Documents / Report
This declassified CIA document, released through The Black Vault, reports on the meetings of the Scientific Advisory Panel on Unidentified Flying Objects, which the Office of Scientific Intelligence convened on January 14 to 18, 1953. It includes a history of the sessions and the panel's informal comments, and it appends the formal report signed by H. P. Robertson and others. The panel found no evidence of a direct threat to national security. It recommended stripping UFOs of their special status and starting a public education program.
“CIA”28 pages
.Approved For Rel.e 2001/08/07: CIA-RDP81R00560RO&oo30027-0
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PARr VI: COM~·:lENTS A.TID SUGGESTIONS OF PANEL
GENERAL
The Panel Members -vrere impressed (as have been others, includ-
ing o/SI personnel) in the lack of sound data in the great majority
of case histories; also, in the lack of speedy follovr-up due primarily
to the modest size and limited facilities of the ATIC section concerned.
Among the case histories of significant sightings discussed in detail
"ivere the follmving:
Bellefontaine, Ohio (1 August 1952); Tremonton, Utah (2 July 1952);
Great Falls, Montana (15 August 1950); Yaa..~, Montana (1 September
1952); Washington, D.C. area (19 July 1952); and Haneda A.F.B.,
Japan (5 August 1952), Port Huron, Michigan (29 July 1952); and
Presque Isle, Maine (10 October 1952)•
After review and discussion of these cases (and about 15 others,
in less detail), the Panel concluded that reasonable explanations
could be suggested for most sightings and '~y deduction and scien-
tific method it could be induced {given additional data) that other
cases might be explained in a similar manner •" The Panel pointed
out that because of the brevity of some sightings {e.g. 2-3 seconds)
and the inability 6~ the "iv:i.tnesses to express themselves clearly
{sometimes) that conclusive explanations could not be expected for
every case reported• Furthermore, it was considered that, normally,
it would be a great waste of effort to try to solve most of the
sightings, unless such action would benefit a training and educational
program (see below). The writings of Charles Fort were referenced
~--Approved For Release 20Q;t~560R0001 00030027-0
-7.:. Report, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 29 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.