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. 36 …The object turned out to be a radar tracking balloon" (included with Atch 11). Additionally, this…
  • p. 42 …He recalled that radar targets were used for tracking balloons because they did not have all…
  • p. 105 …The object turned out to be a radar tracking balloon. The main project· of the mont…
  • p. 202 …The artillery radar tracked the balloons with comer reflectors--this ga·ve the vo.inds aloft…
  • p. 205 …In the early flights at Alomorgodo, starting in June, 1947, we used radar targets to track…
  • p. 206 …The tracking was to be done by the Watson Labs radar for the V-2launches, etc…
  • p. 226 …projects -- one, the radar project from Watson Laboratories that was set to track the V-2…
  • p. 231 …Instead, the idea was that Peoples would provide tracking on the balloons with radar targets and…
  • p. 232 …so I'm quite sure that as a result of the failure of the radar tracking…
  • p. 246 …which the tracking of the flights was to be done by radar, tracking corner reflector targets…
  • p. 247 …To fly meteorological balloons, tracked by a Watson Lab radar on the ML-307B targets that…
  • p. 249 …The radar tracking turned out to be abysmally poor. I don't know why, but they…
  • p. 250 …flights which were to be tracked by radar, and the radar was unsuccessful. It's my…
  • p. 255 …our operation, we depended on radiosons and where we could get radar tracking for tracking air…
  • p. 266 …transmitters tracked by the SCR-658, the old bed springs; and then the radar wind. Ray…
  • p. 277 …The article in the paper talks about the use of reflectors for tracking purposes-the radar…
  • p. 323 …He tried to track the balloons using multiple radar targets.29 A radar target was a…
  • p. 325 …for improved balloon tracking and plotting. This eliminated the need for radar "comer reflectors" on the…
  • p. 326 …If it was to be tracked by radar for wind-speed measurement, a single corner reflector…
  • p. 329 …coordinated radar activities.43 Additionally, some of the details discussed (balloon sighting in Colorado, tracking by…
  • p. 454 …Used •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 65 Radio Direction-Finding ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••· 56 Radar and Optical Tracking •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 87 VI. Instrumentation ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 67 Altitude Determination…
  • p. 455 …Positioning of balloon during flight be determined by ground tracking such as radar or radio direction…
  • p. 517 …Radar and Optical Tracking. Because of their limited range. ground radar sets and theodolites were only…
  • p. 567 …Radar~ RDF and theodolite were used to track the balloon.
  • p. 575 …Using radar and helicopter that balloon was tracked for nearly 2 hours at an altitude of…
  • p. 599 …switch, use of, !,2! Radar tracking, '15. 86 Radio direction-finding airborne, .!!.• 103, 110
  • p. 600 …60, 75 Tracking aircraft, 5, 7, 11, 12, 13-20, 86, 103 radar, 86, 75 radio…
  • p. 639 …APQ-13 radar, mounted atop a B-17, will greatly augment the horizontal tracking and will…
  • p. 672 …17 with top~ounted radar to search above the plane for tracking. Depending upon the noise…
  • p. 739 …When available, ground radar has been used in tracking the balloons, with good results. A series…
  • p. 841 …Tracking Projects: (l) Radar Tracking Set AN/MPS-6 • A letter was received from Watson Laboratories…
  • p. 842 Permission to use the MPS-6 in tracking further V-2 missiles having been received, plans…
  • p. 858 …SCR-658 Theodolite • • • • Aircraft Radio Compass • • • • • • • • • • • • • 52 • • • • • • • • • • • • 53 Radar • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 53 Altitude Determination •••••••••••••• 53 Olland Cycle Pressure…
  • p. 907 …add radar targets (corner reflectors) to the flight train for such tracking. Using radar. the elevation…
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,
vi

Cases discussed

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.