Culpaper, VirginiaJune 1949

On June 3, 1949, a civilian driving about ten miles southeast of Culpeper, Virginia saw a shiny, disc-shaped object traveling across the sky at an estimated speed of 900 to 1,500 miles per hour. The sighting lasted only five to six seconds. The observer described the object as silver in color and roughly the size of a five or six room house. It was flying horizontally at an altitude of 1,500 to 2,000 feet and appeared to be about two miles away.

The most distinctive feature of the sighting was the object's maneuver. According to the report, it banked into the sun at tremendous speed before disappearing from view. The observer heard no sound and saw no exhaust or trail. The weather at the time was clear, with visibility of at least fifteen miles.

The observer was a self-employed cabinet maker with some relevant experience. He held a private pilot's license and had logged approximately 300 hours of flight time. The interrogator noted that he had military experience with the Criminal Investigation Division, during which he had learned to identify all types of aircraft, yet he could not identify what he saw. The interrogator assessed him as having average intelligence and considered him a reliable witness based on reports from neighbors.

No photographs, physical evidence, or corroborating witnesses were obtained. The Air Force evaluation listed the conclusion as "Astro (METEOR)," though the case file provides no detailed analysis explaining this determination.

The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, comprising 10 pages.