Winnemucca, Nevada, USA, on August 1, 1947:
ACUFO-1947-08-01-WINNEMUCCA-1
The newspaper The Idaho Statesman, of Boise, Idaho, USA, for August 2, 1947, reported on page 1 that Potter P. Howard, Boise Mayor, was a passenger on the United Airlines inaugural Boise to Reno southbound flight of July 1, 1947, at 13:00 p.m., spotted 12 discs flying in the vicinity of Winnemucca, Nevada.
A woman passenger, whose name was not learned, also saw the 12 discs, according to Mayor Howard.
Mayor Howard said that 10 of the discs were flying in a perfect "V" formation, above and below which were flying the other two objects.
He said that the saucers "were several thousand feet below the plane," and he estimated that they were flying about 1000 feet above the ground.
| Date: | August 1, 1947 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 01:00 p.m. |
| Duration: | ? |
| First known report date: | August 2, 1947 |
| Reporting delay: | Hours, 1 day. |
| Country: | USA |
|---|---|
| State/Department: | Nevada |
| City or place: | Winnemucca |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 2 |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | 1 |
| Number of named witnesses: | 1 |
| Reporting channel: | The Press. |
|---|---|
| Visibility conditions: | Day. |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | ? |
| UFO departure observed: | ? |
| UFO action: | Fly. |
| Witnesses action: | Observed. |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | ? |
| Witnesses interpretation: | Flying discs. |
| Sensors: |
[X] Visual: 2.
[ ] Airborne radar: N/A. [ ] Directional ground radar: [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages: |
|---|---|
| Hynek: | DD |
| Armed / unarmed: | Unarmed. |
| Reliability 1-3: | 2 |
| Strangeness 1-3: | 1 |
| ACUFO: | Possible birds. |
[Ref. ids1:] NEWSPAPER "THE IDAHO STATESMAN":
|
A passenger on United Airlines inaugural Boise-to-Reno southbound flight Friday, Boise Mayor Potter P. Howard said that he spotted 12 discs flying in the vicinity of Winnemucca, Nev.
A woman passenger, whose name was not learned, also saw the 12 discs, Mayor Howard said.
Mayor Howard said that 10 of the discs were flying in a perfect "V" formation, above and below which were flying the other two objects.
Mayor Howard said he spied the saucers on the southbound trip from Boise to Reno at about 1 p. m.
"The saucers were several thousand feet below the plane," Mayor Howard said. He estimated that they were flying about 1000 feet above the ground.
[Ref. lgs1:] LOREN GROSS:
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1 August [1947]. Near Winnemucca, Nevada. (about 1:00 p.m.)
Boise Idaho Mayor sees discs in V-formation.
According to the Idaho Statesman:
"A passenger on United Airlines inaugural Boise-to-Reno southbound flight Friday, Boise Mayor Potter P. Howard said that he spotted 1i discs flying in the vicinity of Winnemucca, Nevada.
"A woman passenger, whose name was not learned, also saw the 12 discs, Mayor Howard said.
"The saucers were several thousand feet below the plane,' Mayor Howard said. He estimated that they were flying about 1,000 feet above the ground." (xx.)
(xx.) Boise, Idaho. Idaho Statesman. 2 August 47.
[Ref. lhh1:] LARRY HATCH:
1204: 1947/08/01 13:00 1 117:45:00 W 40:55:00 N 3333 NAM USA NVD 6:7
nr WINNEMUCCA,NV:MAYOR/BOISE+1:12 DISKS/VFORM/300M alt BLW AIRLINER:
Ref#131 GROSS,L.:UFOS a HISTORY-1947 6 books Book # 6 Page 8: IN-FLIGHT
The DC-3 is the civilian airline version of the famous Douglas C-47 "Skytrain" military transport plane. The photo below is a United Airlines DC-3 - some are still flying in airshows in the 2000's.
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The DC-3 has a cruising speed of 207 mph (333 km/h), a capacity of 21 to 32 passengers or 6,000 lb (2,700 kg) of cargo, and a range of 1,500 miles (2,400 km); it can operate from short runways.
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Potter P. Howard (1890 – 1956) served consecutive two-year terms as mayor of Boise, Idaho, from 1947 to 1951. He was an automobile dealer when elected, and later an executive with the local natural gas company in Boise.
Given the observation distance, given the proximity of the "flying discs" to the ground (an estimated 300 meters), and given the V-shaped formation of 10 of them, it is quite possible that these "flying discs" were a flock of birds.
Mayor Howard had naturally almost certainly heard about the flying saucers, as Kenneth Arnold's account and the subsequent reports had been the subject of numerous articles, particularly in Boise's The Idaho Statesman newspaper. It is also reasonable to suppose that he was not an experienced observer of birds.
Certain bird species - geese, ducks, swans, cormorants, pelicans, and the very large sandhill cranes (photo below)—adopt a V formation during their migrations.
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According to Nevada ornithologists, migrations are observed from March to May and from September to November; however, it is not possible to rule out such a flight in early August.
Possible birds.
* = 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 | June 15, 2026 | Creation, [ids1], [lgs1], [lhh1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | June 15, 2026 | First published. |
