Tuesday, July 8, 1947
RAAF Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch in
Roswell Region
No Details of Flying Disk Are Revealed
Roswell Hardware Man and Wife Report Disk Seen
The intelligence office of the 509th Bombardment group at Roswell
Army Field announced at noon today, that the field has come into
possession of a flying saucer.
According to information released by the department, over authority
of Maj.J. A. Marcel, intelligence officer, the disk was recovered
on a ranch in the Roswell vicinity, after an unidentified rancher
had notified Sheriff Geo. Wilcox, here, that he had found the instrument
on his premises.
Major Marcel and a detail from his department went to the ranch
and recovered the disk, it was stated.
After the intelligence officer here had inspected the instrument
it was flown to higher headquarters.
The intelligence office stated that no details of the saucer's
construction or its appearance had been revealed.
Mr. and Mrs. Dan Wilmot apparently were the only persons in Roswell
who seen what they thought was a flying disk.
They were sitting on their porch at 105 South Penn. last Wednesday
night at about ten o'clock when a large glowing object zoomed out
of the sky from the southeast, going in a northwesterly direction
at a high rate of speed.
Wilmot called Mrs. Wilmot's attention to it and both ran down
into the yard to watch. It was in sight less then a minute, perhaps
40 or 50 seconds, Wilmot estimated.
Wilmot said that it appeared to him to be about 1,500 feet high
and going fast. He estimated between 400 and 500 miles per hour.
In appearance it looked oval in shape like two inverted saucers,
faced mouth to mouth, or like two old type washbowls placed, together
in the same fashion. The entire body glowed as though light were
showing through from inside, though not like it would inside, though
not like it would be if a light were merely underneath.
From where he stood Wilmot said that the object looked to be about
5 feet in size, and making allowance for the distance it was from
town he figured that it must have been 15 to 20 feet in diameter,
though this was just a guess.
Wilmot said that he heard no sound but that Mrs. Wilmot said she
heard a swishing sound for a very short time.
The object came into view from the southeast and disappeared over
the treetops in the general vicinity of six mile hill.
Wilmot, who is one of the most respected and reliable citizens
in town, kept the story to himself hoping that someone else would
come out and tell about having seen one, but finally today decided
that he would go ahead and tell about it. The announcement that
the RAAF was in possession of one came only a few minutes after
he decided to release the details of what he had seen.
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