Paris, IllinoisMarch 1955

In March 1955, Eugene Metcalf of Paris, Illinois reported witnessing what he described as a jet aircraft being abducted by an unidentified flying object. According to Metcalf's account, around 5:30 p.m. on March 9, he was standing in his backyard when he saw a jet plane traveling from the southwest toward the northeast. He claimed that an odd craft with an opening came up behind the plane and "swallowed it." After taking the plane, the object hovered, pulsated up and down, and whirled upward while releasing vapor from portholes around its bottom. Metcalf described the UFO as bright silver and noted he heard no sound during the incident.

The sighting gained attention from the Telonic Research Center, a private UFO research organization with a wide membership. Because the case had been publicized by this group and because Metcalf claimed he continued to see similar objects over a year after the original sighting, the Air Force requested a formal investigation.

The 4602d Air Intelligence Service Squadron, based at Ent Air Force Base in Colorado, conducted the investigation as requested. In their report, investigators concluded that "the source is completely unreliable." The Air Force's initial assessment also noted concerns about the report, describing it as possibly a hoax or the product of an overactive imagination. A notation in the file states that "sighting attributed to hallucination or other psychological cause." The investigation included consideration of whether any classified bomber-parasite pick-up tests might have been conducted in the area, though no evidence suggested this was the case.

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