Keesler AFB, MississippiFebruary 1956

Insufficient Data

Summary

On February 7, 1956, observers at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, saw a cluster of objects. The Greenwich time was 1400Z. The objects were seen from the ground, from the air, and on ground radar. The observers were military.

A base operations officer reported an object approaching from the west at high altitude and slow speed. Officers viewed it through a theodolite and identified it as a cluster of three very large plastic balloons tied together. Aircraft also reported the objects: a C-54 saw them above it, an F-86 reported them at about 42,000 feet over Dauphin Island, and another aircraft reported three objects at high altitude. Ground radar picked up an object as well. The cluster was moving east at about 60 knots toward the Florida coast.

The case is filed under Project 10073, the Air Force's official record for unidentified flying object reports. The Air Force conclusion was that the objects were definitely identified as a balloon cluster.

Reported location

Keesler AFB, Mississippi

Date of incident

February 1956

State / country

MS / US

Page count

4 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 24

Original case file scans

Original case file · scanned by NARAPage 1 of 4

View transcribed text

|
; : PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD
| 1. DATE 2. LOCATION | 12. CONCLUSIONS
g : : bax Was Balloon
7 February 1956 Keesler AFB, Mississippi ia Probably Bellen
J 3. DATE-TIME GROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION AR RL AU
4 tlocal Lot RXGround- Visual XDGround-Radar E Ua
__ GMT 07/1400Z Rir- Visual 0 Air-Intercept Radar ie Possibly Aircraft
: 5. PHOTOS 6. SOURCE DO Wos Astronomical
z i O Yes A 0 Probably Astronomical
7 i XX No Military C Possibly Astronemical
1 | 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9, COURSE He od ov eR ST AR
; drifting easyn Dlstitctant Data for Evaluction
| see description three BE ob knota, | a0
| 10. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING 11. COMMENTS : ; i
| Three objects in a cluster were sighte Definitely identified as |
2 from the ground at Keesler AFB, sighte balloon cluster, :

i i? =: 1
1 from the air, and picked up on ground ra :
1 radar, By utilization of a thoedolite ; :
3 it was ascertained that the objects |
: were balloons ef a large type.tied ¢ f
E together, The balloons were moving
4 towards the ®ast at 60 knots,
[
3 naw ad se H
E ATIC FORM 32% (REV 26 SEP 52)

i LY

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Source: National Archives Catalog · NAID 28964810