San Antonio, TexasApril 1959

On the evening of April 17, 1959, a mother and her adult son were driving on W.W. White Road near San Antonio, Texas when the mother pointed out an unusual object in the sky. The son, riding in the front right seat of a 1959 Ford, watched as the object appeared to the north-northwest at about 15 degrees above the horizon. It was roughly the size of an orange held at arm's length, rectangular with a slightly pointed front, and bright yellow like a flame. Trailing behind it was a tail or exhaust plume at least ten times longer than the body itself.

The object moved in a northerly direction, then curved downward and finally turned to travel slowly southward. It became fainter and eventually disappeared behind a grove of trees. The entire sighting lasted approximately 15 minutes. The witnesses reported hearing no sound from the object.

The Air Force report notes that the San Antonio area experiences considerable air traffic from both conventional and jet aircraft at all times of day. Military aircraft in the region, particularly those flown by the Air Training Command, have bright orange fluorescent markings that can be seen from great distances. The report also mentions that numerous searchlights are operated by commercial establishments in San Antonio for advertising purposes. Based on these facts, the reporting officer concluded the object was probably either a searchlight beam playing on clouds or an aircraft in the vicinity at the time of the sighting.

The full case file, consisting of 7 pages as held by the National Archives, is reproduced below.