Williams, ArizonaApril 1949

On April 18, 1949, a brilliant greenish-blue flash of light appeared in the sky near Williams, Arizona. The object resembled a fireball or meteor and traveled in a straight line for one to two seconds before disappearing behind an obstacle. Multiple witnesses across northern Arizona reported seeing the phenomenon, and the Air Force launched a detailed investigation to determine what had been observed.

The primary observer was Reverend Dave Flagstaff, pastor of the Lutheran Church in Flagstaff, who was riding in a Santa Fe bus eight miles east of Williams on Highway 66. He saw a flash of brilliant light followed by the fireball at 0200 (2 a.m.) on April 18th. The object appeared approximately 30 degrees above the horizon and traveled at about 12,000 feet altitude in an easterly or north-easterly direction. Reverend Flagstaff estimated it was roughly 16 miles away and described it as greenish-blue in color. He heard no sound and was unable to judge the object's speed because the bus windows were closed and he was sitting near the engine. The fireball seemed to vanish mysteriously behind an unseen obstacle.

A second significant witness was an employee of the American Meteorite Museum located ten miles north of Flagstaff. This man, an amateur astronomer, observed the object from his home while sitting in bed at 0143 (1:43 a.m.). He watched it for about two seconds as it descended from 60 degrees above the horizon to 3 degrees. Estimating the object's brilliant glow and apparent closeness, he judged it was 75 to 100 miles high and roughly the size of a 100-watt light bulb at 25 feet. The object was round in shape, bright green with a bluish tail, and moving in a north-westerly direction. Based on its behavior, he calculated that if it was a meteorite traveling at 26.2 miles per second, it likely fell to earth somewhere north and east of Las Vegas, Nevada.

A third witness was a Continental Trailways bus driver, LES FERRY, who observed the fireball from approximately 27 miles northeast of Flagstaff while driving a Santa Fe bus on Highway 66. He saw a sudden flash of light and watched the fireball for 5 to 10 seconds at 20 to 30 degrees above the horizon, only 1,000 feet above the terrain. The object appeared blue-green, traveled in a northeasterly direction in a straight line, and disappeared behind an obstacle. Ferry heard no sound and observed no smoke or exhaust.

The Air Force investigation contacted dozens of people across the region, including astronomers at Lowell Observatory, weather bureau officials, newspaper editors, law enforcement officers, and bus company staff. Most had not witnessed the event, though some reported receiving numerous calls from residents who had seen the mysterious light. Weather reports from multiple locations showed clear to partly cloudy conditions at the time of the sighting. The file includes weather observations, newspaper articles from the Phoenix Gazette and Arizona Daily Sun, and detailed interviews with observers and officials.

The Air Force classified the object as unidentified. The case file runs 30 pages as preserved by the National Archives.