Documents / Official release
This file from SHAEF Air Staff, dated between January and March 1945 and closing with an 18 March 1945 letter, collects wartime correspondence about "night phenomena" that 415th Night Fighter Squadron crews called foofighters. It includes the squadron's sortie extracts from December 1944 and January 1945 describing lights that followed aircraft near Strasbourg and elsewhere, plus a report of an aluminum-colored cylinder that pilots attacked. The Air Ministry suggested Me 262s and flak rockets as explanations but admitted the matter remained a mystery.
From the source: Release of 2026-05-08 Incident: 3/18/45, Germany. NARA Record Group 331, catalogue id 120752. This file contains SHAEF messages and memorandums related to "night phenomena (foofighters)," flak rockets, unidentified cylindrical objects, and blinking lights. The documents include multiple references to the observations of the 415th Night Fighter Squadron.
Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.
1st W/Ind. D-W-2 HEADQUARTERS XII TACTICAL AIR COMMAND, APO #374, U.S. Army, 23 January 1945. TO: S-2, 415 Night Fighter Squadron. Forwarded for compliance with paragraph 2 of 1st Ind. for JOHN E. WOOLLAY LEAVITT CORNING, JR., Lt. Colonel, G. S. C., A/C of S, A-2. 2nd. W/Ind. 415th. NIGHT FIGHTER SQUADRON, APO #374, U. S. Army, 30 January 1945. TO: AC of S A-2 XII Tactical Air Command, APO 374, U. S. Army. 1. In compliance with paragraph 2 of 1st. Ind., the following extracts from the Sortie Reports of various pilots who have encountered the Night Phenomenon are submitted for your information. Night of 14-15 December 1944 - "In vicinity of Erstein (V-9381) flying at 1000 ft. observed large red light at 2000 ft. going East at 18:40 hrs. Travelling at approximately 200 MPH" Night of 16-17 December 1944 - "20 miles North of Breisach (W-0173) at 800 ft. observed 5 or 6 flashing red and green lights in "T" shape. Thought they were flak. About 10 minutes later saw the same lights much closer and behind me. We turned port and Starboard and the lights followed. They closed in to about 8 0'clock and 1000 ft. and remained in that position for several minutes and then disappeared." Night of 22-23 December 1944 - "Patrolling at Angels 10 from Sarrebourg to Strasbourg North and South of highway. At 06:00 hrs. saw two lights coming towards A/ $ from the ground. Upon reaching altitude of plane, they leveled off and stayed on my tail for approximately 2 minutes. Lights appeared to be a large orange glow. After staying with A/C for approximately 2 minutes, they would peel off and turn away, fly along level for a few minutes and then go out. They appeared to be under perfect control at all times. Lights were seen somewhere in vicinity of Nagenau."
Official release, from the pursue 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. 17 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.