What did the declassified documents reveal?

COLD OPEN: This is a 1954 sighting report from Project 10073, a US Air Force investigation into unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. The document, 1954-11-6960246-SEOfNewOrleans, is hosted on The Black Vault. It's a brief observation of a mysterious object in the skies over New Orleans, Louisiana. PROVENANCE: The document was released through The Black Vault, an online archive of declassified government records. No FOIA case number is available, but the release date is not specified. THE DOCUMENT: 1. DATE 3. DATE-TIME GROUP Local 20/031 Eo ee Oe as O Yes O.Ne 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 3 to 5 minutes 1). BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING = 2 a e “ lin - i= F a -1 Jlue and YALU, Tlashing — + Jisanpneared in NB ATIC FORM 329 (REV 26 3EP $2) 2. PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD LOCATION SE of New Orleans 4. | 8, NUMBER OF OBJECTS “TYPE OF OBSERVATION D Ground-Vi sual BD Air Vi svol D0 Air-intercept Raaar Civilian =— Filot 9. COURSE L = 1}, COMMENTS , moving up and down. | Was definitely a star QO Ground-Roadar on0 900 zs oo00 oot . CONCLUSIONS Wos Balloon Probably Balloon Possibly Balloon Was Aircrafr Probably Aireroft Possibly Aireralt one oe Was Astronomical / > ~: = Probobly Astronomical Possibly Astronomical a Insufficient Dota for Evaluation Unknown SS ee a Se = CONTEXT: The Black Vault's editorial summary notes that the document is a truncated version of the original sighting report, with the majority of the content redacted. However, the provided text gives a glimpse into the observation and the Air Force's initial assessment of the sighting. OUTRO: This is what the public record looks like at its most ordinary. A brief, incomplete report of a UFO sighting, filed away and largely forgotten. The story remains in the documents, waiting to be pieced together. Find the full text of 1954-11-6960246-SEOfNewOrleans on The Black Vault, at storyflo.com.

Why was this case declassified?

This material was released by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

Declassified Case File

◆ BLUF — The short version

COLD OPEN: This is a 1954 sighting report from Project 10073, a US Air Force investigation into unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. The document, 1954-11-6960246-SEOfNewOrleans, is hosted on The Black Vault. It's a brief observation of a mysterious object in the skies over New Orleans, Louisiana.

Agency: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Date: JUL 18 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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What was Declassified Case File about?: COLD OPEN: This is a 1954 sighting report from Project 10073, a US Air Force investigation into unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. The document, 1954-11-6960246-SEOfNewOrleans, is hosted on The Black Vault. It's a brief observation of a mysterious object in the skies over New Orleans, Louisiana.
Why was this case declassified?: This material was released by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked in the case notes above so the citation chain is fully auditable.

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