Documents / Document

Project Blue Book desk file, Socorro (217 pages)

The Black Vault (Rob Mercer collection) · 217 pages · text from the file's own layer

This 217-page Project Blue Book desk file on the 24 April 1964 Socorro, New Mexico sighting by policeman Lonnie Zamora comes from the Rob Mercer collection. It contains the Blue Book record card, which carries the case as unidentified pending more data, along with Foreign Technology Division messages and resumes and a narrative of the sighting. It also holds inquiries about lunar modules, helicopters and VTOL craft, soil and radiation findings, and a letter by J. Allen Hynek rejecting Donald Menzel's hoax hypothesis.

  • p. 3 …TWX regarding Capt Quintanilla's visit to Socorro dtd 30 Jun 2. TWX frcm SAFOI dtd…
  • p. 6 …EVALUATION OF TH~ RECENT UFO SIGHTING AT SOCORRO, NEW i•lEXIC , 24 APRIL, CONTINUE TO BE…
  • p. 7 TDEW UFO Sighting, Socorro, Nev Mexico, 24 Apr 64 Hq USAF SAFOI PB {Mrs Gaiser) Wash…
  • p. 9 …Force and might be attributed to the Socorro 1 New V..exico sighting. FOR THE COMMANDER…
  • p. 10 UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT REPORT SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO, 24 APRIL 1964 On April 24, 1964, a Socorro…
  • p. 12 …TDEW UFO Sighting, Socorro, Nev Mexico, 24 Apr 64 26 May 64 Hq· USAF SAFOI PB…
  • p. 13 …On Tuesday I re April 1964, Capt Quintanilla directed Doctor J All.en Hynek to Socorro…
  • p. 14 …produce markings such as those ·round at Socorro. One knovn experiaental model, constructed by Bell Air…
  • p. 16 NARRATIVE OF SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO SIGHTll~G 1 24 APRIL 1964 .. Shortly after 5:30 pm…
  • p. 22 …OFf\ClAL F\LE COPY I . 'l'DEW/UFO UP'O Sighting Socorro, Nev Mexico Test…
  • p. 23 …18 May 1964 TSgt Moody called Mr Opal Grinder at 835-9916 in Socorro New Mexico…
  • p. 24 …capt Quintanilla contacted the FTD liaison office at Holloman AFB regarding the Socorro sighting and requested…
  • p. 25 …with an unidentified flying object sighting at Socorro, Nev Mexico . The Air Force is · investigating the…
  • p. 28 …Cloud ~ ap operations were conducted in an area about a hundred miles north of Socorro, New…
  • p. 29 …Cloud Gap operations were conducted in an area about a hundred miles north of Socorro, ~J…
  • p. 76 …Byrnes to;ould like for me to contact him at the state Po.Lice Office, Socorro…
  • p. 77 …1~f'r tI - ~ - Socorro of .t! ~- Wheels skidded. Made three attempts to climb hill~ ,Pl…
  • p. 86 ,, ttro~EL' Sccc; Apr11 ~ ~Y !·!.e:dco .1.964 Lonnie Zamora., 606 Resevoir street~ Socorro, !The…
  • p. 93 …jl.P..nci, lil%t of the Socorro t--otin~ D~:>J,.b"'Ul: ::.nt., , ;.~ - ~'>b…
  • p. 96 INFORMATION RELATIVE TO THE SOCORRO SIGHTING OF UFO BY LONNIE z.A.'.iORA At 0530, Sunday…
  • p. 98 …Coral Lorenzen and husband were in Socorro at the time and had inter- viewed both Lonnie…
  • p. 100 .>, REPORT ON SOCORRO NEW MEXICO TRIP On TUesday, April 28, 1964, in resp6nse to a call…
  • p. 103 …No 9 shows the town of Socorro in the distance, looking down longatudi- nally through the…
  • p. 105 …In about a month, I shall have occassion to return to the Socorro area, at which…
  • p. 106 …But, it is essential .that the Socorro case be given the treatment. I also questioned, while…
  • p. 126 …details on the April 24, sighting at Socorro, New Mexico, made by Lt. Zmmora. ,, Project 1964…
  • p. 127 …As I recall, the man ~as driving into Socorro at the time. Unfortunately, I no longer…
  • p. 129 …ly over his car. :Socorro on an isolated hill re- On AP'ril 24, 1964, Socorro…
  • p. 132 …ing of an unidentified flying object at the outskirts of Socorro Friday afternoon ·and the sighting…
  • p. 133 …American UFO Committee Review, Vol 1 No 2, Sep V'+ Socorro 1 H. H. : . . I •t…
  • p. 134 …policeman Lonnie zamora. !shaped object on the desert l about a mile south of Socorro. POLICE…
  • p. 135 …the so>clu·lf:'d hill where Socorro i an ~'.. an \\edg~:--l'?f'Pd im…
  • p. 136 ASTRONOMER TO NEW MEXICO Flying Objects Area Probed SOCORRO, N.M.-(jp)-An !Wright-Patterson Air…
  • p. 137 …ALBuQUERQUE JOURNAL SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO 24 Apr 64DATE: 29 APR 64 Air Force UFO Expert to…
  • p. 138 …28 APR 64 . • • SOCORRO NEW MEXICO DATE: 24 APR 64 A rash of unidentified fly- e…
  • p. 139 …SOCORRO, April 27 lA'! - Socorro police were called to the scene last night where an . ·cer…
  • p. 140 '~"'~ ' i' '... . " . .. .n~".· ,, J ~-"'t:~".t · ·s ,)~.l~"~.l ) i.,:i:'\.11 SOCORRO ll'l -Dr. J…
  • p. 141 …his investigation of a Socorro policeman's report that he saw a mysterious ilying ob-- ject…
  • p. 143 …the heels of e similar report from a Socorro pol ! r.-~ :nr:.n. Lonnie Zamora, who…
  • p. 144 …the one-11 l desc·ribej at Socorro. Sho s :lid i she is investigating the…
  • p. 145 …southwest or Socorro Sunday night, where city officer Lonnie · Z3mora firsl r('poft"l.!tl see…
  • p. 147 …r : (! from a Socorro tee::1ager . •u A;bu-! querquc motorist, ) ~ · .'i :: 1•< o I men…
  • p. 149 …5 CASES of sightings 1n 1963 or early 1964 reported subsequent to Socorro Sightings · 25 Apr…
  • p. 150 …BE A'I'l'RIBUTED TO THE SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO SIGHTING: 1. 26,Apr 64, Grants…
  • p. 151 …were irregularly ly landed there," Chavez A report by a Socorro po- spaced with the distance…
  • p. 152 …gained ·sudden national attention Friday after he saw an egg-shaped flying object near Socorro said…
  • p. 153 …drove 1 to Socorro from Tucson to take samples of the soil and , indicated the story…
  • p. 154 …sightin J! of a UFO in Socorro puzzled by lack of radar con- balls and meteorites…
  • p. 155 …29 A.r 6 Flying Object Expert Checks Socorro Scene Astronomer Takes Photos At UFO Site…
  • p. 159 …Gallegos' report came on I the heels of a similar report II from a Socorro policeman…
  • p. 160 …objects ( in the sky between here and ~ Socorro. ~' The rash of incidents start- ed .Friday when…
  • p. 161 …Gallegos' report came on• the heels o! a similar report 1 from a Socorro policeman, Lonnie…
  • p. 162 .ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL 26 APRIL 1994 ) 1JE JOU:-'''/' '- \Mysterious Object Pays Visit to Socorro Area I SOC…
  • p. 163 ' , PRICE lOc SOCORRO: Inhabited Since 1540 Home of the Famed New Mexico Institute of Mining & Technology…
  • p. 166 …The original Socorro report had wide public 1ty, hut to date the A F has never…
  • p. 167 …P'ass and 1 ound scorched indentations o;: :ed&'e-shaped the Socorro aft e &'round…
  • p. 168 …Sam Chavez said he was told by Socorro policeman Lonnie Zamora . that the UFO he saw…
  • p. 170 …burned by exhaust a mile south of Socorro. He denied from the saucer. j seeing any…
  • p. 171 …United Press International thing very few have ever flew away after he got within SOCORRO, N…
  • p. 172 …Flymg Obects Zamora, when contacted at since Friday when Socorro sat~ from h~s Oklahoma…
The hoax ~hesia 1~, of course , one that suggests itselt immediately •
. It is Quintanilla's and mr opinion that both Chavez and FBI agent Byrnes
mat have been in on the hoax if we adopt t he hoax hypothesis. They
testified that there were no tracks in the i mmediate neighborhood and
ao that the hoa.xaters t:Ust theiT'.selves ha.ve arrived and left by balloon!
Bad it been a hoax, certainly some paraphernalia s hould have been left
around it the pranksters beat a r..aety retreat. These gentlemen said t r.,t
nothing . ot that short 1l8.S flund. ·
Tbe vind vas blcVing strongly from the south, yet the object \IUS reported 1
to have gone on directly west. This would hardly fit a balloon, unless,
ot course, the directions are wrong. I questioned and requestioned the
pe<~ple on this point and couldn't shake them from that.
Pranksters could have hidden behind the knoll directly to the south,
particularly bad they lain prone. The dynamite aback is too SI!Id.ll and
too tar away to have risked hiding behind it.
Opal Grinder does have a high&school student ·working for him, and I talked
with him at length. Teenagers generally hate Zamora's guts 1 but it 'WB.S
added that they bate all "fuzz" and that _if they w.nted. to get even with
Zanora, they would s imply beat him up or do something more direct, like
letting the air out of his tires or something with ~~ate results rather
tban resott to an involved. hoax. Opal Grinder 1 of course, would have to be
1n on .the hoax, also. He again told me t he story or the too.rist who said
that he had -sighted a strange object crossing directly in front or him
on the road and landing in the gully, and toward which an instant or so
later, he sav a police car going. I checked out the time on that, ar.d it
f'its. 0}&1 Grinder 'a wife was just preparing to get to the bank before it
closed at six (apparently she takes the veek's loot to the bank on Friday's
Just before they close). The sighting as you know, was supposedly at 5:45
P. M.
Sorr.e ot the high school students · do have wa.lkies-talkies, but t he hoax hypothesis
doea involve Chavez, Opal Grinder, and FBI agent Byrnes; the reported tourist
vruld have to be mythical.
Zamora knev exactly where the dynamite shack was, beca:ase this is precisely
- vby he lett the roa.d when he heard the noise. He thought there had been an
explosion in the dynamite shack.
The dynamite shack doea not ste.nd. on legs as I rave inspected it closely
and have taken photographs. The ~hack and the reported UFO rust be considered
dietinot.
furthermore, I doubt ver,y ~ch whether a hoax c~~ld have been kept secret this
long. If a hoax comes off well, perpetrators like to gloo.t abit, and there
would have been no point about getting even with Zamora if they couldn •t have
gotten some kudos out of it. La Paz once told me of an instance in vhich some
college students \lanted to get even with a geology professor so they planted .
. a nmeteor1te" and contrived an explosion at some distant part ot t he state,
and had this poor professor running around ragged claslng a meteorite. The
perpetrators 1 however 1 were caught and expelled f'ro 1~ school because t hey si1nply
couldn't keep t heir secret. They "confided" to friends who in turn confided
to others, and there you are.Rob Mercer

About this file

Document, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 217 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.