Grand Island & N. Flatt, Neb., January 1953January 1953

On the night of January 28, 1953, a C-47 transport plane flying from Omaha to North Platte, Nebraska, encountered a bright light that changed colors repeatedly over the course of 23 minutes. The crew included pilot 1st Lt. Norman Dooley, co-pilot 1st Lt. Charles M. Baker, navigator Captain James W. Tressell, and engineer Corporal Walter DeLuyper. All four men were experienced aviators.

The object first appeared when the aircraft was over Sunrise, Nebraska, roughly 15 minutes out of Grand Island. Dooley described seeing a bright light about 10 degrees to the left of their nose at an altitude apparently above them. The light appeared suddenly, as though someone had flipped a switch. To Dooley it resembled a landing light on another aircraft designed to attract their attention. As he watched, the light began to change color in a steady cycle, moving through brilliant white to pale blue to light red and back to white. The object remained directly ahead of the aircraft throughout the sighting and appeared to be about the size of a dime when held at arm's length against the windshield.

The crew contacted several ground stations and other aircraft. Grand Island radio, Lexington radio, and North Platte radio all confirmed they could see the light on the western horizon, consistent with its position relative to the aircraft. A commercial flight heading westbound reported that it had seen the same phenomenon on several nights and believed the object was the planet Venus. The crew mentioned it had studied astronomy for two years and had seen Venus before, but believed this light exhibited unusual characteristics. Another B-47 jet flying at 39,000 feet at roughly the same time could not see the object, although the crew could see its vapor trail. The object faded from view as it moved toward the horizon, covering an angular distance of about 20 degrees over approximately eight minutes. It was lost from sight at around 21:43 CST. The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, consisting of 21 pages.