March 1-10, 1950 — four cases: the Wright-Patterson AFB interception; the Selfridge AFB radar case; the Tonantzintla Observatory sighting; and the Phoenix, Arizona ovoid.
1950 March 1st – 10th:
UFO|UAP & Entity Sightings Archive
The first ten days of March 1950 carry four cases substantial enough for their own full reports: the Wright-Patterson AFB interception, in which airline pilots, ground radar, and ATIC’s own staff tracked an object that two F-51 fighters were scrambled to intercept; the 75-minute, dual-radar Selfridge AFB case that Blue Book never officially listed; the photographed Tonantzintla Observatory sighting in Mexico; and a 300-foot ovoid watched by seven witnesses in Phoenix. The Berger Ohio searchlight pattern also gained two more incidents this period, including its largest crowd since the original 1949 sighting.
Date: March 1, 1950
Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
Time: Unknown
Summary: Military and civilian radar tracked an object flying between 40,000 and 80,000 ft near Knoxville, using an Army surplus radar unit. No aircraft were scheduled in the area at the time. The Air Force suggested the accompanying visual sightings may have been a mirage; the witness reporting the visual component was not considered reliable.
Source: Project Bluebook
Date: March 1, 1950
Location: Chihuahua, Mexico
Time: Daytime
Summary: A metallic disc hovered over the city and airport at about 5 km altitude, then flew away rapidly to the south. Observed by a male witness at the airport for five minutes.
Source: Lumieres Dans la Nuit
Date: March 2, 1950
Location: Long Beach, California
Time: Unknown
Summary: An unidentified object moving in a straight trajectory across the sky was observed by two witnesses for two hours.
Source: Data-Net Report
Date: March 2, 1950
Location: China
Time: Unknown
Summary: A procession of objects was reported.
Source: Vallee, Jacques
Date: March 2, 1950: The Tonantzintla Observatory Sighting
Date: March 3, 1950
Location: Chihuahua, Mexico
Time: Around 1500
Summary: A daytime disc was reported.
Source: Petrowitsch, Pablo
Date: March 3, 1950, BBU 650
Location: Selfridge AFB, Michigan
Time: 11:05 p.m.
Summary: USAF 1st Lt. Frank Mattson saw an intense, dull yellowish light descend vertically, then fly straight and level at high speed. The object was tracked by radar and sighted visually at the airfield; total duration four minutes. Lt. Mattson would be a named witness in a second, more extensive radar case at this same base six days later.
Source: Project Bluebook
Date: March 4, 1950
Location: Near Newburgh, Indiana
Time: Unknown
Summary: A man driving east about two miles east of the junction of Indiana State Hwy 66 and 261, north of Newburgh, saw an object he believed was a rocket at a distance of about 50-75 yards in front of his car.
Source: Unknown
Date: March 4, 1950
Location: Tessalit, Kidal, Mali
Time: Around 0200
Summary: One object was observed by six military witnesses for over one minute.
Source: Michel, Aime. The Truth About Flying Saucers, Pyramid T1647, New York, 1967
Date: March 4, 1950
Location: Hamilton, Texas
Time: 16:15
Summary: One object was observed by four witnesses briefly (Jeschke).
Source: Newspaper
Date: March 4, 1950
Location: Lisbon, Portugal
Time: Night
Summary: One object was observed by several witnesses.
Source: Stendek (CEONI)
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Ometepec, Guerrero, Mexico
Time: Unknown
Summary: Two airline pilots sighted a disc flying at incredible speed. Observed by two witnesses in-flight briefly.
Source: Hatch, Larry
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Saltsburg, Pennsylvania
Time: 01:30
Summary: A turtle-shell-shaped disc, about 15 meters across, hovered at low altitude and kept its distance when the witness approached. One domed disc, about 80 ft across, was observed by one military witness on a highway for ten minutes.
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Gering, Nebraska
Time: 07:00
Summary: A 25-ft nocturnal light at low altitude changed shape and became extremely bright before maneuvering to the southeast. One shifting-shape object, about 40 ft across, was observed by 20 witnesses (as reported to police) in town for over six minutes (Ekberg).
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Houston, Texas
Time: 22:00
Summary: A metallic disc was observed by five witnesses in the city for five minutes; it hovered, darted about, jumped into clouds, trailed a ribbon, then departed east.
Source: Gross, Loren E. UFOs: A History. 1950: January-March, Author, Fremont, 1983
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Denver, Colorado
Time: Night
Summary: One object was observed by one witness for over four minutes.
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 5, 1950
Location: Bloomfield, New Mexico
Time: Night
Summary: A dark, five-foot-diameter disc paced a moving car; when the driver stopped, the object circled the car before speeding away.
Source: Newspaper clippings, March 10 and March 27, 1950; Loren Gross, UFOs: A History, 1950: January-March, pp. 31-32
Date: March 6, 1950
Location: Houston, Texas
Time: 05:05
Summary: A hovering object was observed by two witnesses (Floyd).
Source: Newspaper
Date: March 6, 1950
Location: Gotzis, Austria
Time: 05:48
Summary: Nocturnal lights were reported (Peyerl).
Source: Schoenherr, Luis
Date: March 6, 1950
Location: Dallas NAS, Texas
Time: Daytime
Summary: One object was observed by one witness at the airfield briefly (Edmundson).
Source: Keyhoe, Donald E. Flying Saucers Are Real, Fawcett 107, New York, 1950
Date: March 6, 1950
Location: Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Time: 22:00
Summary: A disc-like object flashed overhead, moving at a fantastic speed. Observed by four male witnesses at a mountain for over one minute.
Source: Hatch, Larry
Date: March 7, 1950
Location: Durango, Mexico
Time: Unknown
Summary: Two discs passing over Durango stopped in the sky for two hours.
Source: Lumieres dans la Nuit; Los Angeles Times
Date: March 7, 1950
Location: Tunis, Tunisia
Time: Daytime
Summary: One object was observed by several witnesses for over one minute (Blanc).
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 7, 1950
Location: Ciudad Real, Spain
Time: Afternoon
Summary: One object was observed by one witness.
Source: Data-Net Report
Date: March 7, 1950
Location: Reutte, Tirol, Austria
Time: 21:30
Summary: Nocturnal lights were reported.
Source: Schoenherr, Luis
Date: March 8, 1950
Location: Mexico City area, Mexico
Time: Unknown
Summary: Ray L. Dimmick, described as an expert on chemicals and explosives, told reporters he had personally viewed the wreckage of an “ultra streamlined flying saucer” on a mountainside outside Mexico City — 48 ft in diameter, made of a metal resembling but harder than aluminum, powered by two motors — and that top U.S. officials had also seen it, though this was never confirmed. Dimmick reported a 23-inch-tall pilot had died in the crash and had been embalmed for scientific study; he also described handling a strip of wreckage measuring 8 ft long, 8 inches wide, and three-quarters of an inch thick. He said the crash had occurred roughly three months earlier. Colonel Joseph Anderson, assistant US military attaché in Mexico City, stated he had not heard of any such thing and would have expected to be informed by the Mexican Defense Ministry if true. [Full Report]
Source: The Washington Herald, March 10, 1950 (dateline Los Angeles, March 9, AP)
Date: March 8, 1950
Location: Mazatlan, Mexico
Time: Unknown
Summary: A Naval commander sighted a UFO in the sky over Mazatlan, which he described as an “artificial device.” This entry was previously merged with an unrelated same-day sighting from Vandalia, Ohio; the two have been split into separate entries here.
Source: Gross, Loren E. UFOs: A History. 1950: January-March, Author, Fremont, 1983
Date: March 8, 1950
Location: Vandalia Airport, Ohio
Time: 5:00 a.m.
Summary: The crews of two airliners, the Air Traffic Controller, and many other ground witnesses at Vandalia Airport sighted a bullet-shaped UFO being chased by military jets; the object ascended very fast. This appears to be an early, less detailed account of the same morning’s Wright-Patterson AFB interception documented in this archive’s standalone report. [Full Report]
Source: Gross, Loren E. UFOs: A History. 1950: January-March, Author, Fremont, 1983
Date: March 8, 1950
Location: Pompaples, Switzerland
Time: 04:00
Summary: Physiological effects were noted. Nine objects were observed by one witness for 30 minutes.
Source: Poher, Claude. Etudes Statistiques Portant sur 1000 Temoignages, undated
Date: March 8, 1950: The Wright-Patterson AFB Interception
Date: March 8, 1950
Location: Kufstein, Tirol, Austria
Time: 12:00
Summary: A daytime disc was reported.
Source: Schoenherr, Luis
Date: March 9, 1950
Location: Santiago, Cuba
Time: 10:00
Summary: A disc-shaped object was sighted by witnesses on the ground and by passengers and crew of an airliner flying from Santiago to Antilla, Cuba. Ground observers tracked the object with a theodolite.
Source: Gross, Loren E. UFOs: A History. 1950: January-March, Author, Fremont, 1983
Date: March 9, 1950: The Selfridge AFB Radar Case
Date: March 9, 1950
Location: Norwood, Ohio
Time: 20:00, lasting 55 minutes
Summary: More than one object was observed by 11 witnesses for 55 minutes (Berger) — the largest crowd for this recurring pattern since the original 1949 Norwood sighting. [Full Report]
Source: Stringfield, Leonard H. CRIFO Newsletter & CRIFO Orbit
Date: March 9, 1950
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Time: 21:00
Summary: Nocturnal lights were observed by several witnesses.
Source: SOBEPS
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Orangeburg, South Carolina
Time: Unknown
Summary: A disc hovered over the city, then sped away.
Source: Unknown
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Denver, Colorado
Time: Unknown
Summary: One object was observed (Hayden).
Source: Scully, Frank. Behind the Flying Saucers, Holt, 1950
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Tessalit, Sahara Desert, Mali
Time: Unknown
Summary: An object was observed from a car; one circular object was observed. Possibly related to the March 4 Tessalit entry above, given the shared location within the same week.
Source: Weinstein, Dominique. Aircraft UFO Encounters, Project ACUFOE, Paris, 1999
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
Time: Unknown
Summary: One top-shaped object was observed by numerous witnesses in the city for two minutes.
Source: Hatch, Larry
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Time: 07:00
Summary: Three objects were observed by one witness briefly (Richards; Stoddart).
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Guerrero, Mexico
Time: Around 1200
Summary: A daytime disc was reported.
Source: Petrowitsch, Pablo
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico
Time: 12:35
Summary: A daytime disc was reported.
Source: Petrowitsch, Pablo
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Burbank, California
Time: 17:30
Summary: One wheel, about 20 ft across, was observed by one witness in a residential area for ten minutes (Coffman; Lytle).
Source: Doubt Magazine
Date: March 10, 1950: The Phoenix, Arizona Ovoid Sighting
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Norwood, Ohio
Time: 19:00, lasting ten minutes
Summary: A huge UFO was reported in a searchlight; it may have risen to avoid the beam. One object, of huge size, was observed by a male witness in town for ten minutes (Berger). [Full Report]
Source: Stringfield, Leonard H. CRIFO Newsletter & CRIFO Orbit
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Gallup, New Mexico
Time: 19:50
Summary: One object was observed by three witnesses for over three minutes (Romero).
Source: Newspaper
Date: March 10, 1950
Location: Sylvan Lake, Alberta, Canada
Time: Night
Summary: One object was observed by one witness briefly (Stark).
Source: Newspaper
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Four Cases Promoted, One Corrupted Entry Untangled
This period produced four standalone reports: the Wright-Patterson AFB interception (this page’s headline case, already illustrated on the live site), the Selfridge AFB dual-radar case, the Tonantzintla Observatory sighting, and the Phoenix ovoid. A single March 8 entry had merged two entirely unrelated sightings — a Naval commander’s Mazatlan, Mexico sighting and the Vandalia, Ohio witnesses’ account of the Wright-Patterson interception itself — into one garbled record; they are now split into their own entries, with the Vandalia account linked to the full Wright-Patterson report it actually describes. The existing “Mexico City UFO Crash with Midget Pilot” link is now filled out inline per this archive’s standard for previously-linked-only cases. Two more Berger Ohio searchlight incidents (March 9 and 10) have been added to that combined report, including the pattern’s largest crowd to date. Per updated site policy, entries with no real content have been dropped rather than kept as placeholder rows, and individual missing fields on real entries are marked “Unknown” rather than left blank.
“Almost on it.”
The radar operator’s report to the intercepting F-51 pilots, March 8, 1950, Wright-Patterson AFB.
