Clark AFB, Phillipines, November 1948 - Incident Number: [ILLEGIBLE]November 1948

On November 12, 1948, a sergeant stationed at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines watched something strange cross the sky. He was in a doorway on the north side of the base, smoking and watching the clouds, when he spotted a white speck that seemed to materialize in the northeast. At first he thought it might be sky-writing, but as it moved closer and larger, he could tell it was a single solid object.

The object flew northwest toward a large cloud formation. As it emerged from the clouds, the sergeant got a clearer view. It was snow-white and had visible wings, a nose that looked short for the body length, and what appeared to be windows along the fuselage. He watched it pass through the clouds six times from different angles. The object had no visible tail assembly, just a straight body that tapered to a point. The sergeant estimated the fuselage at about 300 feet long, with a wing span roughly half that length. He heard a single roar like a jet engine and said the object flew faster than any jet he had ever seen. It appeared to circle the air base with no particular heading, moving in and out of clouds with ease.

When Air Force intelligence received the report, technical specialists questioned whether the described aircraft could actually fly. They noted that an object so long relative to its wing size would have severe balance problems, even with swept-back wings. However, they also noted that without knowing the actual distance and altitude, the sergeant could not have accurately estimated size at all, making the entire calculation unreliable. Intelligence officers asked whether foreign jet aircraft of this design existed and whether such a plane could have the range to conduct reconnaissance over the Philippines. The analysis concluded that no known domestic or foreign jet aircraft matched the description, though a theoretical 300,000-pound jet with a range of 5,000 miles would be superior to any bomber then in service.

No second sighting was reported. Weather balloon ascents from the area were checked against the sighting time but found to be four hours earlier. The complete case file, consisting of 21 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.