Pantelleria Island, Mediterraenean, June 1955June 1955

Insufficient Data

Summary

On a June morning in 1955, the captain, first officer, and radio operator of a Dutch tanker observed an oblong object in the sky above the Mediterranean Sea near Pantelleria Island. The object hovered at about 7,000 meters (roughly 23,000 feet) altitude, emitted a strong light, and appeared to fall from the sky before stopping and hovering in place. For about 16 minutes, the object remained stationary, wavering slightly in the air. Then it gradually became smaller and smaller until it disappeared entirely. Other tankers in the vicinity reported seeing the same phenomenon.

The sighting was reported to Amsterdam on June 30, 1955, according to an Air Force intelligence summary extracted from German sources. The report noted that the evidence was limited and offered little detail beyond the initial observations.

The Air Force file indicates that no clear conclusion was reached. The cover sheet marks the case as "unknown" in the evaluation column, while also noting "Insufficient data for evaluation" in the comments section. Beyond the basic account from the ship's officers, the file contains no follow-up investigation, radar confirmation, or further analysis to explain what the witnesses saw.

The full case file, held by the National Archives, spans 19 pages as preserved on microfilm roll T1206, Roll 23.

Reported location

Pantelleria Island, Mediterraenean, June 1955

Date of incident

June 1955

State / country

? / XX

Page count

19 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 23

L De a [at La AEA, fat er RSI RR EE RR AY RT RARAR fe 4 TT OT T—— \ i ee PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD | 1. DATE 2. LOCATION 112. CONCLUSIONS | 30 June 1955 antelleria Island, Maditerracnean |B Was Balloon | O Probably Balloon | ; |'3. bATE-TIME GROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION 7 holt told Deady | Local morning 00000 Xtr'Ground- Visual O Ground-Rador f Brae sitvardy a EE ini 0 AirVisual O Air-Intercept Radar | DO Possibly Aircraft | 5. PHOTOS of SOURCE 0 Was Astronomical O Yes O Probably Astronomicol | EX No aivilian L: 0 Possibly Astronomical 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9. COURSE Lo SRR) gy REE RAR SOOT, (1 : 16 min + 1 grils @ ibid Data for Evaluation ] 19. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING : 11. COMMENTS : b Obj, oblong, emitted a strong light. Appeared | Not much info in orginial rpt. to"fall" fr sky then stood wavering and Insufficient data for evaluation. gradually became smaller and smaller : ATIC FORM 329 (REV 26 SEP 52) | : Di SRR RAG SE ida a i '