Pentagon: Flying Disc Analysis Response
Pentagon officers responded to Gen. Curtis LeMay's inquiry on flying disc reports by reexamining prior documents and drafting a new assessment highlighting a serious enigma for Air Force Intelligence approval.
Background
People Involved
Col. James F. Olive Jr., head of air intelligence, and Lieut. Col. J. E. Thomas of the offensive air section at the Pentagon handled the request. They acted at the behest of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Research and Development, Gen. Curtis LeMay. The result went to the Chief of Air Force Intelligence, McDonald, for signature.
Course of Events
On December 18, 1947 the officers carried out a fresh review of records from the Pentagon and Wright-Patterson. They produced a new EEI (Essential Elements of Information), which classified the phenomenon as potentially threatening and unexplained. This marked a formal step in the early investigation of flying discs.
Significance
This document, titled "Analysis of 'Flying Disc' Reports", shows the serious engagement of the US Air Force with UFO sightings shortly after the first waves of 1947. It reveals internal doubts and the escalation to official analysis, cited in the work of Michael D. Swords (JUFOS 7, 2000).