Documents / Report
This is the July 1966 third edition of Dr. Leon Davidson's "Flying Saucers: An Analysis of the Air Force Project Blue Book Special Report No. 14", published by Ramsey-Wallace Corp. It reproduces early Air Force press releases, the 1953 CIA panel report, the 1966 Blue Book release and the full text of the May 1955 Special Report No. 14 with its tables and codes. Davidson also gives his view that the CIA was responsible for much saucer publicity.
Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.
# DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE OFFICE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION WASHINGTON 25, D.C. February 25,1955 Dear Mr. Davidson: This is in reply to your letter of February 22 regarding what you consider to be a change of Air Force position with respect to unidentified flying objects. The paragraph you refer to was, I discovered some time ago, omitted from the later summary. I can offer no explanation other than oversight, since the omission carries no significance. The oversight appears to be of minor importance, however, since our position in that respect has been a matter of record for a number of years. We have also made the following statement in answer to questions along this line: "We have been experimenting with new type aircraft and missiles for a long time, and possibly some of them have been reported as unidentified flying objects. However, the number of such sightings would be negligible. We have nothing which spins through the air like a disc, pulsates, glows, dematerializes, changes color, goes from a mid-air standstill to supersonic speed, soundlessly glides through the sonic barrier, or turns at square angles in full flight, as some sighters report." I might point out that your paper, submitted earlier to the Security Review Branch, was reviewed only from the standpoint of military security. It should not be assumed that such review constitutes confirmation, or even agreement, with the material therein. I am sure a red stamp to that effect was placed upon this paper. Sincerely, ROBERT C. WHITE Captain, USAF Air Force Press Desk Mr. Leon Davidson 14 Soundview Avenue White Plains, New York PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE HEADQUARTERS AIR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT COMMAND P. O. BOX 1395 Baltimore 3, Maryland Telephone Lexington 9-2616, Ext. 89 - 90 FLAT PM RELEASE - 7 AM EDT - Wednesday, 15 July 1953 NO. 70-53 THIS RELEASE, DATED IN 1953, IS NOT IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER. ## NEW USAF DEVICE FOR TAKING NIGHT AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS BALTIMORE, MD. - A new device for providing an intense continuous light source for taking night aerial photographs is being developed for the United States Air Force by a group of scientists and engineers at Wesleyan University, Windsor Locks, Conn., Air Research and Development Command Headquarters announced here (Baltimore) today. Called the "Hell Roarer", the device enables the taking of night aerial photographs by means of special cameras. The name, given to this mechanism by the Wesleyan group, originated from the roar emitted when in operation. The Air Research and Development Command's Wright Air Development Center, Dayton, Ohio, is working with the Wesleyan group on the development project. The mechanism, contained in a torpedo-like 12-foot cylinder, attaches to the wing of a reconnaissance aircraft and is controlled by the pilot. Built-in warning signals indicate if anything is wrong, and the entire mechanism can be jettisoned if the plane is endangsed. The fuel for the Hell Roarer is atomized or finely pulverized magnesium powder, which burns at an extremely high temperature and must be handled with extreme care. It puts out an intense light of approximately 10,000,000 candlepower and will burn for more than four minutes. The pilot can turn the Hell Roarer on and off as required. During the first test flights conducted at Windsor Locks by the research group and Air Force personnel, nearby police and field officials were beseiged with phone calls reporting flying saucers or planes going down in flames. An Air Force test conducted near Detroit also brought numerous calls from excited observers. Successfully tested on maneuvers, the device has given the U.S. Air Force hope that an old military problem has been solved: How to take pictures of enemy activity at night from very low altitudes and at high speeds. The idea was conceived by the Air Force in 1949 and development work started in fall of 1949. The first flight test modsl was designed and developed by Mr. Robert M. Dawson, a mechanical engineer of Newington, Conn., with the assistance of other Wesleyan University scientists and technicians, who, since 1946, under the direction of Dr. Richard G. Clarke, have been engaged exclusively in research for the Department of Defense. The first flight test took place late in 1951. Photographs available on request to ARDC, Public Information Office.
Report, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. The text was read from the page images by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word. 139 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.