Documents / FOIA release

The National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (Nicap)

Central Intelligence Agency · 2001-03-12 · 186 pages · text by GLM-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. 34 …Los Angeles Times; November 6, 1957. 55. Japan Times; July 20, 1958. 56. Col. Headrick is…
  • p. 36 …Summer 1944 Normandy, France George Todt, now Los Angeles columnist, other officers Pulsating red object approached…
  • p. 37 …shaped object about 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles, Calif. The pilot of the Navy plane…
  • p. 47 …NICAP member, was reported in the Los Angeles Times, November 26, 1955. ## Commercial Plane Follows UFO…
  • p. 55 …Los Angeles, which attained national prominence in 1952 after being publicized in Life and Time. Dr…
  • p. 57 …Felix Gelber and Grover Kihorny, both of Los Angeles, were also passengers. The night sky appeared…
  • p. 63 …In a letter to the President of CSI of Los Angeles, Dick Beemer, aviation photographer for…
  • p. 72 …Hahn, a jewelry designer, was flying from Minneapolis to Los Angeles aboard Western Airlines flight #61…
  • p. 77 …Washington Times-Herald and Washington Daily News; September 22,1952 12. Los Angeles Daily News; September…
  • p. 82 …23,000 ft. 16 G June 1, 1952 Los Angeles, Cal. Hughes Aircraft radar tracked UFO…
  • p. 90 …Between that time and midnight, police switchboards throughout the Los Angeles area were flooded with hundreds…
  • p. 95 …Ralph Benn, Los Angeles, Calif., was alerted to some UFOs by his eight year old son…
  • p. 96 …Miller subsequently viewed the films, which were processed in Los Angeles, several days before they were…
  • p. 97 …which, as stated above, were processed in Los Angeles and examined by Max Miller before they…
  • p. 100 …Miller in Los Angeles for analysis. (NICAP paid for the printing of one copy of the…
  • p. 106 …Ridgley Drive, Los Angeles, Calif.). E-7. Report to NICAP E-8. Aerial Phenomena Research Organization…
  • p. 113 …Ralph Benn of Los Angeles, using a 3x telephoto lens, took about six and a half…
  • p. 123 …Los Angeles News, March 14 & 15, 1950, Mexico City (UP)--Hundreds of persons said they saw…
  • p. 127 …Germany, directed the Civilian Saucer Investigation of Los Angeles. CSI was the first prominent UFO investigation…
  • p. 131 …Los Angeles Times; February 19, 1956 47. Report on file at NICAP, available to Congressional investigators…
  • p. 132 …Los Angeles columnist George Todt, in a party of four Army officers including a Lt. Col…
  • p. 135 …rapidly, circle area. I June 1, 1952--Los Angeles, Calif. Crew of Hughes Aircraft Co., radar…
  • p. 139 …Los Angeles, California. Airline passenger saw elliptical UFO flying low over ground below plane. VII November…
  • p. 141 …each night) saw a distinct round UFO hover and maneuver slowly. Los Angeles NICAP Subcommittee investigation…
  • p. 157 …of violent maneuvers." A 4-8-49 Los Angeles, Calif. day (1) silvery disc high speed…
  • p. 169 …11 Nr Los Angeles, California Day Elliptical, silvery UFO observed moving low above desert, from airliner…
  • p. 181 …Later he was convicted in Los Angeles of selling Doctor of Divinity degrees, mainly to other…

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

Aircraft designs show similarities and differences comparable to the variety of UFO types. Left (from bottom to top): DC-4, DC-6, and DC-7. Right: Top, A-11. Second row, F4F "Phantom"; F-106 "Delta Dart"; F-105 "Thunderchief." Third row, F-104 "Starfighter"; F-101 "Voodoo." Fourth row, British T-188 (high speed research); X-3 "Stileto." Fifth row, British VTOL; X-13; French "Coleopter" VTOL; XF-85 "Goblin." Sixth row, F-94 "Starfire"; F-84F "Thunderstreak"; P-59.

Comparing the UFO shape to type of "porthole", to determine whether a particular type of UFO tended to have a particular type of "porthole", the findings were largely negative. The UFOs reported as cigar-shaped (11 cases) did not have rectangular "portholes" - with one exception (November 22, 1961).

Circular or disc-shaped objects (19 cases) were reported as having circular "ports" in 4 cases, rectangular in 6 cases, rows of lights in 7 cases.

Elliptical or oval UFOs (10 cases) were reported as having rectangular "ports" in 5 cases, circular in 3 cases, rows of lights in 1 case.

The most striking consistency or pattern to "porthole" reports is the description of their arrangement on the body of the UFO. In no case were the lights or markings arranged haphazardly. On the contrary, in every case the "portholes" were arranged either in straight lines, or circular patterns (most often around the curved surface).

The "row of lights" cases, alone, consist of two basic types: (1) Lights on or adjacent to the edge of a disc. (In two cases, witnesses reported the lights were just below the disc edge, on the underside of the UFO.) (2) Lights along the length of cigar-shaped UFOs.

In many cases the "portholes" were arranged exactly along the major axis of UFOs which presented elliptical outlines to the observer.

The position and geometrical arrangement of the "portholes," and the light usually associated with these markings, strongly suggest that they are indeed ports or vents. They could well be actual windows, particularly those of distinctly square or round construction. The "row of lights" cases are subject to several different interpretations: (1) Lighted windows seen at greater distance; (2) Running lights, such as those on normal aircraft; Exhaust or propulsion vents.

## B. MANEUVERS

A study of hundreds of UFO reports has revealed several recurring maneuver patterns. These include:

* Hovering (or very slow motion) and sudden rapid acceleration.

* Circling and pacing of human vehicles. [Section II.]

$\star$ UFOs rendezvousing, then operating together [e.g., Aeronautical Engineer report, July 16, 1952, Section VI; Airline Pilot report, July 14, 1952, Section V]

* Satellite objects, associated with and maneuvering around larger central parent objects. [Section II.]

Numerous examples of these features appear in previous sections, especially Section II which discusses the evidence that UFOs are intelligently guided. A number of rendezvous cases is included in the formation chart, Section II, and other examples may be found throughout the report.

The remaining feature, hovering followed by rapid acceleration, occurs so regularly that it can practically be considered a defining characteristic of a "UFO." No man-made objects or known natural objects can perform in the manner described. The objects which were observed performing this maneuver were predominantly the typical discs and ellipses so often reported.

The following table lists one hundred sample cases between 1947 and 1962, illustrating this feature.

Hovering and Acceleration Cases
Date	Location	Description
7-9-47	Nr Boise, Idaho	Disc maneuvering slowly, turned on edge, "shot straight up." [Section VII.]

Cases discussed

About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. 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. 186 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.