1950 UAP Cases

◎McMinnville, Oregon, USA

DOD-039 · 1950-05-11

McMinnville Oregon — Most Analyzed UAP Photographs

Farmer Paul Trent photographed a metallic disc-shaped object near his farm in McMinnville, Oregon. The two photographs became the most analyzed UAP images in history — Project Blue Book, the Condon Committee, and independent photogrammetric analysts all concluded the images were genuine and not a hoax.

Farmington New Mexico — Fleet of 500 Discs

◎Farmington, New Mexico, USA

DOD-040 · 1950-03-17

Farmington New Mexico — Fleet of 500 Discs

Approximately 500 Farmington, New Mexico residents simultaneously observed a massive fleet of hundreds of disc-shaped objects flying in formation overhead for 30 minutes. Three local newspaper reporters independently witnessed the event and filed reports. The objects were documented at high altitude traveling at high speed in formation, with individual objects breaking formation and rejoining. Project Blue Book declined to investigate.

FORMATIONHOVERINGRAPID ACCELERATION

Great Falls Montana — First UAP Film Footage

◎Great Falls, Montana, USA

DOD-025 · 1950-08-15

Great Falls Montana — First UAP Film Footage

Nick Mariana captured approximately 16 seconds of 16mm color footage showing two bright disc-shaped objects flying in formation over Great Falls, Montana. USAF Project Blue Book analyzed the film and initially attributed the objects to F-94 jets; subsequent independent analysis found the objects' luminosity and flight path inconsistent with that explanation.

DoD-B9-001NORTH AMERICA

El Indio–Guerrero Crash Retrieval 1950

◎El Indio–Guerrero, Texas/Mexico Border

TOP SECRET

DoD-B9-001 · 1950-12-06

El Indio–Guerrero Crash Retrieval 1950

A disc-shaped craft reportedly crashed near the Texas-Mexico border. Military teams from Fort Clark conducted a classified retrieval operation. The wreckage was allegedly transported to Wright-Patterson AFB under strict secrecy.

RAPID ACCELERATIONDISAPPEARED INSTANTLY

FBI-B9-017NORTH AMERICA

Mount Rainier Formation Intercept Attempt 1950

FBI◎ Disc / Saucer

CONFIDENTIAL

FBI-B9-017 · 1950-06-21

Mount Rainier Formation Intercept Attempt 1950

◎Mount Rainier, Washington State

Three years after Kenneth Arnold's first modern sighting near the same mountain, a USAF pilot and multiple airline crews observed a nine-disc formation in the same corridor. The FBI Seattle office investigated and filed a classified duplicate of the Arnold-era reports, noting the geographic persistence of the phenomenon.

Great Falls Montana Film 1950

DoD-B12-023NORTH AMERICA

DoD◉ Orb / Sphere

CONFIDENTIAL

DoD-B12-023 · 1950-08-15

Great Falls Montana Film 1950

◎Great Falls, Montana

Nicholas Mariana filmed two luminous objects over Great Falls, Montana. The film was analyzed by USAF and later by the Condon Committee, and both groups found it 'unexplained.' The original film frames were confiscated by the USAF before analysis, which later became controversial.

US Navy Kodiak Alaska Disc Encounter 1950

FBI-B15-020NORTH AMERICA

FBI◎ Disc / Saucer

SECRET

FBI-B15-020 · 1950-01-22

US Navy Kodiak Alaska Disc Encounter 1950

◎Kodiak Naval Air Station, Alaska

Two US Navy patrol aircraft and Kodiak Naval Air Station radar tracked a large metallic disc performing high-speed maneuvers over the strategic Alaskan naval base. The disc demonstrated the ability to reverse direction without deceleration. The commanding officer filed an intelligence report to the Office of Naval Intelligence. The FBI was copied on the report — it appears in the FBI Vault UAP files as one of Alaska's earliest naval encounters.

HOVERINGRAPID ACCELERATIONFORMATION

DoD-B20-014NORTH AMERICA

Great Falls Montana Film — Baseball Manager UAP Footage 1950

CONFIDENTIAL

DoD-B20-014 · 1950-08-15

Great Falls Montana Film — Baseball Manager UAP Footage 1950

◎Great Falls, Montana

The earliest known gun-camera-quality motion picture of UAP, filmed by Great Falls baseball team manager Nicholas Mariana. The 16mm color Kodachrome footage shows two bright objects performing a slow sweep across the Montana sky. The US Air Force analyzed the film twice — the second analysis noted that 35 frames showing the objects most clearly had been removed from the returned film. The Air Force classified the remaining footage as 'jets with sun glint' — a conclusion later contradicted by trajectory analysis.

Mariana Great Falls Film — Earliest Military Analysis 1950

DoD-B20-020NORTH AMERICA

NASA◎ Disc / Saucer

Farmington New Mexico — 500 Witnesses Armada 1950

DoD-B20-020 · 1950-09-01

Mariana Great Falls Film — Earliest Military Analysis 1950

◎McMinnville, Oregon

The McMinnville photographs of May 1950 taken by Oregon farmer Paul Trent are among the most extensively analyzed UAP photographs in history. The two Kodak photographs show a metallic disc-shaped object with a clear superstructure hovering over the Trent farm. Analysis by University of Colorado scientist William Hartmann concluded the photographs were genuine and represented an 'unknown object.' Photo forensics by the Condon Committee, ground shadow analysis, and photogrammetry all failed to identify conventional explanations.

DoD-B21-013NORTH AMERICA

DoD-B21-013 · 1950-03-17

Farmington New Mexico — 500 Witnesses Armada 1950

◎Farmington, New Mexico

One of the largest mass UAP observations in US history, with over 500 residents of Farmington, New Mexico observing a massive formation of disc-shaped objects on three consecutive days in March 1950. The objects were described as moving at extreme speed, sometimes in formation and sometimes individually. The Farmington Daily Times ran a front-page headline. The proximity to the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the four corners nuclear testing area attracted significant investigative interest.