The FBI Flying Saucer Case File: Analysis of Section 5 of Central File 62-HQ-83894

Source file: 65_hs1-834228961_62-hq-83894_section_5.pdf Originating agency: FBI (Record Group 65) — Case File 62-HQ-83894, Section 5 Date range: January 1950 — September 1950 Page count: 209 (all read) High-significance pages: 1–10, 61–80, 121–160, 161–180

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Official Blurb (from war.gov)

The FBI's 62-HQ-83894 case file includes investigative records, eyewitness testimonies, and public reports concerning Unidentified Flying Objects and flying discs documented between June 1947 and July 1968. The records include high-profile incident accounts, photographic evidence from sites like Oak Ridge, TN, and technical proposals regarding potential propulsion systems. Additional topics include convention programs, researcher accounts, and extensive media coverage from the period. This file is partially posted on FBI vault with more redactions and some pages missing. Included here is the complete case file with several newly declassified pages and only minor redactions.

Summary

Section 5 of the FBI's central flying saucer case file (serials 226–245) covers the busiest chapter of the investigation in 1950. The file documents a wide range of material: urgent telegrams on military and naval sightings, classified U.S. Navy intelligence reports from the Kodiak, Alaska, facility, handwritten citizen letters, technical drawings of an alleged Soviet-origin disc mechanism, genuine photographs subjected to in-depth analysis, multi-source intelligence assessments, and formal responses by Director J. Edgar Hoover. The documents make clear that the FBI, despite its public declaration of non-involvement, succeeded in accumulating a significant body of information and transmitting it to military and Air Force authorities.

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Research Article

Introduction: The FBI and the Flying Saucer Phenomenon in 1950

In 1950, as the "flying saucer" reporting wave reached its peak in the United States, the FBI stood at a delicate institutional crossroads. On one side, it had officially declared that it was not investigating aerial phenomena — a matter assigned to the Air Force and its Office of Special Investigations (OSI). On the other, hundreds of reports from citizens, letters, photographs, and even intelligence information directly touching national security continued to flow into the Bureau. Section 5 of central case file 62-HQ-83894 reflects that institutional tension in the most concrete terms: Hoover consistently turns away approaches and redirects all correspondents to the Air Force, while field agents continue to collect information, document testimony, and analyze sightings systematically.

The Lewis A. Ward Case: Espionage, Technical Drawings, and the Communist Threat

Among the most prominent documents in this section are letters from Lewis A. Ward of 336 Bird Street, Yuba City, California, sent directly to J. Edgar Hoover himself on April 8 and 9, 1950. Ward, who described himself as an older man with technical experience, claimed to have met a man named "Ubalsky" in Willits, California, who had shown him detailed drawings of a flying saucer mechanism.

According to Ward, the drawings were written in Russian and described a disc-shaped aircraft 50 feet in diameter, powered by centrifugal force. The craft, according to the descriptions, consisted of two parts: an outer disc rotating on a fixed central axis, with rudders for controlling vertical and horizontal direction. Ward even drew on his own a series of seven diagrams including top views, side views, and internal cross-sections of power mechanisms, ball bearings, thrust springs, and a turnbuckle mechanism for cable adjustment. The drawings in the file display a degree of engineering knowledge, though they do not meet standards of modern aeronautical design.

What makes the Ward file unusual is not only the claimed technology but the intelligence dimension: Ward wrote that he was "taking a great risk," because if Ubalsky discovered the information had been passed to the government, "my life would be in danger." He asked the FBI to write back to him in an envelope with no identifying markings and not to reveal his name to the "military brass." He also described Ubalsky as saying that Russia was preparing 350 atomic bombs and intended to attack Europe, England, Spain, France, India, Japan, and the Philippines imminently.

His approach reached Hoover's desk directly. Hoover replied on April 17, 1950, in a polite but entirely redirecting tone: he acknowledged receipt of the letters, expressed thanks, and advised Ward to contact the Secretary of the Army at the National Defense Building in Washington. The FBI also issued instructions to SAC San Francisco to locate Ward and speak with him.

Ultimately, on June 15, 1950, Ward was found at 78 South Tenth Street, San Jose, California, and interviewed by Agent Charles Freisnik. The agent reported that Ward "had nothing to add to his previous story," and that people who knew him described him as "a man prone to strange fantasies" and "mentally peculiar." Nevertheless, the drawings he had attached were retained in the file as part of the official record.

The Kodiak File: The Secret Navy Report on Unidentified Phenomena

The most militarily significant document in this section is a U.S. Navy intelligence report dated February 10, 1950, classified CONFIDENTIAL and subsequently declassified by Bruce Maccabee in 1977. The report, serial DIC/17D No. 4-50, documents sightings by several military personnel on January 22–23, 1950, in the Kodiak, Alaska, area.

The multi-witness story that unfolds in the report is highly impressive.

Phase A, January 22: Aviation Chief Petty Officer Smith, commander of patrol aircraft P2V3 No. 4 from Patrol Squadron One, registered an unidentified radar contact 20 miles north of the Naval Air Station, Kodiak, at 2202 hours. At 0240 hours, eight minutes later, another contact was registered 10 miles southeast of the base. Radar operator Master Sergeant Gasky reported intermittent radar interference "of a type I had never experienced before."

Phase B: Between 0200 and 0300 hours, Morgan, USN, stood watch aboard the USS Tillamook anchored at Buoy 19 in the main ship channel. He reported "a reddish-orange light moving at high speed, performing a large circular movement and returning toward the southeast." He called Carver, USN, to come and watch, and both observed the object for approximately 30 seconds. "No sound was heard. The object appeared as a glob of fire approximately one foot in diameter."

Phase C: At 2240 hours, Smith reported a visual contact with an object at 5 miles' range. The report describes: "The object showed on the radar indications of high speed. After 10 seconds the object was directly overhead, indicating a speed of approximately 1,800 miles per hour. Smith attempted to maintain circles in order to keep the object in sight — could not, as the object displayed superior maneuverability. After the object appeared to be departing, Smith tried to close the range. The object approached from aft from the left quarter. Smith considered this to be a highly threatening gesture, and turned out all lights in the aircraft. Four minutes later the object disappeared toward the southeast."

Phase D: At 2235 hours on the following day, January 23, an object was observed by Ensign Causer, Ensign Barrow, and First Pilot Paulson, 62 miles south of Kodiak Base. The object was observed on a westerly climbing path and remained in sight for 10 minutes. "Causer was unable to close the range at 170 knots."

The report concludes with a Navy Intelligence note: "In view of the fact that no weather balloons are known to have been released in the vicinity at the time of the sightings, it appears that the objects were not balloons. If not balloons, the objects must be regarded as phenomena, the exact nature of which could not be determined by this office — possibility: meteorites."

The Michael Halperi File: Photographs of "Man from Mars" from German Sources

On May 24, 1950, a "photograph" acquired from a man named Michael Halperi of 2453 Urquhart Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, was delivered to the CID agent at the New Orleans induction center. Halperi sold the photograph for a dollar to a John R. Esposito, who passed it to the CID agent.

The photographs, also forwarded to the New Orleans FBI, were from a German newspaper. The translated caption described two "flying saucers" over Wiesbaden photographed through an infrared ray tube, and a man held by two American military policemen, captioned in German as "Mr. X, a crew member of the flying saucer." The German caption described the "saucers" as invisible to the eye due to waves and inaudible due to ultrasound.

A note was appended: "The photograph was given to Colonel Bourdon, OSI, who stated they receive hundreds of reports of this type from the Air Force and do not consider them worthy of investigation." The classification of that document was CONFIDENTIAL, subsequently removed.

G-2 Analysis of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena: A Classified Report from June 1950

Another central document is a G-2 (Army Intelligence) report classified and passed to the FBI on May 22, 1950, headed "Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (Flying Saucers)." The report, written for training purposes and marked CONFIDENTIAL, presents a comprehensive analysis of all existing explanations for the phenomenon.

The report opens with a historical survey beginning with the Bible — Ezekiel Chapter 1, verse 16 — and moves to accounts of "ghost rockets" over Sweden in 1946. The report notes that separate American and British investigations failed to find evidence of Soviet missiles over Sweden and that the Swedish government classified most incidents as natural phenomena.

The report lists five principal explanations:

1. Spacecraft from other planets
2. Soviet guided missiles or aircraft, possibly nuclear powered
3. American experiments with new weaponry
4. Natural phenomena
5. Mass hysteria or other psychological factors

On explanation number one, the report states: "While it is impossible to entirely rule out theory No. 1, it is easy to do so on logical grounds. The existence of any form of life on other planets is entirely uncertain and debatable. The level of technological achievement required... is several orders of magnitude above anything existing on Earth today."

On the Soviet explanation, the report is candid and striking: "There is no evidence whatsoever that the Soviet Union possesses guided missiles or disc-shaped aircraft capable of flying back and forth to the United States."

The report concludes that the phenomenon stems primarily from "mass hysteria caused by the present tenseness in the international situation, by the public belief in the ability of science to perform miracles, and by statements in the press..."

Phoenix Sighting: B-29 Operation in 1950

On June 30, 1950, SAC Phoenix sent an urgent telegram to the FBI Director: "On June 29 at 1745 hours, an object was observed in the skies above Phoenix by many citizens including FBI men. It was immediately reported to Herman Monroe, OSI, Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. Monroe reported the object was picked up at 1800 on a radar scope at 30,000–35,000 feet. A B-29 bomber from the 509th Group at Roswell, New Mexico, was diverted to follow the object. The pilot reported that while at 25,000 feet, he estimated the object was 10,000–20,000 feet above him. The aircraft flew at 290 miles per hour and was able to circle beneath the object. The object moved west without wind. It was last observed at 2055 at a point approximately 20 miles north of Blythe, California, where it was lost in a thunderstorm. Monroe estimated the object was very large in size as it could be seen comfortably with binoculars. However, the B-29 was not seen at all with binoculars."

A subsequent OSI investigation determined it was a research-equipment balloon observed by pilot First Lieutenant John Fink, flying an F-86 at 47,000 feet. "The balloon was described as an inverted 'tear drop'" and no further evidence was found for investigation.

The Chicago Sighting and July 1950

On July 18, 1950, SAC Chicago sent a report to the FBI Director describing the account of a reliable informant: at 0100 hours on July 1, 1950, the informant observed "a cigar-shaped object" at 15,000 to 20,000 feet over New Chicago, Illinois. "The front two-thirds was a steady glow the color of a burning kerosene lantern, and the rear third was dark. The object left a white-bluish trail behind it." No sound was heard. Speed was higher than any conventional aircraft the informant had seen, but slower than a shooting star. The informant, described as a meteorologist with United Air Lines, stated the object "did not look like any shooting star or meteor he had ever seen."

The Halperi File and Louisville Photographs: The FBI Investigates Forgery

A fascinating further document is the FBI investigation into the "flying saucer" film of Alf Hexenbaugh, a photographer for the Louisville Times. On June 27, 1950, Hexenbaugh shot 50 feet of 16-mm film in which a disc-like object appeared immediately beside a DC-3 aircraft over Louisville, Kentucky. The film received national coverage, was broadcast on television, and was even mentioned by Walter Winchell. Military personnel from Wright-Patterson Field arrived to examine it.

However, SAC Louisville reported to the Director on August 2, 1950, that a photographer for a competing newspaper, Robert Steinau, claimed Hexenbaugh had performed a trick. According to Steinau, the ruler in the photographs coming into sharp focus while trees and the aircraft are blurry indicated the disc was closer to the camera. Steinau explained that "the trick" could have been accomplished by aiming the camera at a point on a window and then moving it in sequence. "Hexenbaugh is known for bad reputation among other photographers," Steinau wrote. The FBI retained all material in the file without a final determination.

The Wave of Public Reports and the FBI's Response

Throughout the section appear dozens of letters from various locations in the United States.

Alice, Texas, July 4, 1950: Two urgent telegrams from SAC Houston and SAC San Antonio report a "flying disc" found in a field approximately 100 yards northwest of the Alice airport. The disc was described as "elliptical, 4 to 5 feet in diameter, with two radio antennas, slots indicating jet power, and bearing the number X-147A and the instruction 'DO NOT TOUCH.'" It was ultimately determined by the Alice police chief that the disc was "the result of the work of a crew of mechanics at the Alice airport as a practical joke."

Downers Grove, Illinois, July 4, 1950: A United Air Lines meteorologist and his wife saw "a large, silvery, luminous object" at 9:38 p.m. moving toward the north-northwest. Speed was estimated at 700 to 800 miles per hour.

Washington, D.C., June 25, 1950: Douglas Harrison, a resident of the Connecticut Avenue neighborhood, reported that at 9:25 a.m. he saw from his home window an object "resembling a cigar, its end tilted toward the earth, appearing silver" at 20,000 to 25,000 feet, moving eastward.

Oak Park, Illinois, July 20, 1950: A handwritten letter from "Francis Ray Turner," 2175 Maple Ave., describes that in the early morning hours "the saucer struck the top of a fig tree under which my truck had been parked overnight. When I came to work I heard a whistling sound..." He reported the incident to the Oak Park police and claimed he later found a note in the cab stating the "saucer was not meant for him." This letter, despite its unusual character, is retained in the file.

Toronto, Canada, August 29, 1950: A detailed, organized letter from Walter D. Jones, 36 King Street East, Toronto, describes a sighting on July 19: "I turned west toward my farm with a full moon and elevated cloud. I saw through the clouds a blurred light object coming toward the house at an amazing rate. It circled before it reached the house and continued circling... It was an entity in itself. Did not come from any light ray from above or below. Sometimes it seemed to slow down and then circle in the opposite direction." The sighting lasted 35 minutes, from 2230 to 2305. Jones called his landlord, who also watched in stunned silence. The FBI checked Jones's background and found that in 1944 he had served as treasurer of the National Council for Canadian-Soviet Friendship, a detail not directly related to the report.

Keyhoe's Book and the "Censorship" Question

On July 3, 1950, Glenn Lee Adams of Louisville, Kentucky, wrote on plain notepaper: "I would like to know how much of the truth there is in Donald Keyhoe's book 'The Flying Saucers Are Real,' published this year by Fawcett Publications, Inc. Keyhoe quotes an enormous amount of information from the Air Force and the FBI." Hoover's response of July 11, 1950, said: "I suggest you check the book you mentioned and find it does not contain quotations from the FBI but merely mentions the Agency." An internal note states that "the book mentions the FBI briefly in regard to agents witnessing saucers at Las Vegas, New Mexico, 12-8-48. It is not harmful in its references to the FBI."

In June 1950, DeWain B. Johnson, a UCLA graduate journalism student, also approached J. Edgar Hoover to request information for a doctoral thesis on "the sociological and psychological implications of the flying saucer phenomenon." Hoover's reply of June 8, 1950, was: "This Bureau has no information available for dissemination pertaining to the subject of your letter."

The Albert Holmberg "New Flying Saucer" File

Near the end of the section appears a document forwarded to the FBI by Raubert R. Patton, publisher of the Chicago Midwest Times: a letter signed "Albert Holmberg" describing an aircraft called "Danse Macabre" designed by "Fred Spaunholdt, formerly a sky writer for Linco, Frank Hochpau, an aviation mechanic, and Karl Teichmann, a German ace of World War I" and financed by "Howard Hughes, aviation millionaire." The craft was described as having crystal-glass wings, two large jet engines, radio control, a speed of 750 miles per hour, and the ability to fly only one way (one-way trips) for atomic bomb delivery. "The craft is normally ditched in a lake or ocean as it cannot land." The FBI checked and found no one by the name "Holmberg" in its Chicago indexes.

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Key People

J. Edgar Hoover — FBI Director; personally signed dozens of replies to citizens with consistent Air Force referrals.

Lewis A. Ward — 336 Bird Street, Yuba City, California; passed intelligence on "Ubalsky" and technical drawings of an alleged Soviet flying saucer to the FBI.

Ubalsky — mysterious individual whom Ward claimed had shown him Russian-language drawings of a disc mechanism; the FBI could not verify his existence.

Aviation Chief Petty Officer Smith, USN — patrol aircraft commander who observed the unidentified object over Kodiak and experienced radar interference.

Ensign Causer and Barrow, USN — observed the object over Kodiak the following day and could not close to it at 170 knots.

Morgan and Carver, USN — aboard the USS Tillamook; saw "a glob of fire" moving at high speed.

Michael Halperi — sold "photographs" of a flying saucer and "man from Mars," apparently misidentified German satirical material.

Alf Hexenbaugh — Louisville Times photographer whose 16-mm film received national attention and was scrutinized for possible fabrication.

Robert Steinau — photographer who claimed Hexenbaugh's footage was a trick.

Captain Eddie Rickenbacker — quoted in the G-2 report: "There must be something to them, for too many reliable persons have made reports on them. I am duty bound not to say what I know about them — or what I don't know about them. However, if they do exist, you can rest assured that they are ours."

DeWain B. Johnson — UCLA doctoral student who studied the psychological implications of the flying saucer phenomenon.

Walter D. Jones — Canadian businessman who reported a 35-minute sighting from his farm 12 miles northeast of Toronto City Hall.

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Locations

• Kodiak, Alaska — center of the naval events, January 1950
• Yuba City, California — Ward's residence
• Wiesbaden, Germany — location of the German photographs
• Phoenix, Arizona — sighting of June 29, 1950, with B-29 involvement
• Louisville, Kentucky — the Hexenbaugh "film" incident
• New Orleans, Louisiana — the Halperi file
• Chicago, Illinois — multiple sightings and the "cigar" report
• Oak Park, Illinois — alleged tree-strike claim
• Alice, Texas — the disc found to be a practical joke
• Downers Grove, Illinois — meteorologist's sighting
• Toronto, Canada — Jones sighting, 35 minutes, with a second witness
• New Mexico — OSI summary of 1948–1950 incidents, Kirtland AFB

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Incidents

Incident	Date	Location	Pages
Kodiak Navy sightings — radar, aircraft, and visual	January 22–23, 1950	Kodiak, Alaska	141–148
Ward drawings — "Soviet" disc mechanism	April 1950	Yuba City, California	121–140
Halperi photographs — "man from Mars," Wiesbaden	May 1950	New Orleans / Germany	149–155
G-2 report on aerial phenomena	May 1950	Washington, D.C.	155–160
Phoenix sighting with B-29 involvement	June 29, 1950	Phoenix, Arizona	168–170
"Cigar" report, Chicago — meteorologist	July 1, 1950	Chicago	171–172
Alice, Texas, disc — revealed as practical joke	July 4, 1950	Alice, Texas	175–178
Hexenbaugh film — credibility investigation	June 27 – August 2, 1950	Louisville, Kentucky	185–197
"Danse Macabre" letter — Howard Hughes aircraft	July 1950	Chicago	198–200
Jones sighting — 35 minutes from Canadian farm	July 19, 1950	Toronto, Canada	205–209

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Notable Quotes

"I am nervous over this and if this brings the dope he gave me - well if it ever got out I am a dead duck sure as hell but the U.S.A. first and myself well I don't amount to much anyway." — Lewis A. Ward, page 121

"I am putting this in your hands because I do not know who is a Commanie in Washington and who is not. I leave that to you and I know you will not give me away." — Lewis A. Ward, page 122

"At 2204CW January LT Smith, USN, patrol plane commander of P2V3 No. 4 of Patrol Squadron One reported an unidentified radar contact 20 miles north of the Naval Air Station, Kodiak, Alaska." — Navy Intelligence report DIC/17D, page 142

"Smith considered this to be a highly threatening gesture, and turned out all lights in the aircraft." — Navy Intelligence report, page 143

"It appears that the object or objects were not balloons. If not balloons the objects must be regarded as phenomena (possibly meteorites), the exact nature of which could not be determined by this office." — Navy Intelligence section note, page 144

"The continued reporting of aerial phenomena must then be attributed to a mass hysteria caused by the present tenseness in the international situation..." — G-2 report, page 158

"There must be something to them, for too many reliable persons have made reports on them. I am duty bound not to say what I know about them - or what I don't know about them. However, if they do exist, you can rest assured that they are ours." — Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, quoted in G-2 report, page 156

"It was the observation of the interviewing agent that Mr. WARD is abnormal mentally." — SAC San Francisco, June 15, 1950, page 163

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Significance

Section 5 of case file 62-HQ-83894 is a foundational document in understanding the U.S. government's approach to the flying saucer question in 1950. Several conclusions emerge from the material.

First, the contradiction between declaration and reality. The FBI repeatedly stated it was not investigating the subject, yet in practice it received, documented, forwarded, and retained detailed information on hundreds of sightings. The boundary between "not investigating" and "collecting and forwarding" was deliberately blurred.

Second, the credibility of military witnesses. The Kodiak Navy accounts cannot be easily dismissed. They involve trained officers, with radar confirmation, who observed an object moving at 1,800 miles per hour, performing maneuvers considered "highly threatening," and disappearing without explanation. The OSI could not provide a satisfactory account.

Third, the Soviet espionage dimension. The Ward-Ubalsky file reflects a genuine concern: might Russia have developed advanced technology that had come to the attention of agents? The FBI conducted a real investigation, and only after the field agent concluded Ward was "mentally peculiar" was the matter closed.

Fourth, the psychological climate. The G-2 report makes plain that the security agencies themselves concluded that most reports resulted from hysteria, yet could not dismiss all of them. The unexplained 25 percent remained in the files without resolution.

Fifth, the potential for exploitation. People such as Halperi, Hexenbaugh, and others attempted to exploit public anxiety for personal gain, attention, or as a practical joke. The FBI demonstrated it could distinguish between fabrications and straightforward reports — though not always easily.

Section 5 of case file 62-HQ-83894 faithfully reflects a world in which the U.S. government was attempting to reconcile an obligation to provide rational explanations for a phenomenon with a genuine fear that behind some reports there might lurk a reality not yet understood.