================================================================ PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD -- TRANSCRIPTION File: 1962-05-8666556-Palmer-Alaska61-31N149-15W.pdf Transcribed from document image by Claude Sonnet 4.6 ================================================================ FIELD 1 -- DATE: 27 May 1962 FIELD 2 -- LOCATION: Palmer, Alaska 61-31 N 149-15 W [Further specified in teletype as Neklason Lake, six miles west of Palmer, Alaska.] FIELD 3 -- DATE-TIME GROUP: Local 1840 / GMT 28/0440Z [Note: Alaska Standard Time (UTC-10) was in use. 1840 local on May 27 = 0440Z May 28. Late afternoon local time; full daylight in Alaska in late May. Teletype confirms D.(2) DAY.] FIELD 4 -- TYPE OF OBSERVATION: Ground-Visual [X] Ground-Radar [ ] Air-Visual [ ] Air-Intercept Radar [ ] FIELD 5 -- PHOTOS: No [X] FIELD 6 -- SOURCE: Civilian FIELD 7 -- LENGTH OF OBS: 2-4 Sec. FIELD 8 -- NUMBER OF OBJECTS: 2 FIELD 9 -- COURSE: E-W FIELD 10 -- BRIEF SUMMARY: 2 objects described as triangular in shape, 3-5' long, 18"-3' wide, gray/brown/black in color. Were observed by two witnesses located 6 mi W of Palmer, Alaska. Witnesses stated object made whooshing sound. Traveled from E to W in straight line and were flying in a 60 degree echelon/right or side by side. Objects reported to be weaving just a little, then dipping toward lake before disappearing in 20 degree climb performance of 2-3 half rolls. FIELD 11 -- COMMENTS: This case is classed unidentified only because it must be assumed that native Alaskans are familiar w/birds in their area. Objects performance and description given by witnesses indicates that objects were probably birds. No evidence available to indicate [object constitutes] interplanetary space vehicles bearing life or intelligence in any form or that they constitute a threat to nation security. FIELD 12 -- CONCLUSIONS: Other UNIDENTIFIED [X] [Analyst comment strongly suggests "Probably Birds" was the working hypothesis; case carried as UNIDENTIFIED given observer familiarity with local wildlife.] Form: ATIC FORM 329 (REV 26 SEP 52) ---------------------------------------------------------------- SUPPLEMENTAL: AFR 200-2 UFO Report (4 pages) Teletype AF IN 55266, 4 Jun 62 From: ANR AAC Elmendorf AFB Alaska (ANRON/ALNT 4-F-8) To: ADC Ent AFB Colorado, FTD Wright-Patterson AFB, CSAF, CSAF Washington D.C. Info: CINCAL, ANRCC Elmendorf AFB Alaska A. OBJECT DESCRIPTION (from teletype): 1. Triangular shape; miniature plane or small bomb with swept wings 2. 3 to 5 ft. long, 18 inches to 3 ft. wide 3. Gray/brown-black 4. Two objects 5. Echelon 60 degrees right, side by side 6. Cone-shaped with flat bottom 7. No trail or exhaust 8. Whooshing sound 9. None (no other features noted) B. FLIGHT CHARACTERISTICS (from teletype): 1. Whooshing sound (how first noticed) 2. 800 ft. from east (initial position/distance) 3. Almost level to the west (initial altitude track) 4. East to west at 800 ft. in a straight path, three to four feet apart, weaving just a little. Dipped over lake to 200-300 ft. Then lifted back up in a 20 degree climb. Appeared to make 2 to 3 rapid half rolls. 5. Disappeared behind trees in straight flight to westerly direction 6. 2 to 4 seconds (total time visible) C. OBSERVATION METHOD: Ground-Visual; no radar; N/A D. DATE/TIME: 28/0440Z May 1962; Day E. LOCATION: 61-31 N 149-15 W; six miles west of Palmer, Alaska, on Neklason Lake. F. OBSERVERS: (1) [Redacted], age 27, Palmer Alaska, Highway Engineer, F-1 clearance. (2) [Redacted], age 48, Alaska, Street Superintendent City of Palmer, F-1 clearance (6 years of military service). G. WEATHER: Overcast with light breeze, temp 28 to 40 degrees F. Wind profile: Surface: 360/08 (from north at 8 knots) 60 ft: 120/16 100 ft: 060/24 160 ft: 270/30 200 ft: 030/59 (from northeast at 59 knots) 300 ft: 050/33 500 ft: 320/08 800 ft: 060/10 90 percent broken, high cirrus broken. Visibility 15 miles. Broken deck. Shower activities in sighting area. Temperature 46 degrees F / dewpoint 36 F. H-J: NONE K. INVESTIGATION (TSgt Joseph D. Brewster, Operational Intelligence Technician): Air Force/Air Defense facilities and FAA were checked. No known air activity in the sighting area to explain the objects seen. The possibility of two remote- controlled jet models flying in formation was raised; a check with all known model airplane clubs and knowledgeable persons indicates negative activity in the sighting area at the time of sighting. L: NONE Transmitted: 04/1843Z June 1962 RUKDAG ---------------------------------------------------------------- ================================================================ SEARCH INDEX TERMS ================================================================ Palmer Alaska Matanuska Valley Matanuska-Susitna Neklason Lake 1962 May civilian highway engineer street superintendent triangular shape miniature plane swept wings small bomb cone flat bottom gray brown black two objects echelon formation whooshing sound half rolls 2-4 seconds brief observation daytime daylight Elmendorf AFB Anchorage Alaska remote-controlled model aircraft birds probably birds UNIDENTIFIED Alaskan sighting cold weather overcast strong winds 59 knots low altitude 61-31N 149-15W F-1 clearance military service ================================================================ CASE ANALYSIS -- Claude Sonnet 4.6 ================================================================ THE OFFICIAL CONCLUSION The case is carried as UNIDENTIFIED, but the analyst's comments make the official position unusual: the ATIC reviewer believed the objects were "probably birds" and said so directly, then declined to check that box because native Alaskans should be assumed to know what birds look like. The working hypothesis was birds; the classification was UNIDENTIFIED because the analyst respected the observers' implied judgment. TSgt Brewster's investigation found no known air activity and no model aircraft clubs active in the area. WHAT THE EVIDENCE SHOWS Two civilian men -- a 27-year-old highway engineer and a 48-year-old city street superintendent with six years of military service -- were at Neklason Lake, six miles west of Palmer, Alaska, at roughly 6:40 PM local time on May 27, 1962. The total observation was 2 to 4 seconds. In that brief window they observed two gray/brown-black triangular objects, each 3 to 5 feet long and 18 inches to 3 feet wide, flying from east to west at approximately 800 feet altitude. The objects flew in echelon formation about 3 to 4 feet apart, weaving slightly. They dipped over the lake to 200-300 feet, then lifted back in a 20- degree climb and appeared to make 2 to 3 rapid half rolls before disappearing behind trees. The first alert was a whooshing sound. The teletype describes the shape as "miniature plane or small bomb with swept wings" and "cone-shaped with flat bottom" -- the observers' own words reaching for something familiar to describe something unfamiliar. POINTS OF INTEREST The honest starting place is the bird hypothesis. The Matanuska Valley in late May is active bird country. Canada Geese, Sandhill Cranes, and other large birds are common in the area, fly in formation, make audible wind sounds at close range, dip toward water, and can appear gray/brown-black depending on lighting. The dipping over the lake is especially consistent with waterfowl behavior. Wingspan of a Canada Goose runs 4 to 5 feet -- squarely within the 3 to 5 foot estimate. But the witnesses did not say birds. They described the objects in aeronautical terms: triangular, swept wings, cone-shaped with flat bottom, formation echelon. These are not the words Alaskans use for geese. If a highway engineer and a longtime Palmer street superintendent saw a pair of geese at close range, they would know it. The weather data is the most interesting element in the full file, and the ATIC analyst did not address it. At 200 feet altitude -- the level the objects dipped to over the lake -- the wind was reported at 030/59, meaning 59 knots from the northeast. That is near-storm force at very low altitude. The objects were flying east to west. At 200 feet altitude they were flying nearly directly against a 59-knot headwind. Birds can fly in strong winds but 59 knots at low altitude represents a significant challenge and would affect the appearance of flight considerably -- erratic movement, rolling, dipping, struggling to maintain course. What the observers described as "2-3 rapid half rolls" and "weaving" could plausibly be large birds fighting severe low-level turbulence and wind shear. The same wind profile also weakens the model aircraft hypothesis independently. Remote-controlled jet models of 1962 vintage could not have flown in 59-knot crosswinds at 200 feet with any reliability, and the negative check of all model clubs puts that explanation to rest anyway. The 2 to 4 second total observation is the major limiting factor throughout. A great deal happened in that window -- the witnesses apparently tracked the objects through their flight path, dip, climb, rolls, and disappearance. Either the observation was actually longer than 2-4 seconds, or the objects were moving very fast, or the description consolidates impressions from a very brief encounter that may have emphasized the dramatic end-point (the rolls and the climb) more than the quieter beginning. BOTTOM LINE This is a modest case that sits right at the edge of the bird hypothesis. The weather -- specifically the 59-knot winds at 200 feet -- actually strengthens the bird explanation by providing a mechanism for the erratic movement, the rolling, and the lake-level dipping, while also weakening any conventional aerial vehicle explanation. The shape vocabulary the observers used is harder to explain as birds, but 2 to 4 seconds under difficult wind conditions, with an overcast sky and shower activity nearby, is not ideal for confident identification. The ATIC analyst landed in a reasonable place: probably birds, UNIDENTIFIED out of respect for the witnesses. The case does not demand more than that. What would improve it is the one thing never sought -- a follow-up interview with the two witnesses to understand whether the shape impression was firm or approximate, and what exactly they meant by half rolls. Without that, the uncertainty is genuine, and UNIDENTIFIED is the defensible call. ================================================================ END OF DOCUMENT ================================================================