Documents / FOIA release

The National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (Nicap)

Central Intelligence Agency · 2001-03-12 · 186 pages · text by OCR

This is a copy of "The UFO Evidence," a report published in May 1964 by the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) in Washington, D.C. and edited by Richard H. Hall. The CIA released its copy in 2001. The report draws 746 sightings from more than 5,000 signed reports and argues that unexplained UFOs are real, artificial objects under intelligent control. It criticizes Air Force secrecy and calls for a Congressional inquiry into Project Blue Book and a larger scientific investigation.

  • p. 15 …I had never heard of flying saucers and had no idea what we had seen, but…
  • p. 29 …Photograph never made public. 47. 6-30-54 Brookley AFB, Alabama Control tower operators Radar-visual…
  • p. 34 …It never did drop below the horizon--just faded away. The fading, of course, was due…
  • p. 50 …airports for 16 years." Sonner said, "and never before have I seen an aircraft like it…
  • p. 56 …5 minutes."It was something I had never seen before."UFO finally ascended straight up out…
  • p. 57 …Each "ship" also had, emanating from the "stern" portion, two "tails", seemingly streaming out horizontally, never…
  • p. 58 …It did not flicker, it burned steadily the weatherman said, but its light could never appear…
  • p. 72 …it went over the first hill and never over 1000 feet during my observation." Mr. Hahn…
  • p. 87 …was first being developed, and they have never been acceptably explained. The celebrated Washington radar sightings…
  • p. 88 …It has never been known to occur, there is no theoretical basis for believing that it…
  • p. 89 …The UFO showed on the film as a round, bright spot. (The film has never been…
  • p. 93 …NICAP has never obtained any negatives for analysis. Prints show disc from five different angles. Critics…
  • p. 94 …Picture reportedly showing unexplained circular light source, never made public. See "Report on Unidentified Flying Objects…
  • p. 96 …The many other reports from alleged additional witnesses were never received from Mr. Stanford. His background…
  • p. 97 …The first possibility to cross our minds was a polyethelyne type balloon, but we have never…
  • p. 98 …at least three consecutive frames, you'd never find it. Moreover, internal lens reflections (also countless…
  • p. 112 …Congressional hearings were contemplated See Section XIII but never came about. Instead, Air Force Congressional Liaison…
  • p. 113 …Film Data reportedly analyzed by USAF, but never released to public See Section VIII: Apr. 27…
  • p. 114 …Therefore, I never saw it in its published form. However, since I had prepared it - as…
  • p. 116 …I have never heard anyone claim anything to the contrary. . . ." ODE D"CLASSIC" - SEAGULLS (FROM COLORED…
  • p. 118 …proved highly impressive to one who had never before seen the Nation's Capital.) The interrogation…
  • p. 121 …could be a jet tanker refueling operation. Never having witnessed refueling operation at night, I am…
  • p. 125 …As far as is known, the pictures have never been published and no explanation of the…
  • p. 126 …I have never seen anything like it before." 42 ## The European Continent On the Continent, UFOs…
  • p. 129 …The USAF analysis report has never been released. ## C. OCEAN & ANTARCTIA UFOs have been sighted at…
  • p. 134 …Lincoln LaPaz, Institute of Meteoritics, said: "There has never been a rate of meteorite fall in…
  • p. 135 …film submitted to Air Force, never released. VIII UFO; film submitted to Air Force, never released…
  • p. 138 …I've been observing the skies since 1914, and I've never seen any meteoric fireballs…
  • p. 164 …which was also photographed. (The pictures have never been made public). The UFO was seen moving…
  • p. 165 …One of the most intriguing accounts, never fully investigated, described a whitish oval-shaped object observed…
  • p. 174 …Since most of the material presented to the Committees is classified, the hearings are never printed…
  • p. 175 …to a newsman's question: "UFOs have never been accurately explained. I think there is as…
  • p. 183 …things, is that the raw data almost never permit of measurement. It should be carefully noted…
Approved For Release 2001/04/02 : CIA-RDP81R00560R000100010001-0

Date & Location	U.F.O. reported	Dissipation	Spiders	Remarks & Notes
7-29-55; Sacramento, California [Stringfield, op. cit., p. 49]
9-1-55; Edmore, Mich.	X Fell slowly in clumps, "some as large as big platters."[Edmore Times, 9-9-55]
10-2-55; Uhrichsville, Ohio	X [Section VII]
10-10-55; Cincinnati, Ohio	X [Stringfield, op. cit., p. 49]
10-27-55; Whitsett, N.C.	X Analysts disagreed whether substance was of animal or synthetic origin.[Greensboro Daily News, Oct. 28, 1955]
7-10-56; Melbourne, Australia X "Millions of white web-like threads."[Bournemouth Echo; 7-10-56]
8-19-56; St. Louis, Mo. [Stringfield, op. cit., p. 49]
9-25-56; Cincinnati, Ohio Analyzed by AF, identified as rayon fibres.[CRIFO Orbit; Nov. 2, 1956 & Dec. 7, 1956]
9-30-56; Cherry Valley, Illinois	X [CRIFO Orbit; Dec. 7, 1956]
10-15-56; Indianapolis, Indiana	X [Stringfield, op. cit., p. 50]
10-16-56; Fond de Lac, Wisconsin [Ibid., p. 50]
4-28-57; Christchurch, N.Z. [Ibid., p. 50]
10-4-57; Ichinoseki City, Japan [Flying Saucer Review (London), Jan.-Feb., 1958]
10-17-57; Nr. Fatima, Portugal X [Irish News, from Lisbon, 10-23-57]
10-23/24-57; Portales, N.M. Strands up to 50 feet long, enormous quantities.[Associated Press, Oct. 24-25, 1957]
10-9-58; Portales, N.M. [Associated Press, Oct. 10, 1958]
11-9-58; Humboldt County, California Strands of 5-6 feet, one report of 40 foot strand by airport dispatcher.
10-26/27-59; Savannah, Georgia [Savannah Morning News; 11-4-59]
11-3-59; Centerville, Georgia X	[Atlanta Journal; 11-5-59]
8-5-61; Mt. Hale, Australia	X	X Visible objects traveled in pairs, as in Gaillac and Oloron cases cited above. Substance described as "a snowy white, fine mesh..."[Perth, Western Australia newspaper, 8-6-61]
10-14-61; Sunset, Utah	X [Report from member]
11-11-62; Lakeland, Florida	X "Loops and whorls" of "gossamer filaments" observed in sky (No reports of striking ground).[Lakeland Ledger; 11-12-62]
TOTALS: Number of cases 43	23	12	1

Of the 43 cases of angel's hair, visible unidentified objects were reported in just over half (23). The most common descriptions of the UFOs have been "cigar-shaped" or like "silvery balls". Sudden accelerations and high speeds have been reported, but a person seeing something at relatively close range and thinking it is a larger object farther away could easily overestimate the speed. Nevertheless, the cases of cigar-shaped

UFOs (sometimes accompanied by other round objects) observed in association with angel hair falls, are the most difficult to explain.

Rapid dissipation of the substance was reported in 12 of 43 cases. In seven of these 12 cases, there were also visual sightings of UFOs.

## NOTES

Electro-Magnetic Effects.

1. "Electro-Magnetic Effects Associated With Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs)," by Washington, D. C., Subcommittee of the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena. June 1960.

2. E-M Cases, by Case Numbers:

E-1. Stringfield, Leonard H.; Inside Saucer Post. .3-0 Blue. (4412 Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio).

E-2. Time; May 9, 1949.

E-3. Tulsa, Okla., Tribune; 12-1-57

E-4. Lorenzen, Coral; The Great Flying Saucer Hoax. (William-Frederick Press, N.Y. 1962), ppg. 19-22.

E-5. Report to NICAP

E-6. Miller, Max B. (1420 So. Ridgley Drive, Los Angeles, Calif.).

E-7. Report to NICAP

E-8. Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (4145 East Desert Place, Tucson, Arizona).

E-9. Report to NICAP

Approved For Release 2001/04/02 : CIA-RDP81R00560R000100010001-0

Cases discussed

About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. The text was read from the page images by an OCR model; expect the odd misread word. 186 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.