What did the declassified documents reveal?

COLD OPEN This episode presents Office Memorandum number sixty-five, file reference H S one eight three four two two eight nine six one, section two, issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August thirteenth, nineteen forty‑seven. The memorandum records a series of eyewitness reports of an unidentified flying object—commonly referred to at the time as a “flying disc”—observed over Hackensack, New Jersey. The document is hosted in the public‑domain collection of The Black Vault. PROVENANCE The record was made publicly available through The Black Vault’s digital archive, entry number sixty‑five H S one eight three four two two eight nine six one, accessible at https://archive.org/download/expediente-ovni-65-hs1-834228961-62-hq-83894-section-2-1ecd79/65hs1-83422896162-hq-83894section2djvu.txt. No FOIA case number is listed; the declassification authority is noted as the United States Department of Justice, which released the file as part of its ongoing effort to make historical FBI records available to the public. THE DOCUMENT The memorandum opens with a header indicating internal handling instructions: “USE CARE IN HANDLING THIS FILE – PICKETT STREET Transfer‑Call 3421 – NOIL.” It is addressed to the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with a copy forwarded to the San Francisco office. The subject line reads “LYING DISCS.” The text then references a prior letter dated July twenty‑eighth, nineteen forty‑seven, which forwarded a report from Lieutenant Colonel Donald Springer, A‑2, Fourth Air Force, Hamilton Field, California, concerning investigations of reported flying discs. The memorandum notes that additional reports were submitted by Major William R. Graham, Deputy Assistant Chief of A‑2, Army Air Forces, also at Hamilton Field, and that copies of those reports were being sent to the Phoenix offices for file completion. The core of the document details a specific sighting in Hackensack, New Jersey. It reads: “Reference is made to the teletype from the Newark Division to the Bureau dated August fourth, nineteen forty‑seven stating that a ‘Flying Disc’ had been reported at Hackensack, New Jersey on August third, nineteen forty‑seven by Charles Casella, Jr., and William Truex. Charles Casella, Jr., of two hundred eighty‑seven Euclid Avenue, Hackensack, upon interview by Special Agent Arthur F. Williams of this Division, stated that on August third he had been standing with William Truex, a soldier stationed at Fort Dix, observing a ham radio rig atop a two‑story house on Simons Avenue, Hackensack. It was approximately seven forty‑five p.m., and they were in the vicinity for the purpose of meeting Truex’s girlfriend, Joyce McFarland. Truex commented to Casella that a child had apparently lost its balloon. Casella looked about a block away and noticed a round, black object moving from south to north and east of the spot where he and Truex were standing. Casella noted that it was moving too fast to be an ordinary balloon…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record 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.

FBI: Office Memorandum Number Sixty Five, File

◆ BLUF — The short version

COLD OPEN This episode presents Office Memorandum number sixty-five, file reference H S one eight three four two two eight nine six one, section two, issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August thirteenth, nineteen forty‑seven.

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

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What was FBI: Office Memorandum Number Sixty Five, File about?: COLD OPEN This episode presents Office Memorandum number sixty-five, file reference H S one eight three four two two eight nine six one, section two, issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August thirteenth, nineteen forty‑seven.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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