Seranton, PennsylvaniaMarch 1954

On the evening of March 12, 1954, a resident of Scranton, Pennsylvania reported seeing an unusual object in the night sky while walking home. The man, a 31-year-old laborer, was heading south on Nay Aug Avenue around 1940 hours (7:40 p.m.) when he looked up and spotted what he first thought might be a comet or meteor. The object resembled a vapor trail, similar to those left behind by high-flying aircraft, and appeared to be about two feet wide. It glowed with a luminous light but had no particular color that the observer could identify.

The object moved due north at an altitude the witness could not estimate. It made no sudden maneuvers while he watched it. The trail seemed to maintain about the same length throughout the sighting. The observer heard no sound, though he noted that truck traffic on a nearby highway might have masked any noise. He watched the object for approximately 20 to 30 seconds before its brightness dimmed as ground lights created glare that made it harder to see.

The witness submitted his account to the Scranton Police Department, which forwarded it to the U.S. Air Force's Office of Special Investigations. An OSI special agent interviewed the observer on March 16, 1954. The agent noted that while the man was not a trained observer, he appeared honest and deliberate in his responses. He showed no signs of exaggeration or desire for attention. The agent rated the source and information as reliable.

The Air Force checked with the 518th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron in Benton, Pennsylvania, which maintained logs of tracked flying objects. That unit reported no objects sighted or tracked in the Scranton area on the date in question. The investigating officer found no other air traffic in the area at the time, no physical evidence of the sighting, and no unusual atmospheric or astronomical activity that might explain what was seen. The Air Force ultimately classified the sighting as unidentified. The case file reproduced below contains 7 pages as held by the National Archives.