Mount Baldy, California, USA, on July 8, 1947:
ACUFO-1947-07-08-MOUNTBALDY-1
On July 30, 1947, George Garrett, an intelligence officer of the US Air Force, working for Project "Sign" which was trying to investigate the "flying discs" reported everywhere at that time, signed a "Estimate of the Situation," the first one, which summarized a dozen cases recorded by the Air Force.
One of the cases in the list under number 13, was dated July 8, 1947, at 03:50 p.m., at Mount Baldy, California, USA. The characteristics of this case are given in the document as follows:
The witness was a "1st lieutenant, ACCNG" and the observation was made from the air.
There had been no deviation from straight-line flight; the color of the UFO was "reflective in nature" and its size corresponded to the "apparent depth of a P-51."
There had been neither noise nor contrail; it was a "flat object, reflective in nature, which appeared to lack vertical drift or visible wings."
The pilot, who was flying at 300 mph, tried to keep the object in sight, but without success; he contacted bases in the area, which reported that no aircraft were in the air at that time.
In 1977, the American ufologist Dr. Bruce Maccabee was able to consult the documents at the US National Archives, and added to that that the witness was named A. E. Morman (the name was hard to read, perhaps mis-transcribed, perhaps Hoorman, Moorman), he was a 1st Lieutenant in a fighter squadron.
| Date: | July 8, 1947 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 03:50 p.m. |
| Duration: | ? |
| First known report date: | July 30, 1947 |
| Reporting delay: | Hours, 20 days. |
| Country: | USA |
|---|---|
| State/Department: | California |
| City or place: | Mount Baldy |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 1 |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | 1 |
| Number of named witnesses: | 1 |
| Reporting channel: | Official report. |
|---|---|
| Visibility conditions: | Day. |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | ? |
| UFO departure observed: | Yes. |
| UFO action: | Flew in straight line. |
| Witnesses action: | Observed, tried to follow, in vain. |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | ? |
| Witnesses interpretation: | ? |
| Sensors: |
[X] Visual: 1.
[ ] Airborne radar: N/A. [ ] Directional ground radar: [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages: |
|---|---|
| Hynek: | DD |
| Armed / unarmed: | ? |
| Reliability 1-3: | 3 |
| Strangeness 1-3: | 2 |
| ACUFO: | Possible extraterrestrial craft. |
[Ref. psn1:] US AIR FORCE - PROJECT SIGN:
This case appears in a 1947 reports list within the first "Estimate" of the flying discs situation by Project Sign, by George Garrett, July 30, 1947:
|
| Report Number | Date | Hour | Location |
| 13 | 8 July | 1550 | Mt. Baldy, California |
Some details are given about case 13:
The witness was a "1st Lieut., ACCNG".
The sighting was made from the air.
No deviation from a straight line flight was reported; the color of the UFO was "of light-reflecting nature" and the size was the "Apparent depth of a P-51".
There was no sound and no trail, it was a "Flat object, of light reflecting nature which appeared to be without vertical fin or any visible wings."
The pilot flying at 300 mph attempted to keep the object in sight, but was unable to do so; he contacted bases in area which reported no aircraft in the air at that time.
[Ref. bme1:] BRUCE MACCABEE:
| Date | Place | Local Time | Brief Description |
| 7/8/47 | Mt. Baldy, Calif. | 1550 | A. E. Morman (?). 1st Lt. in fighter squadron while flying at 20,000 ft. reported flat objet with no wings or vertical fin at about 35,000 ft. |
Bruce Maccabee noted that this case is found in the Project Blue Book listing ("Table of Contents") preserved in the U.S. National Archives.
[Ref. bme2:] BRUCE MACCABEE:
7/8/47 - Mt. Baldy, California - 1550 - A. E. Moorman(?), 1st Lt. in flight squadron while flying at 20,000 feet reported flat object with no wings or vertical fin at about 35,000 feet.
[Ref. lgs1:] LOREN GROSS:
|
Mt. Baldy, CA, July 7th: At 3:50 p.m. a 1st Lt. A.E. Hoorman, while flying with his squadron at 20,000 feet, reported a flat object with no wings or vertical fins flying above the flight at about 35,000 feet. 14.
The source "14" is detailed as "UFO Information from the FBI Files," Maccabee, The UFO Investigator, December 1977, Part II, p.2.".
[Ref. gvo1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:
1947, July 8
USA, Mt Baldy (California)
At 15:50, Lt. A.E. Mormant, at the controls of his fighter aircraft flying at 20,000 feet, saw a flat UFO with no wings or fins, moving at 35,000 feet. (FBI document – Bruce Maccabee, trans. Jean Sider)
[Ref. kre1:] KEVIN D. RANDLE:
Following his theory of who might make the best witnesses, the next case involved an Army National Guard pilot flying near Mt. Baldy, California on July 8, 1947. The flat object, reflecting light, was about the size of a fighter. The pilot said that he gave chase attempting to keep the object in sight but was unable to do so.
[Ref. get1:] GEORGE M. EBERHART:
July 8 - 3:50 p.m. An Army National Guard pilot flying near Mount Baldy, California, observes a flat object, reflecting light, about the size of a fighter. He gives chase, attempting to keep it in sight, but is unable to do so. (Air Force Base Intelligence Report, "Flying Discs," July 30, 1947; Kevin D. Randle, "Roswell, Nathan Twining, and the Mini-EOTS," A Different Perspective, October 6, 2014)
The sources have links going to:
https://www.nicap.org/docs/garrett_073047doc.pdf
and:
https://kevinrandle.blogspot.com/2014/10/roswell-nathan-twining-and-mini-eots.html
[Ref. kre2:] KEVIN D. RANDLE:
US ufologist Kevin Randle indicates that Project sign of the US Air Force recorded a case at Mount Baldy, California, on July 8, 1947: a flat object, reflecting light, about the size of a fighter, was seen by a pilot who said he gave chase, attempting to keep the object in sight, but was unable to do so.
No aircraft information is known to me for now; however, we know the witness was a fighter pilot and reported to the Air Force, so he was likely flying a fighter plane.
As we are told that he was flying at 300 mph, and unable to catch up with the object, the fighter plane was likely not a jet fighter, not a piston-engine fighter (the F-51 for example reaches 437 mph) but rather a training plane such as an AT-6.
|
This is one of the rare cases that as clearly recorded by US Air Force Project Sign but whose initial report seems to be lost.
We have the case in an "Estimate of the situation" but no record of the pilot's interview, no record card etc., despite several "waves" of declassification of the documents. The initial report obviously exists since Dr. Bruce Maccabee saw it, mentioning the witness name in 1977.
Possible extraterrestrial craft.
* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.
| Main author: | Patrick Gross |
|---|---|
| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Create/changed by: | Date: | Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | July 8, 2026 | Creation, [psn1], [bme1], [bme2], [lgs1], [gvo1], [get1], [kre1], [kre2]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | July 8, 2026 | First published. |
