A declassified FBI document reveals a detailed report from a Pan American Airways captain and his navigator who observed an unidentified object over the Atlantic Ocean on August 4, 1947. The incident is recorded in Serial 130 of the FBI’s UFO case files, covering June 1947 through July 1968, and was released under the PURSUE program.
At 4 p.m. that day, Captain I. Powell was piloting a Constellation aircraft at 9,000 feet, traveling 266 mph from Gander, Newfoundland, toward La Guardia Field. He and navigator Mr. White spotted an object on the aircraft’s right side, slightly below them.
Powell banked the plane for a better view and observed the object for 50 seconds. The object was described as bright orange, cylindrical, and blunt at both ends.
Powell estimated its length to be comparable to a P-40 fuselage. It was positioned roughly one mile away at an estimated altitude of 7,800 feet. The object’s course was 200 degrees magnetic, and its speed was approximately 160 mph. Powell stated the object had “a definite shape” and emphasized there was no gaseous dispersion visible.
He noted that if the orange glow came from a rocket or jet exhaust, the surrounding air would have shown trails, smoke, or distortion, which it did not. The year 1947 is significant in UFO history.
Kenneth Arnold’s June sighting near Mount Rainier had already popularized the term “flying discs” in newspapers. The military and FBI were actively collecting reports. Powell’s sighting became part of this federal response.
The Air Force launched Project Sign, followed by Project Grudge and Project Blue Book. The CIA also became involved, and the FBI maintained case files.
Powell’s credibility as a witness is a key element of the report. He was an airline captain flying a four-engine Constellation carrying passengers over the North Atlantic. His navigator independently saw the same object, providing two trained professionals who cross-checked each other’s observations.
The FBI interviewed Powell in detail, and the document includes that interview along with other eyewitness testimonies and public reports collected over two decades. The object’s course was roughly south-southwest, while Powell was flying toward New York.
The object was below him, off to the right, and moving slower than his aircraft. Powell had time to bank, observe, and estimate distance and size. He ruled out obvious explanations such as a balloon, plane, or meteorological phenomenon.
The FBI file does not identify the object or provide an explanation. It records what the captain and navigator reported and what the government chose to preserve.
The document is a 20.5 MB file that requires downloading, as some browser PDF viewers cannot open it. Powell stated the object was orange, cylindrical, blunt at both ends, one mile away, moving at 160 mph, at 7,800 feet, and had a definite shape with no gaseous dispersion. The FBI documented these details.
