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This Project Blue Book case file, digitized by the Internet Archive, covers Incident 144: two Eastern Airlines pilots reported that a wingless, cigar-shaped object with a flaming exhaust passed their DC-3 about 20 miles southwest of Montgomery, Alabama, on 24 July 1948. The file includes an OSI interview with a Robins Air Force Base employee who saw a similar object, negative aircraft traffic reports from many bases, and later correspondence. A December 1948 intelligence report found fairly consistent descriptions across four related sightings.
“The Wash”11 pages
Incident 144 -- near Montgomery, Alabama -- 24 July 1943 144a, b -- near Blackstones, Virginia -- 24 July 1943 The famous "space snip" signin; reported in indicnt 144 should be compared with 163 and 203, and also with 144 and b, which to other constitute a separate incident if facts are correct as given. for 144, there is no astronomical explanation if we accept the report at face value. The sheer improbability of the facts as stated, particularly in the absence of any known aircraft in the vicinity, makes it necessary to see whether any other explanation, even though far fetched, can be considered. The two reliable pilots obviously saw something. If one extracts from their reports parts of the description -- "trendous bursts of flame," "cirg-shaped," "disappeared into a cloud," "orange-red flame," "time in sight five to ten seconds" -- one sees that this much, at least, could be satisfied by a brilliant, slow-moving meteor. The orange-red flame is particularly suggestive. It is pertinent also, that the only passenger awake at the time the two pilots sighted the object gave a description that does not tally with that of a "space ship" but does agree with that of a meteor. It will move to be left to the psychologists to tell us whether the immediate trail of a light netor could produce the subjective impression of a ship with lighted windows. Jonsiaorin; only the sighting, the hypothesis seems very impro- able. However, not included in the summary but mentioned in the
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