The Northrup Flying Wing (B-49)

The B-49 was 53 feet long with a wingspan of 172 feet. It maxed out at 493 mph and had a ceiling of 45,700 feet. Early 1951 the craft was being mothballed and by 1953 all are believed to have been scraped.

The Flying Wing was envisioned as a bomber but demanded decreased post WW2. The XB-35 was developed at Muroc but only used till 1949 when the Air Force cancelled the program. The plane was sexy and modern but had problems with stability. See more at the Northrup page on the planes.

Some early sightings from 1951 reported a craft bearing a resemblance to this design but absolutely silent (see article on what was being seen in 1951).  The speed of the reported craft seems to negate the idea of a glider but that might be a possibility but if so - why no record of it? Who designed it and who was flying it around Texas and New Mexico in August of 1951?

Was Was Being Seen in 1951?

On August 25, 1951, clusters of strange and mysterious lights were viewed over Lubbock, Texas. High caliber witness and photographs helped elevate the case to high profile. First attempts to lay the blame on flights of birds proved insufficient to witness accounts; true there were flocks of some birds in the region but there was also something more.

One rule of historic research is to step back and look at the larger context. This "big picture" approach allows a glimpse into other events and may lead to a solution that fits the witness accounts.

To the northwest of Lubbock that night came reports of an "unidentified craft" and since this was the area of top secret bases and projects notice was taken. A Sandia Base Security Guard at 2158 (10:58 local) hours report an "unidentified aircraft" , 1 1/2 to 2 times the size of a B36 going over the city of Alburquerue, New Mexico. He estimated its speed at 300-400 mph; on a heading of 160 degrees at about 1000 ft. There were no running lights. The craft had swept back wings, cheveron shaped, and 6-8 brilliant mercury white lights on trailing edge of wings. It made no sound and appeared to fly straight and level to the southwest. At about the same time a man in town observed the same mysterious craft, with 6-8 pairs of glowing, round white lights between dark striped on the underside of the wing. The lights went off just after the craft passed over U.S. 66. No sound, straight and level, approx. 300mph, 800-1000 ft. No propellers noted. In view for about 30 seconds at 2158 hrs. The Project Blue Book file seems to infer a similar object was seen the next day at Kirkland AFB and noted all the features mentioned and that it was similar in shape to the Northrup Flying Wing (B-49) but he could see no fuselage, wings were swept back with no taper, 6-8 black stripes under each wing longitudinally.

It should be noted that by 1951 all the B-49 flying wings had been mothballed and were out of commission by the time of these sightings. The B-49 dimensions were 53 ft. long; 172 ft. wingspan; and a maximum air speed of 493 mph (they maxed out at 45,700 ft. altitude as well).

A notation in the report from a Major James Galloway indicated there had been no  unfamiliar or experimental aircraft in the region and there was no rational or natural explanation. "This assumed unconventional aircraft might be considered significant but for the fact that its sighting can be substantiated by only two witnesses and no other evidence." An odd statement given that the rule of thumb seemed to be discounting any single witness events out of hand. Here they had two witness of sterling character and references but it was not enough.

This file got stranger because it was evidence requests had gone out to everyone for "priority" response to a request for information about SAC B-36 planes in the locations of Lubbock on August 30 (August 30 is the day of the famous Hart photographs), and Albuquerque, August 22 at 2200 local, and at Matador, Texas at 1215 local on August 31. The responses were negative. In addition, the witness from Albuquerque was shown a copy of one of the Lubbock photos and declared that they "appeared similar" to his sighting of 2158 25 August 1951 over Albuquerque, NM.

August 30, 1951 in Lubbock, Texas at 2330 hrs a formation of lighted objects passed overhead at great speed. Two more V or U shaped formations passed over. Objects glowed. Less well known was the report of a local area woman that she had seen a dark flying wing in the area; experts were

Lubbock, Texas Aug 30- Hart Photos. PBB

stumped as to how it would be soundless.

The August 31, 1951 sighting in Matador, Motley County, Texas involved a woman visiting from Lawton, Oklahoma and two relatives as they drove north of Matador. (Other sources indicate these were Mrs. Tom Tomlinson or Tilson, her daughter Mrs. M.B. Bethard, and small daughter Nolene Bethard). They saw a pear shaped, aluminum or silver colored, object about 125 yards in front of the car at approx. 1245 hrs.

The object swerved off - smaller end forward - no exhaust or noise as it moved toward the east in a circular manner. Appeared to be landing and taking off...Witnesses described what appeared to be a door or window in the tapered end. The object hovered and them seemed to leave the area at a high speed. A check of her reputation in Lawton found her to have a good reputation in the community.

In a September 30 file from Orange, Virginia labeled [insufficient data, 118 pgs.] shared a sighting at 1500 local of a circular object, brownish-black with a halo surrounding it moving at high speed, it made violent motions (starting and stopping). Then - abruptly - the file starts talking about "photos" and the reference is to the Lubbock, Texas photos. Scattered in the report were some interesting quotes: "college professors did not believe them to be birds" (referring to the original witnesses of the Lubbock Lights, a group of college professors of the sciences.  There were 12 occasions when the objects were sighted and a Federal Wildlife and Game expert had stated he doubted they were birds. He believed they could only have been birds if there had been a great and sudden influx of birds in the area. Such had not happened.  Ducks were ruled out after a local newspaper photographer tried to duplicate the Hart photos and captured ducks - barely visible and hardly reflective at all. The idea of the lights being caused by Plovers also met with resistance as "Plovers do not fly in groups of more than 6-7; probably ducks" - a circular answer bringing the issue back to the unsuccessful attempt of duplicating the photos Hart had taken. Included were also mention of Matador's "wingless aircraft" and a newspaper clipping recount "Strange Aircraft Seen at Matador" dated August 31. Witnesses were named as Mr. Tomlinson, her daughter Mrs. M.B. Bethard and little Nolene Bethard and their location as HWY 70 at 12:45 p.m. The object was slow moving, shaped like a helicopter with propellers.

THE AIRSHIP FLAP: EARLY UFO'S OR STEPS IN BALLOON FLIGHT?

Copy drawn from an 1897 illustration

In 1896 and 1897 newspapers were reporting sightings of a strange and mysterious airship.  The story apparently began in April 1896 and spread back east and the last of the mystery airship stories appeared in November of 1897.

Two camps emerged concerning these stories. One said they were pure hoax and the creative work of bored newswriters competing in some vast tall tale competition.  A journalist whopper contest. 

The other point to the sightings as early day UFO's predating the more modern tales of Roswell , the '50's , and beyond.

Most believe that there were no airships of the dirigible style that early.  Although records are not often clear or witnesses consistent, it is obvious the descriptions go beyond the balloon-and-basket style familiar since the Civil War in the United States.

Yet, looking at news stories from just before this 'flap' indicate there was a lot of talk of airships, air flight, and inventors working on designs or promoting development.

In 1890 a story appeared, "An Airship That Can Fly" (Washington Post 7/18/1890, pg.1) that told the story of a Professor Campbell who tested an airship with propellers and fly it in  New York for some short distance in and around Brooklyn.

In 1891 a story, "The Mount Carmel Airship" (Washington Post, 1/16/1891. pg. 1) referred to a Mount Carmel, Ill enterprise sending an airship to the Chicago exposition.  It was described as having a buoyancy chamber 24 feet long and 6 and 1/2 fee in diameter, with propellers and rudder bringing it to 30 feet in length.  The inventor had contracted with James A. Fanning for a 12 week exhibition for $100,000.  It would fly aound the exhibition and carry 2 passengers.  This long, thin profile fits the cigar shaped craft reported in many of the sightings.

Apparently, there were entrepreneurs busy with inventors attempting to create a brave new aerial travel world.  Some may have been scammers and con men but some... Out of Burlington, Iowa came a story in July of 1891, "Collapse of an Airship Enterprise" (Washington Post, 7/19/1891, pg.3).  The company had contracted to build "Dennington Airships" and had opened 2 months prior with "$10,000,000" but were now dissolving due to a lack of stock investors. 

Although a mysterious man from Maine was cited in a San Francisco news story as being the source of the mystery crafts, most discounted it then and since.  After seeing the articles, as shown and others, maybe it was not too much off base.  It was apparent from the stories before, and the rapid development after the 'flap,' that someone had been working on developing the motorized airship, with lights, and ability to carry more than 2 passengers over a great distance.

Images of early developments in 'airships' or controlled balloons prior to the 1890's and the Great Flap:

As early 1911 this obvious prototype for the dirigible concept:

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http://www.unmuseum.org/airship.htm
http://stagescreamkc.com/2012/01/13/the-sightings/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_airship
http://thehollowearthinsider.com/go-deeper/Site_-_N_ew/Airsip1.html
http://thehollowearthinsider.com/go-deeper/Site_-_N_ew/Airship2.html
http://thehollowearthinsider.com/go-deeper/Site_-_N_ew/Airship3.html
http://www.texashillcountry.com/Stories/TheGreatAirshipMystery.htm
http://secretsofdellschau.yuku.com/topic/23/The-NotSoMysterious-Airships-Of-189697#.UVOgGBc3uuI

1948: SOME QUESTIONS

1957 Skyhook Balloon Aloft

On January 7, 1948 a pilot lost his life when his aircraft plunged to earth in southern Kentucky. Always a tragedy is the loss of life among those who bravely made up the military of the United States.  The element that has served to make the life and death of Capt. Thomas Mantell  lingering long in memory for most is the alleged connection to a) sightings of the Planet Venus, or 2) sighting of a UFO or,  3) sightings of a secret project "Skyhook" and 4) aircraft accidents and the loss of oxygen as cause.

At the time of the crash of Mantell's plane rumors exploded about the UFO angle, with wild stories spreading like proverbial wildfire that spacemen had destroyed his plane, stolen his body and other bizarre.

The almost immediate response from authorities (i.e., the Air Force) was that the ground personnel and the pilots had seen - the planet Venus.

A story of a pilot flying too high, losing oxygen and control of his craft, plunging to his death was charged to misinterpretation of the planet.  When Skyhook records were released, claimed Donald Menzel in his book on the subject of UFO's, it was discovered Columbus, Ohio was a major launching site for the Skyhook balloons.  In his book he offers a map outlining the course of said balloon from Columbus, to Kentucky and into Tennessee as it moved in an SW, S, SW arched plan.  Mysteriously the flight plans and the information gained by tracking these balloons were destroyed and no one could recall when said balloons were launched and their possible relationship to the air crash in Kentucky.

The file online of Project Blue Book for the Mantell Case makes mention of sightings in Columbus, Ohio, Kentucky and even Tennessee. It also has some reports of odd things reported in St. Louis and Kansas City and other fields notified points west and southwest from those points to report things seen.

The entire case cluster fell under the explanation of sighting of the Planet Venus.  It bounced from unexplained to explained in public records and accounts.

Kevin Randle  and the Archivist of NICAP provide two detailed and thought provoking looks at the entire episode.

Investigating some of the files related to the incident, trying to gain a 'big picture' of other things going on at the same time and developing a time line based on the events listed in the records and various published accounts, I discovered something odd.  I found the file for Columbus, Ohio ,Jan. 7, 1947 (#32) and the Columbus, Ohio, Jan. 7, 1948 (#30) that so supported the "Planet Venus" story was just 1 page of file badly faded in parts.  The summary page of the case had been rewritten on a form with the printed words "Temporary ATIC Form 329 (Jan 1952).  Nothing more, not witness form, no nothing!  Just the transcription of information onto a form about 1952 (the time frame of the noted Roberston Panel).  A suspicious corner of my mind contemplated how easy it would be to 'correct' a record in such a manner.

One of the chief problems in the use of the Air Force for the investigating of unknowns was they were also in the business of secret keeping. This no doubt helped in many cases but it also called for instances that had to create a conflict of interest. Imagine the headaches caused as they no doubt balanced so many secrets against so many people seeing things in the skies.  No wonder the official approach was a 'move along, nothing to see' attitude that had them trying to make a select set of explanations fit every shoe size of the witnesses.

Other links of note: Kevin Randle's analysis

THE MOTHER SHIPS?

In 1 September of 1966 in Tulsa, Oklahoma a Civil Air Patrol Cadet and his neighbors (3 total witnesses) observed an object at 9 p.m. They observed it move WNW for about 5 seconds. Then it stopped. It passed close to a bright star or planet and then immediately veered E x SE and was viewed for about 1 and 1/2 minutes before it headed SE. After about three minutes, the object dimmed and brightened. "Then entered a black object..."

The official conclusion for this was they had observed the satellite, orbiting at 1,000 miles, ECHO 1, passing over Tulsa area at 2100 hrs moving ESE.

The witness provided this sketch.

In the files and reports of several agencies people reported such a "mother ship" concept. The description of the deep black against a deeper black night sky, the blotting out of stars or blocking of moonlight is very evocative. It is also hard to explain by 1966 levels of air transport.

So, while the official record labels this one explained as a SATELLITE, once more reading inside the report and noting the entire scope of all witness statements provides a slightly different perspective on the whole.

The hot year of UFO's is often labeled as 1965 - but there are more reports in Project Blue Book for 1966. They also include intriguing facts.

Sept. 10 - Cairo, Ohio a sphere moved erratically, color fluctuating from white to red to blue. Balloons, theoretically, did not move erratically.

15 Nov. Minneapolis - For 30 minutes people observed a red-orange spherical object moving very fast E to W. Too long for a meteor and balloons tend to move slowly.

15 Nov. Another witness added that it was round, larger than a plane, and only one. Red part was circular. Some standardization among balloon suppliers had created an "Ice Cream Cone": a red cap at the top of the balloon (front if it collapsed and fell over horizontally) and white elsewhere with a black bock containing weather/scientific equipment. This was added - jumbled like - amid the large file of sightings for this time frame in 1966.

17 Nov. Lima, Ohio, at 5:40 p.m. there was a report of a glowing orange light in the sky.

20 Nov. Orlando, FL - Three witnesses observed 3 objects for 1  hour, small in the SSE with lights: pale blue, red and white. The lights alternated on a horizontal plane. It was about the size of a football, said one witness. There was no sound and it was at night. One investigator noted in the 38 page report, that despite the offered explanation that the witnesses had observed, Sirius or Canopus in the night sky, said "I cannot explain."

20 Nov. Bregenfield, NJ at 0430 zulu, witnesses observed one object for 1  hour moving South.
It was reported to have changed shape from round to oblong, it was larger than normal star (between tennis and basketball said one witness), had blinking red, white, blue and green lights.On two occasions seemed to have a comet like tail, briefly. It was located in the NW quadrant 60 degrees above the horizon and disappeared SW quadrant 65 degrees above horizon. It moved with a steady, slow pace and did not reveal any erratic movements. The night (Nov. 21) was clear and bright, winds calm and visibility at 15 miles.  Investigators noted it was too slow for an aircraft and no balloons were confirmed out of JFK.  The official explanation was the witnesses had seen the star DENAB.

22 Nov. - Morgantown, West Virginia, 0417 zulu (11:17 p.m. EST), a witness observed a vapor like object on or cover the moon. It did not disappear and description seems to include both something obscured (as through a vapor or haze) a large section of the moon and as a description of the color hue of the object (vapor might mean gray or pale). It was slightly larger than the moon, its edges were sharply outlined, object moved from left to right, up and down, was observed for 1/2 hour with binoculars and from the ground.  A  note was made that the moon was under constant surveillance by Northwestern University and no reports of anything strange had been made. The conclusion was the seldom used PBB term "Other" and in this case it referred to "probably local and unusual meteorological condition."

Texas Event Revisited

Lubbock, Texas "Lights" - The official answer at the time was a flock of Plovers (birds) but Wildlife informed the USAF that they seldom traveled in that large a group and attempts to capture a flock of geese failed to compare.

A recent story out of Canada shows a flight of some avian creatures over a city there. Yet, the end result was more abstract and fluid than the tightly formed formations captured by a photographer in Texas.

In fact, a search of video revealing birds mimicking the behaviors claimed in the Texas incident seem to be hard to locate online.  One exemption is this MUFON 2014 video in Utah capturing glowing birds in flight and formation (strong to a V type formation).

Recent Movie Takes on UFO's Worth Watching

The 2018 offering, "UFO" (Sony) is described as "Derek (Alex Sharp) a brilliant college student, haunted by a childhood UFO sighting, believes that mysterious sightings reported at multiple airports across the United States are UFO’s. With the help of his girlfriend, Natalie (Ella Purnell), and his advanced mathematics professor, Dr. Hendricks (X-Files’ Gillian Anderson), Derek races to unravel the mystery with FBI special agent Franklin Ahls (David Strathairn) on his heels. Written and Directed by Ryan Eslinger, UFO was produced by Jeffery Sharp, Tom Rice and Evan Hayes; and executive produced by Jim Kohlberg, Siegfried Harris."

It is a realistic, scientifically plausible, and engaging look at how the process of meaningful contact may depend on the brightest and the most willing to think outside the box of conservative educational and scientific views. It also underscores the need for mastery of the hard sciences: the higher math and complex sciences.  The people with individuals able to do those - and have the support of the institutions and society behind them will be the ones to finally answer the puzzle - are we alone? I many ways a thinking person's movie about possibilities.

When Hollywood Scared the Air Force

The 1956 documentary style movie, "UFO" did not sit well with Air Force top officials. It was banned from being seen, reviewed, or otherwise promoted in or through official publications or base movie theaters.  It includes many of the people involved in some early sightings - as themself - and treats the subject matter in a series news style that is a vast departure from later 'tongue-in-cheek' news reports.   See the article at Turner Classics here.

The Condon Study and Report

"The Condon Committee was the informal name of the University of Colorado UFO Project, a group funded by the United States Air Force from 1966 to 1968 at the University of Colorado to study unidentified flying objects under the direction of physicist Edward Condon. The result of its work, formally titled Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects, and known as the Condon Report, appeared in 1968. After examining hundreds of UFO files from the Air Force's Project Blue Book and from the civilian UFO groups National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) and Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (APRO), and investigating sightings reported during the life of the Project, the Committee produced a Final Report that said the study of UFOs was unlikely to yield major scientific discoveries. The Report's conclusions were generally welcomed by the scientific community and have been cited as a decisive factor in the generally low level of interest in UFO activity among academics since that time. According to a principal critic of the Report, it is "the most influential public document concerning the scientific status of this UFO problem. Hence, all current scientific work on the UFO problem must make reference to the Condon Report."

The final version of this collaborative study with the USAF and the National Academy of Sciences (who funded it) was The Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects  published as a massive 957 page hardback from E.P. Dutton and a paperback from Bantam Books (both in 1969).  






Cited as being the objective and scientific study the subject had long demanded, it was clear that many of the same problems plagued it as the early Robertson Panel and the entire Air Force project from Sign to Blue Book.  

Cherry picked cases that fulfilled the requirement that the Air Force only acknowledge those they had an explanation for (re AFR 200-2) and those that suited the need to reinforce the ability of science to provide answers, it fell short of expectations.

The leaked communication between Condon and others about how best to "tweak" the process and to do the trick of making it look like they were being objective while driving toward a predetermined conclusion would seriously taint the study.

The Machiavellian machinations of the government and such studies served to merely turn eyes away from traditional forms of authority and engender a growing mistrust in such institutions.

An increasingly educated populace, growing up with new frames of scientific references, did not appreciate the tactics of the post-war world: patronizing, condescending, attitudes slapping labels of drunk, crazy, and unbalanced on anyone who saw something strange or disagreed with official stories/explanations. 

Many of the people, remember, who were seeing and reporting these odd things in the skies were trained pilots, observers, educators, control tower personnel, scientists, and law enforcement. All the cream of society in matters of reputation and skills. The poor uneducated farmers. miners, truck drivers, and housewives of an earlier time that could be accused of drinking too much and seeing pink saucers - were not as easily silenced.

What could have been a truly balanced, objective and valuable tool was compromised by the cases fed it, the attitudes and prejudices of those investigating it and the predetermined goals behind the collaboration in the first place. This study became the tool that finally disbanded the Air Force public participation in investigations of things in the skies known as "U.F.O.'s"

Man had reached the moon, the nation was the master of the space race, and the heady euphoria of such success must have felt like the 1947-1969 era was truly behind them. 

Then the seventies appeared...

Donald Keyhoe Interview

Donald E. Keyhoe, graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy Annapolis was in active service with the U.S. Marine Corps, managed the tour of the historic plane used by Bennet and Bryd in the North Pole flight, was an aide to Charles Lindbergh after the famous Paris flight and was chief of information for the Aeronautics Branch, Department of Commerce.  He was a leading figure in NICAP and other public venues pushing for more research, more information and more openness between citizen searchers and government agencies.

He became the official bulldog of the early decades of the UFO phenomena, a Don Quixote tilting his lance at the windmills of government bureaucracy and secrecy on the behalf of the public's right to information. Like Professor Harold Hill of Music Man fame, he was the "raspberry seed in the wisdom tooth" of the the United States Air Force" - along with the dozens and dozens of citizen investigation groups (the spectrum of the serious to the fringe elements) dotting the American landscape from 1947 through 1969 (the heydey of these open groups). 

The parental "Government Knows Best" of the War years was fading but not everyone in government or the military had recognized that fact. The seeds of the social rebellion of the 1960's were already sprouting in response to social factors such as the coming of age post war babies, the nasty taste of the McCarthy era, and the rising social consciousness of millions that actions have consequences requiring as many voices to be heard as possible to insure that democracy could flourish. Add to this the scientific explosion that on one side said "anything is possible!" but on the other side said "anything BUT alien beings, crafts, or something science cannot identify."

Keyhoe was the forerunner of this new line in the sand, open mindedness, that will drive certain segments of society insane over the following decades.  Here is his interview with Mike Wallace in 1958.

Documents

Air Force Press Release 629-49. Preliminary Studies on Flying Saucers, April 27, 1949."The mere existence of some yet unidentified flying objects necessitates a constant vigilance...on the part of the civilian population. Answers have been - and will be - drawn from such factors as guided missile research activity, balloons, astronomical phenomena...but there are still question marks...The saucers are not jokes. Neither are they cause for alarm."

Air Force Press Release, c December 30, 1949. The Air Force denies the existence of flying saucers. "It will never be possible to say with certainty that any individual did not see a space ship, an enemy missile, or some other object."

Donald Keyhoe. "The Flying Saucers are Real." True Magazine. January 1950.

Donald Keyhoe. "The Flying Saucers Are Real." Gold Medal Books (Fawcett), New York, 1950.

Air Force Press Release, c February 22, 1950. Air Force reiterates there is no such thing as flying saucers.

"Air Technical Intelligence Briefing." Air Technical Intelligence Center. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. c1957.

"Aids to Identification of Flying Objects."
 Apparently emerged from European based Air Force and submitted by a C.C. Rogers "Buck", a Colonel, USAF, DCS/Intelligence. c 1957 (based on letter dated 25 April 1957).

"Preliminary Study of Flying Saucers."

"Unidentified Flying Objects.' For use with Ground Observer Corp Personnel.

Where Are the Finding Tools?

Surveying the files of Project Blue Book et al, I am struck by the absence of the finding tools being included in the records file. This would be the indexes, the 'see also' lists, and other cross reference type aids to locating obscure data within the massive 10,000 plus files this project held.

In the early days of clerical file systems, library and archives systems, these were crucial because there was no desk-top computer.  If someone wanted to see what files contained a specific type of sighting, a location, a researcher, a project, and a specific explanation, there would have been a master list to enable the file clerk or librarian to quickly access requested material.  If a group conducted a study related to the holdings this would be crucial or vast wasted hours of staff time would be wasted repeatedly. 

If a researcher wanted to see what sightings had been turned over to Project Twinkle - Dr. LaPaz' study of the odd green fireballs that were being seen in the late 1940s and 1950's in the southwest - how much time would it have taken for staff to access and retrieve that data?  This question might have been very crucial as rocket and early satellite developments occurred; what might the risk be to that expensive equipment by this large, powerful and not truly understood bolides be to that project?

These are the questions a library professional has after studying the files.  After computers arrived, the cataloging, indexing, access and retrieval would have been much easier. Hyperlink search systems would have made every word retrieval possible depending on how detailed the indexing program was. Early computers in the library often saw (into the 1990's) vast binders of lists showing titles, subjects and authors (usually printed out on daisy wheel printers!).  Were these tossed as obsolete despite the potential historic value and the more than possible technical problems when computer access might be limited?

Did they keep the indexes to show to changes of status in the files? When the July 1947 Oak Ridge, Tennessee sighting of a gold round object based on a series of photos. There were 19 pages in the report but no witness form. There was just photographs.Did the index explain why the event showed up on another list as being explained as an "Other" and a notation of it having to do with some research and development project? The cover sheet is a later version form and thus indicates the file was relabeled to indicate the photos were the result of development error and that "subject never seen visually" that begs the question why did the witness take the photos in the first place?

This index,  however, might be extremely sensitive and reveal secrets that were important enough to keep the Air Force project working despite three attempts to close it down and multiple statements that the Air Force had proven the U.F.O.'s presented no threat.

That might have been enough to see them tossed on the fire, put through a shredder, or hidden away.

Would We Really Panic?

For long decades the belief has been - supported by sociologists and psychologists - that the public reaction to news that, "Yes, Virginia, UFO's are real..." would be unadulterated panic, hysteria, and fear.

Childhood is filled with the potentially frightful, terrors and horrors imagined in the dark, and great big unexplained things that seem to tower over us. Yet, we are taken, step-by-step into an awareness of understanding the reality that surrounds us, adapting to its strangeness, overcoming fears and frights with great success.

In scanning old newspapers, documents, and statements of people who claimed to have seen extraordinary things in the skies they occasionally say they were frightened, awe-struck, dazzled, curious, and confused. I have yet to find any report of people who ran off in screams and terror. The blood may have pumped a little faster as their hearts galloped but not to the degree the newspapers and the military/government seemed to want them to experience.

In reading the 1963 work "The World of Flying Saucers" by Project Blue Book consultant Donald H. Menzel and co-author Lyle G. Boyd, the terms pop up so often they seem to jump off the page. These events caused "panic", made people "hysterical," and caused them to run around in a constant state of "anxiety" and " fear".  Then reading some of the military press releases and newspaper editorials the same terms keep popping out. 

Yes, the people viewing the event might be excited but that is not being hysterical. They might be frightened by a momentary unknown but that is not being in a panic.

Fortified by movie images of people running in terror from alien attacks - from War of the Worlds and The day the Earth Stood Still to modern films such as Independence Day, the stereotype of first contact derives from wartime and military models.  Anyone being attacked could expect to respond in terror, to panic, and to become hysterical - but no one in the sightings (with one or two exceptions) ever felt they were in danger of being attacked.

Recent articles discussing the 'soft disclosure' presumed by the release of some information from the military and releases by various international governments, have also used the terms of panic, hysteria and terror (see https://www.independent.com/2019/08/20/ufos-in-santa-barbara-%E2%80%95-do-you-believe/).

Anthropological arguments stemming from the meeting of unevenly matched civilizations may contain some truth but can we also learn from those experiences to prepare people for accepting the reality of a off world life form, for accepting that this should not challenge the basics of spiritual beliefs or challenge the role of religion in human life (since no religion has identified that such things are impossible in their cosmology) and finally, accepting that a strong peaceful and diplomatic relationship based on safeguarding human culture's best aspects be in place.

As the governments and military continue to operate 'in loco parentis', saving us from ourselves, firmly believing we have not the intelligence or ability to enlarge our understanding of the universe (or multi-verses) they merely compound problems and hinder the productive development and maturity of our human species.

The dramatic scene in A Few Good Men where the character of the commanding officer played by Jack Nicholson responds to the demand that the truth with: "You can't handle the truth!"

It has been over fifty years since the Summer of '47 saw so many unexplained burst into the skies of the Earth. I think we are old enough to handle the truth...

CULTISTS AND CONTACTEES: a topic outside the issue

In the ancient world, unusual items seen in the sky were cast in understandable frameworks of that time: flaming chariot wheels, spinning lamps, blazing torches, angelic, demonic or good like figures and the like.

In the Middle Ages - Europe - the world was defined by religion and so angelic and religious symbology was apparent in accounts.  Demons and heavenly beings battled overhead and for those more prone to their pagan roots the creatures might be a dragon or a warrior.

In the 1879's the first use of the household item, a saucer, was used in Texas to describe an object seen flying through the sky.  In1947, Kenneth Arnold attempts to find words to define what he saw as nine objects moving like stones or saucers skipped across a pond...

When confronted with something new and beyond the frame of common reference a person would struggle to find a way to complete the sentence, "It was like a ---."

In all of those time periods were also people who claimed they had encounters with a) the gods, b) their minions, c) mythic creatures, and d) had adventures and returned with mission to share a message for others.  This framework remained the same regardless of the time and changed to reflect what ever was a prevalent symbol in the culture.

Therefore many scholars who have looked at the broad topic of Contactees argue that they should not be examined as part of the UFO Phenomena at all.  They exist outside that experience (whatever one wishes to call the experience) and merely cloaks itself in the clothes of flying saucers, UFO's, abductions, contacts, travels, and messages of space love and fellowship in the same way that older societies utilized the tenets of the Church, the Dueling forces of Good (God and Angels) and Evil (Satan and his demons), to explain or conjure strange objects, unexplained events or missional messages of salvation and safety from destruction.

Timing, Midirection and Slieght of Hand

Magicians guard their secrets but one they share is the concept of misdirection, "Yes, look at the scantly clad lovely lady and not at me..."   In the early days of the 'Flying Saucer' and the 'Flying Disc' this was a common move as the U.S. Army Air Force , U.S. Navy, and the U.S. Army and then primarily the U.S.Air Force scurried to assure Americans there was no cause for alarm.

Images of many front pages of July 8 and July 9 1947 (the Roswell, NM dates) illustrates that this might have been part of the broader canvas of events at the time.

"Secret Atomic Data is Stolen: Part of U.S. Files Recovered" is the banner headline for several newspapers across the nation that two-day period. The theft of data was an account of a search that actually began the year before but was suddenly in the news with the "White House denies knowledge of theft. " The timing of this is interesting as a Chairman for the senate committee, Bourke B. Hickenlooper, pointed out the theft occurred while the War Department was in charge of the $2,000,000,000 atomic energy plant.

Below that - in various levels of type size - is the story of the Army Disc being found or more often the Army Disc emptied as Army and Navy began a "concerted effort" to stop rumors in their tracks. As one headline made the rounds, "Army Disc Story Brings Rebuke" and "Reports of Flying Saucers Fall Off."

Another oddly timed piece from the United Press was "Flying Saucer in Hand Worth at Least $3000: Rewards offered in Chicago, Spokane, and Los Angles."

Let us touch on that concerted effort of the Army and the Navy at scotching the rumors of objects in the skies.

General Ramey in Fort Worth will go on radio to jump start the whole debunking phase of the event. He will claim that only certain kinds of people had been seeing such things. He made the jest that they had been reported from everywhere but Kansas, because Kansas was a "dry state." Avoiding the fact reports had come in from the Sunflower state.

The El Reno Daily News (OK) for July 8 printed some of the standard press release information going out : "U.S. Army officers discounted theories that the flying saucers are secret weapons for use in bacteriological warfare. They said it was significant that none of the discs had yet shown up on army radar."  Interestingly, the news from Roswell had not made to the newspaper in time for it showing up in that newspaper. So, the attitude on the front page was pretty ho-hum. Inside was a short filler compressing the discovery and disclaimer in under three inches of type.

The general article, however, said some interesting things in light of following events: "The Army and ground forces announced that they were investigating the reported cloud hopping discs with an open mind. But privately, high ranking army officers said they believed the saucers were a hoax and that some persons were victims of hysteria."

Parse that one for a moment.... "cloud hopping" immediately puts tongue in cheek. Open mind is a paternalistic turn of phrase especially when followed by "but privately".....code words.

The approach was going to be placate the crazies, jab a finger at the hoaxers and label anyone else a hysterical ninny.

It would work for many years....

EAST TECHNIQUES FOR OBSCURING INFORMATION

The following are techniques I encountered as I explored the files of Project Blue Book and various published reports on the subject. Review also the major tools of propaganda for pointers just as handy.

• 1.       Selectively choose the data or statements to include in the summary of the case. Select weak cases so that "Straw Men" can be constructed and then torn down point by point with a metaphorical and self-congratulatory 'Ha-Ha!'

• 2.       A “probable” is a definite: if it is suggested someone probably saw a meteor – go with that; they probably saw the planet Venus – go with that.

• 3.       Whenever possible call into question the veracity, reliability, age, mental state, or general character of a witness.  If witness are highly trained, well qualified, experts in a field requiring more than average soundness of character or reliability – ignore their total accounts. If military personnel are reporting, downgrade all low ranking individuals regardless of training or experience.

• 4.       In all cases ignore most of what the witnesses report: ignore claims of size, shape, speed, maneuvers, or colors that do not conform to known crafts or capabilities. Shuffle to the top the poorest and easiest discarded sighting. Slap a suitable explanation on it (probably aircraft, probably astronomical, probably balloon, probably..etc. If those fail use "Insufficient Data" (It is not unknown that tends to leave us holding the bag, so lay the blame on the reporter, 'if they had just given us more to work with....' Sign regretfully)

• 5.       Hide good information or reports in files labeled “Illegible” or obscure by some other means. In a truly borderline sighting case, hide the many significant reports with unanswerable elements. Misplace them in another file - that works well. Address on the summary page ONLY the borderline case.

• 6.       Encourage the development of databases formulated on the conclusions of the cover statements. For as long as possible, even though they are declassified, keep people from easy access to the files. Gatekeep the information with nomenclature, codes, overly specific data requests, or time/staff/funding excuses.  Do this for as long as possible so the conflicts and lack of full disclosures are hidden.   Do allow easy access to the  sheet summaries and discourage access or examinations of the interior reports and witness statements 

• 7.    Dis-order the files in such a manner that parts of reports go missing, letters are parsed, and reports do not contain information.

• 8. When making public statements learn to parse statements to avoid the truth while seeming to tell the truth.  It is a skill used by lawyers who have a client guilty of beating his wife to a pulp who proclaim, "My client did not shoot his wife!!"   True, but lacking in so much....

PINBALL RESEARCH FILES

Like those charming Russian nesting dolls where each doll lifts to reveal another, smaller, doll hidden inside the one before, the files of Project Blue Book often have stories hidden in reports within investigations.  Only the most naive of researchers can look at these files and accept the summation as the total picture of the events labeled.  Some files barely touch on the event on the label or summary page.  The files resemble the track of a pinball as it zips here and there across a landscape of potential traps and trip wires. The result is often lacking in cohesion or clarity.

The file is labeled Oct. 23, 1969 – Vandalia, Ohio a Project Blue Book Case. In it the sparse facts are recounted that witness observed an object that moved W to NW; was shaped like a brown ball; 8 ft in diameter; flashlight style focused light; Conclusion: balloon or garment bag balloon. This startling finale required 12 pages to report.    Inside this report, however, was a telex style page: “OK Air Force Station reported employees of some (blacked out business) picked up UFO on radar at Wink, TX and followed it to Salt Flats, NM." The report went on to explain that between Wink, Texas and Salt Flats, New Mexico was a distance of 95 miles.  Also noted, and possibly unrelated, was a power outage reported at Tinker;  Nellis reported a downed F-4 near a Nevada Test site.  Meanwhile, or in addition to this, the OBJECT was tracked to NM 2500 knots.  At 5 miles south of Salt Flats object STOPPED for 4 sweeps of radar then grew smaller and faded out. ZUNI NMEX reported UFO – low to surface full of oscillating lights. UFO demonstrated ability to move in any direction slow or fast; observed through binoculars low to horizon with oscillating lights. No a/c in area. Report showed diagram that object climbed and descended as well as following a straight line.

WHEN FOOT DRAGGING HAS A PURPOSE: 1967 NEBRASKA SIGHTING

Nov. 1967 (may be Nov. 8) – 70 miles West of Omaha, NE. 

Object reported was round, large, yellow ball changing from red to yellow to white; very fast; 6 more tracked by radar; visual 2-4 min. 

In the PBB file was a “discrepancy report” indicating a problem with the Air Force communicating to the University of Colorado study of UFO's pertinent information for them to analyze.   This delay was a promised report...that took months to finally materialize and with some excuses to rival "my dog ate my homework."

R. Craig to E.U Condon, 21 Feb 1968 “re: comment on air base cooperation with the CU-UFO Project about Nov. 8, 1967 sighting by a military pilot while airborne near Chicago Center Visual Observation and radar. Pilot Major Vanevehoven, Ouffitt AFB, officer interviewing Capt. Roy Cunningham. Tapes of Dec. 19 conversation w pilots (TWA and other) destroyed; All information sent to Chanute AFB Command Post. Reports sent to Ouffitt AFB.'

“As of Feb 21 1968” no report rec’d by Colorado Project.” That kicked it up the chain of command. and a letter from Project Blue Book administrator was the next specimin. 

Letter “Hector Quintella, Lt. Col.” Dated May and April. “FOR COMMANDER” This label seems to be the equivilent of a notice that this matter will be brought to the Commander's attention.  It has the unmistakable quality of threat in those capital letters and the context.

Letter dated June from Cunningham continued the excuses by saying Vanenhoven had been on vacation [note: since Jan?? This seems an excessive amount of time for a vacation....], he also implies all sightings had been on radar.  In fact the letters and reports state just that:“2. While on mission…he noted a fast moving return on the radar scope.” “The objects were never sighted visually or otherwise identified.” 

In the file, HOWEVER, is a form filled out via phone call with the PILOT who hailed from Bellville, NEB.  He clearly described the colors, speed,  and noted five other (as in addition to) objects had been seen on the scope.

The story then, interpreted, appears to express the idea that strange round objects - colors ranging from red to yellow to white, moving very fast, had been observed by pilots in a plane by their naked eye. Other objects had shown up on the electronic radar equipment. 

The fact that the report was delayed, that the facts were so obscured and 'rearranged' that is clearly apparent SOMETHING was in the skies seventy miles west of Omaha that night in November 1967.

[Project Blue Book File 1967 11 6875066]71mileswestofOmahaNebraska]