23857122-1282-492903-0006

A TRUE COPY; tOLD W. LEHMAN ; nei Cottonwood, Arizona Captain, USAF 28. January 1953 Commanding Officer Williams Air Force Base Chandler, Arizona Dear Sirs 7 Last night, 27 Jan 53, at 1915 hrs, I sighted in the eastern sky an illuminated object moving in a horizontal direction proceeding south at an estimated altitude of 8,000 to 10,000 feet; at an estimated distance of not less than seven nor more than ten miles and traveling at 350 to 00 miles per houre At the above mentioned time, I happened to be outside the house when an airplane overhead proceeding eastward caught my attention. I followed its blinking lights until it disappeared in the east at which time I noticed the illuminated object. It appeared somewhat brighter and larger than any of the stars in the area and was of a yellow-orange color, At first I thought it to be a conventional type aircraft headed towards me with its landing lights on. But I soon realized it was moving broadside. to m going south, My curiosity prompted me to hurry into the house for binoculars (8x30), and after securing them, I was able to pick up the objert again and get a better view of it, Thru the binoculars I could see that the object consisted of a large spot of light with a smaller light by comparison trailing it which I took to be the tail of the object. Judeing from the position of the smaller light to the larger one, the object would be of considerable length. It moved too fast for a blimp and emitted too much light fora jet. Moreover, a full moon was out which at that distance would have made a jet or conventional motor type plan all but invisible. Neither the large nor small light blinked and no sound was heard, I was able to follow it thru the glasses approximately five minutes before it became faded and disappeared. Perhaps the pilot or copilot or both of the plane that first caught my attention spotted the object. I believe the plane was a regularly scheduled airliner, It is a possibility the object moved the way it did to avoid contact with the plane. There is a section of the Air Force that was set up expressly to study and evaluate such phenomena, but I do not recall its location or name, I am sending this to you for forwarding to the proper authorities. I am not seeking notoriety or publicity; I hope perhaps someone else saw and reported it. Last night after finally losing the object I took down some notes from which I have written this. Should the Air Force have further questions regarding this matter, do not hesitate to call on Mee _ Sincerely, [sft] John L, stotts Declassification Authority: NND 57565