Rio de Janerio, Brazil, May 1952May 1952

In May 1952, two photographers working for O Cruzeiro magazine in Rio de Janeiro reported photographing a "flying disc" over the Barra da Tijuca, a beach area northwest of the city. According to their account, the object appeared briefly on May 7 at around 4:30 p.m., approached from the southeast, made a sharp 180-degree turn, and departed toward the sea at high speed. The photographers claimed to have taken five pictures during the minute the object was visible. The disc was described as blue-gray in color, silent, and roughly the size of a DC-4 aircraft or larger.

The Air Force investigation was hampered by the fact that the photographers, João Martins and Ed Keffel, initially refused to release their photographic negatives without compensation. They asked first for $25,000 for worldwide publication rights, then lowered the price but eventually demanded only credit line acknowledgment when Life magazine expressed interest. Life's photo experts examined the prints and concluded they were likely a hoax, noting that shadows cast by a dome on the object did not align with shadows cast by trees and mountains in the foreground, which would be impossible if both were illuminated by the same sun. The magazine ultimately rejected the photographs.

An intelligence summary noted that because the original negatives were never made available for proper technical analysis, it was impossible to reach a definitive conclusion about the photographs' authenticity. However, investigators suggested that the changing asking price and the eventual withdrawal of the negatives for a simple credit line rather than cash raised serious questions about whether the sighting was genuine. The file indicates the Air Force remained skeptical of the entire incident.

The full case file, as held by the National Archives, is reproduced below across 55 pages.