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. 218 …remember these which would make the thing rotate in flight. But this, in the B models…
  • p. 418 …Specltically, he le resnonaible tor tuperv1t1on of the Rotating ~gine Branch and the lon-lotating Encine…
  • p. 428 (Type E preferred) J a rotating commutator ot two segments, an insulator and a conductor; a…
  • p. 519 Corps ML-310/ radiosonde aneroid unit, a metal helix on a rotating cylinder of insulating material…
  • p. 521 …However, this error was minimized by the smoothness of the rotating cylinder and the continuous motion…
  • p. 523 …The performar.ce specifications are as follows: (a) Rotation: one revolution every 12 hours (b) Duration…
  • p. 528 …is recorded by the pen on a rotating smoked drum {B) • In order to prevent the…
  • p. 558 …and as evidenced by the barogram in Figure 20 (12-hour rotation). the balloon maintained its…
  • p. 560 …From the barogram (Figure 22) (12-hour rotation) it appears that the orifice did not permit…
  • p. 671 …and with four turns on a helix rotating once a minute, the pressure read- ability of…
  • p. 908 …This contact is used as a reference point for measuring the speed of rotation of the…
  • p. 910 (b) gears or poor alignment of the rotating cy- linder. The motor gears may be cleaned…
  • p. 911 pending upon the speed or rotation of the mo- dulator motor. The pressure signal appears at…
  • p. 915 …These values may be detected by carefully observing the rate of rotation of the motor, which…
  • p. 916 change in motor speed of five percent or more from the preceding rotation, the pressure value…
  • p. 917 …When rotating e. t about l rpm duration of signals not over 3 to 4 seconds…
  • p. 920 …The recording dr~ rotates once in twelve hours. Therefore, it a :flight lasts over twelve hours…
  • p. 922 …In smoking the drum a long rod is used as a rotating axis. The drum is…
  • p. 923 …The rotation of the drum is once in 12 hours and, therefore, the time-distance relation…
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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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.