Redlands, CaliforniaDecember 1958

In December 1958, a civilian in Redlands, California, reported seeing an unidentified flying object, though the details of the sighting were unusual and problematic.

The observer, who worked as an electrician, took a photograph that he intended for another purpose. The object appeared on the developed film as a large jet aircraft-shaped object, roughly the size of a dime held at arm's length. The image showed three dark objects on top of a vertical line, with a trail or exhaust about half the size of the main object. The observer reported that the object appeared to travel in a nearly straight line from east to southeast.

The Air Force received the report on December 16, 1958, through the 27th Air Division at Norton Air Force Base. Officials requested the film negative and examined both the photograph and the observer's account. However, the investigation revealed a serious inconsistency. The observer stated that he did not see the object until after the film was developed. Yet his report claimed the object was observed for approximately twenty seconds. The camera exposure, according to the file, was only one fiftieth of a second. This contradiction made it impossible to determine whether the object was actually seen in real time or only appeared on the film as an artifact.

In February 1959, the Air Technical Intelligence Center returned the negative to the observer and formally concluded that the report contained insufficient data for a valid analysis. An internal Air Force note suggested the object might have been a lenticular cloud, a lens-shaped formation that can appear unusual in photographs. The full case file, comprising 13 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.