Kenneth Arnold Sighting
Civilian pilot Kenneth Arnold reported observing nine bright crescent-shaped objects flying near Mount Rainier in Washington state at unusually high speed. His description gave rise to the term 'flying saucer.'
The original photographs, video, audio, and supporting documents for this case are hosted by the originating agency. Direct embedding will be added to this page as the corpus is mirrored into our reference archive.
Project Blue Book records (NARA) ↗Official description
Arnold filed a formal report with the United States Army Air Forces. He estimated the objects' speed at approximately 1,200 mph and described their motion as resembling 'a saucer if you skip it across water.' Reporters subsequently shortened this to 'flying saucers.'
Editor's context
Considered the inflection point that began the modern UFO era in popular culture. The case itself was investigated under the predecessor of Project Blue Book and remained inconclusive. Candidate explanations range from a flock of pelicans (proposed by James Easton) to mirages or unconventional aircraft.
In the margins
Transcribed redactions, stamps, and handwritten markings, the paratext of the file. Often the most human part of a declassified document, and worth reading on its own.
- Stampp. AAF report coverU.S. ARMY AIR FORCES, TECHNICAL INTELLIGENCE DIVISION, WRIGHT FIELD
- AnnotationWitness: Kenneth Arnold, civilian businessman and pilot, flying a Call-Air A-2 from Chehalis, Washington toward Yakima.
- AnnotationArnold's signed statement to the AAF, July 12, 1947: 'They flew very erratic, like a saucer if you skip it across the water.'
- AnnotationThe phrase 'flying saucer' originated in Bill Bequette's June 25 East Oregonian wire-service report compressing Arnold's 'saucer if you skip it' description into the headline term.
- AnnotationAstronomer Donald Menzel later proposed mountain-wave clouds as a candidate explanation. James Easton in 1996 proposed pelicans flying in formation. Neither explanation has been broadly accepted by Arnold-case researchers but neither has been definitively ruled out either.
Cite the primary source
Citations center the originating government agency and link to the official record. This archive is listed as the access point, not the author.
U.S. Government. "Kenneth Arnold Sighting." Released via PURSUE program, 1947-06-25. https://www.archives.gov/research/military/air-force/ufos. Accessed 2026-05-12 via Social Media for Aliens archive, https://socialmediaforaliens.com/files/kenneth-arnold-1947.
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