Dept. of DefenseUnresolvedAmbiguous

Cylindrical aluminum object floating at 9,000 ft — F-5710 area, Western Europe

~Mar 1, 1945Vicinity grid F-5710, Western Europe9,000 ft

Analysis — our summary

A SHAEF signal relayed March 4-5, 1945 reports that Ninth TAC Air Command pilots observed an aluminum-colored cylinder-shaped object approximately 12 feet long and 1 foot in diameter, floating in the air at 9,000 feet. The object appeared suspended vertically with small fins and a mast projecting from the lower end. When attacked and partially deflated, a red flame resulted without smoke. The cylinder did not disintegrate. Photographs were attempted by the 107th Squadron of the 67th TAC/R Group but were unsuccessful.

As reported — verbatim from the document

“An aluminum coloured cylinder shaped object about 12 ft long and 1 ft in diameter was observed floating in the air at 9,000 ft. It appeared to be suspended vertically with small fins and a mast projecting from the lower end. The object was attacked and partially deflated, a red flame resulted without smoke. The cylinder did not disintegrate.”

Analyst notes — caveats & confidence

Grid reference F-5710 cannot be precisely geolocated without SHAEF grid overlay — lat/lng set to null. OCR quality is moderate. Object behavior (attacked, partially deflated, flame without smoke) is unusual and does not clearly correspond to known German balloon weapons of the period. The Air Ministry suggested connection to 'Flak Bomben' mentioned in ADI(K) Report 562/1944.

Provenance

Source document331_120752_Numeric_Files_1944–1945_37153_German_Armament_Equipment_Documents.pdf

Document typewartime intelligence

Reporting agencyDept. of Defense

Source pages17

DeclassifiedFirst public at this release (2026)

Held classified~81 years (≥, to this release)

Extraction confidence ModerateHow cleanly this record could be parsed from the source — driven by legibility & redaction. It is not a measure of how credible or anomalous the sighting is.