Nouasseur, French Morocco, March 1954March 1954

On the evening of March 5, 1954, military pilots and radar operators near Nouasseur Air Base in French Morocco reported seeing unidentified flying objects. Several aircraft in the traffic pattern, including a KC-97, a C-47, and a C-54, radioed that they had observed bright white lights near their flight path. One pilot described the lights as similar to landing lights. A pilot with eleven years of experience said the light appeared bright and came within two miles of his aircraft before either shutting off or moving behind a cloud. The objects were reported at altitudes between 1,500 and 2,000 feet in an area roughly 2 to 6 miles southwest of the base.

Radar operators at Site 1 picked up stationary targets on radar scopes at 10,000 feet and higher altitudes, roughly 20 to 25 miles south of the base. Over several hours, the radar operators reported seeing one, two, or three blips on their scopes, sometimes in formation and sometimes fading in and out. The targets remained stationary or moved very little. A weather balloon with a bright light was released at 2130 hours that evening and rose to an altitude of 10,000 to 12,000 feet, according to the weather officer.

The investigation found that pilots making final approaches to the base had likely been observing vehicle headlights on roads in the area, which under dark conditions and from their vantage point could appear to be aircraft. The Air Force concluded that the radar targets were probably caused by ground reflections from electrical lines or atmospheric phenomena (such as temperature inversions), particularly in the area where ground clutter made radar images unclear. One radar officer stated that "atmospheric phenomena" explained the radar returns. The file says the flying saucer-like lights reported by pilots in the 2 to 6 mile area were believed to be automobile lights observed through aircraft windows during extremely dark conditions.

The full case file, consisting of 23 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.