faithful civil
service, provided a much-welcomed professional logic and calm to our endeavors. Also
at the Military Reference Branch, Wil Mahoney's knowledge of Air Force records proved
invaluable. At the Washington National Records Center in Suitland, MD, we thank
Reference Section archivist Carry Conn, who patiently led us through the stacks, and
Richard Boylan, Reference Branch Assistant Chief, for his truly prodigious memory. At
the National Personnel Records Center, in St. Louis, MO, archivists Bill Siebert and Eric
Voltz helped to map out a search plan, while Carl Paulson capably guided us through it.
Pearline Foster shared her time, personnel, and an all-important photocopier. At National
Archives II in College Park, MD, Allen Lewis graciously provided access to their
excellent facilities.
Numerous individuals agreed to be interviewed for this publication. We would like to
express our sincerest thanks to them and their spouses for helping guide us through the
complex maze of names, projects, and places that had been shrouded in secrecy by the
passing of nearly fifty years. Special thanks go to Athelstan and Kathy Spilhaus, Charles
and Wilma Moore, Col. Albert and Jean Trakowski, Lt. Col. Sheridan and Mary Cavitt,
and Maj. Irving Newton, USAF (Ret). Also sincerest thanks to Mrs. Emily Duffy and
Mrs. Mildred Crary for sharing their recollections and photographs of their distinguished
husbands.
We also put to good use the fine reference facilities at the Naval Research Laboratory in
Washington, DC, and thank Eileen Pickenpaugh, the Deputy Librarian, Murray Bradley,
head of Research Reports Section, and Ralph Peterson, the Research Report Librarian, all
of whom helped immeasurably to make our searches easier.
Our thanks go also to the men and women of the 913th Airlift Wing (AFRES) at Willow
Grove ARS, PA, especially to Col. Richard Moss, the 913th Airlift Wing Commander,
and Lt. Col. (Col. Select) Robert Hunter, the 913th Logistics Group Commander, for
providing end-of-year assistance. And we are grateful to CMSgt. Michael Breitenbach,
for sharing his very useful experiences and insights.
We are most grateful to the members of Air Force Publishing-Ray Del Villar, Linda
Garmon, and Jack Fischer-who brought this publication into print, and to SRA Garrety
Wood of the 11th Communication Squadron Photo Lab for excellent photo reproduction
services.
In the course of researching and writing this report, numerous other individuals
contributed to the success of the project. Among them were Col. Gerald Merritt, Director,
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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.