Navy Chase, TexasSeptember 1957

A pilot and copilot flying 42,000 feet near Navy Chase, Texas on the night of September 24-25, 1957, spotted something unusual in the dark sky about 28 miles west of their position. The object began as a bright light that cycled through red, yellow, white, and blue colors, repeating the same sequence over and over. At first the crew thought they were watching an aircraft, but after a few minutes of observation, they concluded it was definitely not any plane they had ever seen.

The object hovered in one spot for several minutes without moving. Then it changed to red, shifted to yellow, and suddenly accelerated to a very high speed, heading roughly southwest. The aircraft was cruising at 150 knots and could not gain on the object no matter what the pilots did. Within seconds, the object faded away in the distance. The sighting lasted roughly five to ten minutes. No radar contact was established, and no unusual disturbances appeared on the aircraft's compass or radio during the encounter.

The Air Defense Command investigated by sending an airborne observer data sheet to the pilot. The investigating officer also contacted flight services and military operations in the Beeville, Texas area but found no evidence of any refueling operations or other aircraft activity that night. The command's conclusion was "probably balloon," noting that although no balloon activity could be confirmed, the general characteristics described in the pilot's report were consistent with that explanation. The Air Force's official evaluation of the case was marked as unidentified.

The full case file of 25 pages is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.