Near Hopa, Turkey, September 1958September 1958

On the night of September 11, 1958, a U.S. Air Force officer aboard a surface vessel approaching the port of Hopa, Turkey observed an unusual series of events from the deck. While watching searchlights on the Soviet side of the nearby USSR-Turkey border, the officer noticed an unidentified object or projectile leave the ground and move out over the water at an elevation of approximately 300 feet. As soon as the object left the ground, it separated into a cluster of six to nine bright red fireballs. The objects were visible for about four seconds, then disappeared. The effect resembled Fourth of July fireworks.

The officer witnessed three separate series of these objects, appearing at 30-second intervals starting at 2115 (9:15 p.m.). After a gap in activity, a single cluster appeared around 2145 (9:45 p.m.), and another was observed at 2158 (9:58 p.m.), at which point the witness went below deck. Throughout the entire observation, no sounds accompanied the objects, and no aircraft were seen or heard. The weather was clear with no moon. Searchlights at the same location on the Soviet side were being directed intermittently skyward and horizontally over both water and land during the sightings.

The observer made seven trips to this location by surface vessel between July and September 1958, always arriving at the same time of day. While searchlights had been observed on previous visits, this was the first time the officer had witnessed this particular phenomenon. The Air Force document notes the time lapse and duration of each series as typical of tracer fire from large guns, though the file does not state a definitive conclusion about the objects' origin.

The full case file, consisting of 9 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.