Killeen Base, Texas, September 17, 1952, 4:38 a.m.
THINK ABOUTIT UFO|UAP SIGHTINGS REPORT
1952: Killeen, Texas, the Sentry and the Green Object
At about 4:38 a.m. on September 17, 1952, Cpl. Harold Blair of the Military Police Company, 6456th AAU, was standing guard at post 33 on Killeen Base in Texas, looking up at the stars in the dark before daybreak, when an object passed directly over his head at about 1,000 feet. It was about 10 feet across, with a green fluorescent appearance across the front and two six-foot red flames trailing from the rear.
Blair watched it for two to three seconds as it moved from southwest to northeast at an estimated 700 to 800 miles per hour. About two seconds after it passed he heard a sound like a model airplane engine. He drew a sketch for the investigators. The Blue Book record card carries the remark that the source “does not sound credible.”
Date: September 17, 1952
Sighting Time: About 4:38 a.m.
Day/Night: Night, before daybreak
Location: Post 33, Killeen Base (Fort Hood area), Killeen, Texas
Urban or Rural: Rural military base
No. of Entity(‘s): None reported
Entity Type: Not applicable
Entity Description: Not applicable
Hynek Classification: NL (Nocturnal Light)
Duration: 2–3 seconds
No. of Object(s): 1
Description of the Object(s): A flying object that passed directly overhead, with a green fluorescent appearance across the front and two six-foot red flames trailing from the rear
Shape of Object(s): Not described beyond the glowing front; sketched by the witness
Size of Object(s): About 10 feet across
Color of Object(s): Green fluorescent front, red flames
Distance to Object(s): Directly overhead at about 1,000 feet
Height & Speed: About 1,000 feet; estimated 700–800 mph, southwest to northeast
Number of Witnesses: 1 (Cpl. Harold Blair, military police sentry)
Special Features/Characteristics: Two six-foot red flames from the rear; a faint sound like a model airplane engine about two seconds after it passed; the witness had no experience as an aircraft observer or in astronomy; the report was forwarded up the Army chain from Killeen Base through Fort Hood and Fort Sam Houston to Air Materiel Command
Case Status: Insufficient Data (the record card remarks that the source “does not sound credible”)
Source: Blue Book file (Killeen Base flying-saucer report and sketch, Army CIC agent report KB/CIC/52-44, Fort Hood and Fort Sam Houston cover letters)
Summary/Description: A military police sentry at Killeen Base saw a 10-foot object with a green fluorescent front and two six-foot red flames pass directly overhead at 1,000 feet at about 4:38 a.m. on September 17, 1952, moving southwest to northeast at an estimated 700–800 mph. The Blue Book card notes the source “does not sound credible.”
Related Cases: the other September 1952 base-security reports on the September 17th–30th page
DETAILED REPORT
The file begins with the Killeen Base “Flying Saucer Report.” At approximately 0438 hours on September 17, 1952, Cpl. Harold Blair of the Military Police Company, 6456th AAU, saw the object fly over post 33, where he was sentry. According to his interview, daylight had not started to break and he was looking skyward and watching the stars when it crossed at about 1,000 feet directly over his head.
He described the object as about 10 feet across, with a green fluorescent appearance across the front and two six-foot red flames protruding from the rear. He watched it for about two to three seconds at an estimated speed of 700 to 800 miles per hour. About two seconds after sighting it he heard a peculiar sound, something like a model airplane engine. It was traveling from southwest to northeast. The report includes a reproduction of his sketch, labeled with the green fluorescent front and the six-foot red flame.
Army counterintelligence forwarded the report. A Killeen Base letter of September 29 sent agent report KB/CIC/52-44 to Fort Hood, a Fort Hood endorsement of October 3 passed it to Fort Sam Houston, and on October 6 the Fourth Army G-2 sent it to Air Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson with a note that another statement was attached. The Blue Book record card lists the sighting as 2–3 seconds and remarks that the source does not sound credible.
RESEARCHER’S NOTES
Killeen 1952: One Sentry, One Sketch, a Dismissive Remark
- Single-witness case: The report rests on one sentry with no aircraft or astronomy background. The card’s remark that the source “does not sound credible” is the evaluator’s judgment, and the archive reports it as such without endorsing it.
- The sound: The model-airplane-engine sound two seconds after passage is consistent with an object moving fast at 1,000 feet, though the report does not say.
- Date note: The Army report gives 17 September while the second half of September page lists it among the 17th onward. The date is firm in the file.
- Second statement: The Fort Sam Houston cover letter lists a statement by another person enclosed with the report. That statement was not legible in the upload.
Killeen is a short, vivid, single-witness night report with a drawing, a speed estimate and a fast trip up the Army chain. Blue Book recorded it with the comment that the source did not sound credible, and the archive records the account as it stands in the file.
