DOW-UAP-D155, Air Intelligence Information Report, Saudi Arabia, 1957

File ID: DOW-UAP-D155
Agency: Department of War
Release: Release 07, 23 Oct 2026
Event date: 1/18/1957 (read as 18 Jan 1957; precision: day)
Location: Saudi Arabia
Type: PDF
Redactions: None flagged

The official record

Official summary, as published

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report (AIIR), a standardized U.S. Air Force reporting form used to record raw information of potential intelligence value for later analysis. The form served as a primary vehicle for U.S. Air Force field intelligence collection throughout the early Cold War, until defense-wide reporting standards were established in the early 1960s.

This AIIR records a January 18, 1957, incident over Saudi Arabia in which the crew of a U.S. Air Force B-52 aircraft reported detecting an unidentified return on the aircraft’s gunnery scope for approximately five to seven minutes. The report characterizes the unidentified return as smaller than one produced by another B-52 operating in the area.

All descriptive and estimative language contained in this report reflects the reporter’s subjective interpretation at the time of the event. Such characterizations should not be interpreted as a conclusive indication of the presence or absence of any intrinsic object features or performance characteristics.

Named in this file

1 name

People, programs and institutions from The Legacy Program research board whose names appear in this file, found by exact spelling against a hand-checked list. A match says only that the file names them, not what part they play. People and programs lists every file that names each one.

Tier A United States Air Force institution
Named in pages 1, 2, 3.
Military department; original custodian of the UFO record and of the Roswell material

Our reading

HISTORICAL SIGHTINGS

A SECRET Air Intelligence Information Report on a B-52 from Castle AFB that, during a January 1957 Strategic Air Command mission over Saudi Arabia, held an unidentified return at the 6,000-yard marker of its A-3A gunnery scope for five to seven minutes. The return was smaller than the one from a second B-52 at 5,000 yards and vanished when the bomber banked, toward the Baghdad Flight Identification Region. The form includes two hand-drawn scope sketches.

Three separate measures, each with its reason. They are never added into a score.

E Evidence 2 of 3

A radar return on a B-52's A-3A gunnery scope, held for five to seven minutes and sketched on the form

N Novelty 2 of 3

Judged from the file; no earlier publication checked; detailed SECRET-era form text

L Linkage 1 of 3

Strategic Air Command reporting of the Blue Book era; no board entity named

Reading published 31 Oct 2026.

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