Air Intelligence Report No. 100-203-79

Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.

Although reported domestic incidents are widely scattered throughout the U.S., frequency of sighting and number of observers per sighting assumes a definable pattern. There is a large concentration of sightings along the Eastern Seaboard; another large concentration throughout the Western Coast states, and a few sightings in the Middle West. Distribution of incidents by configuration of object and description of maneuverability is approximately equal in each of these areas and this is believed to further substantiate the possibility that one type of object might have been observed in different aspects of flight.

If sightings are induced by rumor, it seems unusual that more incidents have not been reported from the areas with high concentration of population. Reports from such areas would also have greater facility in channeling either to newspaper or official reporting agencies. For the most part, sightings have been made in fairly open country where there are few restrictions to visibility, which may indicate that obstructed vision has reduced sightings in built-up areas.

It therefore seems that some type of flying object has been observed; the identification of its origin requires the competition of other analyses.

3. POSSIBLE ORIGIN OF UNUSUAL FLYING OBJECTS. Provided, upon the completion of analyses, it is indicated that some or all of the reported flying objects over the U.S. are of foreign origin, the objects could from a logical viewpoint, be considered Soviet. It is evident from the performance characteristics attributed to the unidentified objects at this time that if they are foreign, they involve efficiencies of performance which have not been realized in any operational airborne device in this country. It would, therefore, be a mistake to analyze the technical aspects of the situation within the limits of our own knowledge of practical developments. It is more desirable to consider then the outer limits of possible Soviet developments and objectives in attempting to formulate some idea of the tactics which might be involved.

First of all, the scientific objectives of the U.S.S.R. have been stated many times and indicated in many forms. The most clearcut statement of this objective is probably the one contained in the preamble to the Fourth Five-year Plan (1946-1950) which states that the objective of Soviet science is to overtake and surpass the scientific and technical developments of the capitalist nations. It apparently would be an impossible task for the Soviet Union to accomplish such an objective by proceeding step-by-step along the same lines of development already achieved in the capitalist nations. This would mean that it would be necessary to rapidly proceed through each phase of aeronautical development that has already been accomplished in this country, and this probably would never have any prospects of accelerating Soviet development beyond any point reached by the U.S. The obvious answer to accomplish their objective of not only overtaking, but surpassing the capitalist countries would be a scientific shortcut. This possibility is not so remote when examined on the basis of our knowledge of the current situation in the U.S.S.R. Provided Soviet emphasis was given to the most promising and advanced ideas acquired from Germany in 1945 and the work aided by German scientists, the possibility of catching up and possibly surpassing other nations in technical developments becomes more realistic. It becomes even more realistic if the Soviets have shown a tendency to concentrate on certain developments which have still not received a maximum of priority in our own programs.

It is known that the U.S.S.R. has since 1945 enlisted the services of Dr. Guenther Bock, a German who headed all development of low aspect ratio (flying wing) type aircraft in Germany. Dr. Bock is believed to be the top German scientist in charge at TSAGI and TSIAM which are "Air Materiel Command" type organizations in the U.S.S.R. Further, it is believed that Dr. Bock has made available all German plans for flying wing type aircraft to the Soviets. Among the designs considered by the Germans and possibly exploited by the U.S.S.R., are jet-propelled, flying wing type aircraft whose configuration would be similar to descriptions of certain objects reported flying over the U.S. The estimated speeds of such aircraft are within range of the lower limits of speed attributed to flying objects over the U.S. It is not impossible that emphasis on surpassing foreign developments has led to unusual progress in fuels and propulsion by the U.S.S.R. In connection with possible advancements in the field of fuels and propulsion, it should be observed that