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. 206. If description is accurate, i.e., wings on finelage, rear of engine, circling object, possibility of weather balloon is remote. Also, latest time of release for Clark Field was four hours prior to sighting. Also, note P.D.I. note on character of observer. ## Fo. 207. Definitely not a weather balloon. No. 206: Object sighted about four hours after last scheduled release time. Upper air flow pattern gives no indication of possibility of weather balloon drifting in from another station. Also balloon would have to have landed to remain at 30,000 feet. ## No. 200. Determined to have been twin-engined boeber. No. 210. Summary sheet missing; no altitude given; the incum- particle with scheduled balloon release times. If direction is correct, objects were flying into the wind. Cannot be determined conclusively. Included to believe objects were Jet aircraft. ## No. 211: Very Pistol. No. 212: Object sighted three hours after release time of Indian apollo and Pt. Sagna balloons. Defective balloon could have remained low enough to be seen and upper winds indicate that such a balloon would have been in the Dayton area at the time sighted. All other statements of observers seen to indicate that the object was a weather balloon. No. 213: Bridently refers to the same object as in Inoldent No. 212, but with entirely different description which, if accurate, makes con-clusion on No. 212 obviously incorrect. If not same object, certainly not a weather balloon, as definite pattern of motion, as described, not possible under existing wind flow conditions. ## No. 214. No information whatsoever. No. 215: Very high winds 60-70 N.P.H. from SW at all levels, definitely would have prohibited any balloon from making any southerly motion. Also, last scheduled released time was three hours prior toighting at 1,000 feet. So time in eight given so cannot compute rate of alib to 20,000 feet. Pairly consolelve, not a balloon of any kind. No. 216. Object reported moving directly into 70 K.P.H. head winds at an estimated 350 M.P.H. Observer is a professional weather observer and should know a weather balloon. Also, reported sighting was four hours after scheduled release time.
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.