What did the declassified documents reveal?

PROJECT ONE ZERO ZERO SEVENTY‑THREE RECORD CARD, U‑S A I R F O R C E, NOVEMBER ONE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED FIFTY‑SEVEN. This is an Air Intelligence Information Report documenting an unidentified flying object observed near Garwob, Poland, on the night of November twenty‑second, nineteen fifty‑seven. The record is notable because it provides a contemporaneous military observation of a luminous aerial phenomenon in Eastern Europe during the early Cold War. The document was released to the public through The Black Vault archive. It appears as part of a Freedom of Information Act release, identified by the archive entry number 1957‑11‑7228649‑Garwd‑Poland. The release date is listed as the date of upload to the archive, and the declassification authority is the Director of Intelligence, United States Air Force. The full text is available at https://archive.org/download/1957-11-7228649-Garwd-Poland/1957-11-7228649-Garwd-Polanddjvu.txt. The report reads as follows: “PROJECT ONE ZERO ZERO SEVENTY‑THREE RECORD CARD. DATE: NOVEMBER TWENTY‑SECOND, NINETEEN‑FIFTY‑SEVEN. LOCATION: GARWOB, POLAND. DATE‑TIME GROUP: FOUR. TYPE OF OBSERVATION: GROUND‑VISUAL AND GROUND‑RADAR. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION: EIGHT MINUTES. NUMBER OF OBJECTS: NINE. COURSE: FROM SOUTH‑SOUTH‑WEST TO NORTH‑NORTH‑EAST. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING: Rectangular‑shaped object, yellow. Meteor sighting, orange color. No sound. Caught source’s attention because of illumination, from SSW, overhead to NNE, disappearing over horizon. ATIC FORM 329 (REY 76 SEP 52).” “CONCLUSIONS: Was Balloon? Probably Balloon. Possibly Balloon. Was Aircraft? Probably Aircraft. Possibly Aircraft. Probably Astronomical? Possibly Astronomical. Other… INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR EVALUATION. UNKNOWN.” “COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: SECURITY INFORMATION – REDACTED. AIR INTELLIGENCE INFORMATION REPORT. AGENCY OF ORIGIN: U‑S A I R F O R C E. DATE OF REPORT: APRIL TWENTY‑FIVE, NINETEEN FIFTY‑EIGHT. SOURCE OF INFORMATION: UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT NEAR GARWOB (512117/1642). SUMMARY: Concise description of report. Description of unidentified flying object seen by S, including color, estimated dimensions and elevation, also length of observation. Additional information obtained by interviewer WALTLAS, FRUE, and editor BRON, JANSS. Polish AAA Unit at LUBLINIECZ (504 4/16412). APPROVED: HUGH MAHONEY, COLONEL, U‑S A I R F O R C E COMMANDER.” “OBJECT DESCRIPTION: Object approximately fifty centimeters long, ten centimeters wide. Collar was orange‑yellow. No discernible features. No sound heard. Object illuminated the observer’s position, causing attention. Disappeared at horizon after approximately fifteen to twenty seconds. Observation made at approximately twelve hundred hours local time. Weather was cold but clear.” The report concludes with the following classification notice, reproduced verbatim: “THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE OF THE UNITED STATES WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE ESPIONAGE ACT, FIFTY U.S. CODE §§ 31 AND…

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.

1957 11 7228649 Garwd Poland

◆ BLUF — The short version

PROJECT ONE ZERO ZERO SEVENTY‑THREE RECORD CARD, U‑S A I R F O R C E, NOVEMBER ONE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED FIFTY‑SEVEN. This is an Air Intelligence Information Report documenting an unidentified flying object observed near Garwob, Poland, on the night of November twenty‑second, nineteen fifty‑seven.

Agency: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Date: JUL 18 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source documenthttps://archive.org/details/1957-11-7228649-Garwd-Poland

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Episode notes

Source document: https://archive.org/details/1957-11-7228649-Garwd-Poland

Questions about this case

What was 1957 11 7228649 Garwd Poland about?: PROJECT ONE ZERO ZERO SEVENTY‑THREE RECORD CARD, U‑S A I R F O R C E, NOVEMBER ONE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED FIFTY‑SEVEN. This is an Air Intelligence Information Report documenting an unidentified flying object observed near Garwob, Poland, on the night of November twenty‑second, nineteen fifty‑seven.
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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1957 11 7228649 Garwd Poland

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