Documents / Report
This August 1949 technical report from the US Air Force Air Materiel Command presents Project Grudge's investigation of unidentified flying objects through January 1949. Drawing on consultants including Dr. J. A. Hynek, Rand Corporation, the Air Weather Service and Dr. P. M. Fitts, it explains most of 244 incidents as balloons, aircraft, astronomical phenomena, hoaxes or psychological errors. It concludes the objects pose no direct threat to national security and recommends reducing the investigation in scope.
No. 161. This obviously inaccurate report says in effect that the object was seen about 30 minutes after pilot balloon rounding and reimmende release time. From the known release points, wind direction and speed at the level mentioned, this object or objects could not possibly have been a weather balloon. No balloons released within 120 miles of this position, but if wind were from west it could have been a leaklzr balloon from Norfolk or Latteras which was not really as it should. However, the date of incident cannot be read from the questionnaire, hence no definite conclusion can be drawn. Fig. 183. Purely a radar report. If this report is accurate, couldn't possibly be a balloon. No. 184 - 105; Very controversial accounts of speed (0 - 3 times that of a Jet); description sounds like burnin; pilot balloon sounding with lanterns. However, nearest release was two hours earlier at St. Cloud. Could have been this pilot balloon sounding assuming a leaky balloon to keep it at a low altitude. Not at all probable, but possibly a balloon. No. 166: Object reported moving directly into headwind of BCK. Only possible weather balloon would have been moving SE from Salt Lake City. If speed is any criterion, this was definitely not a balloon. No. 157. A heavenly body, Venus. No. 18b. In actual sighting; a radar report, if accurate, definitely no weather balloon. No. 149. Rawinecides released at Montgomery and Atlanta 1 1/2 hours earlier and would have been blown into sighted area by upper winds. Only a faulty balloon, however, could have descended to that low altitude. From description, balloon is post unlikely. 10. 190. Every indication means to point to this object being a rainforest balloon. Dawnside scheduled to be released from Munich approximately one hour previous toighting. Tory light winds in Munich area. Definitely a balloon. No. 191. Only balloon released in wind pattern that would carry it over Junction City was released at Dodge City approximately one hour before sighting time. If reported direction and speed of object were at all accurate, balloon not possible. No. 152. Balloons released from St. Cloud and Suluth just prior to sighting. 21rd perfect for carrying balloon into observer's path. Wind
Report, from the classic collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. The text was read from the page images by an OCR model; expect the odd misread word. 413 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.