Today in UFO History

September 23, 1947 - Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio, USA:

The Birth of Project Sign

On September 23, 1947, Lieutenant General Nathan F. Twining, commander of Air Materiel Command, issued one of the most important documents in UFO history. Following a study of the wave of “flying disc” reports sweeping America, the memo concluded that “the phenomenon reported is something real and not visionary or fictitious.”

Investigators noted recurring reports of metallic, circular or elliptical objects displaying unusual speed, maneuverability, and rates of climb. Although Twining did not claim the objects were extraterrestrial, he believed the reports were serious enough to warrant continued military investigation.

The memo recommended establishing a permanent, classified program to study the phenomenon. This helped pave the way for Project Sign, the Air Force’s first formal UFO investigation, which later became Project Grudge and eventually Project Blue Book.

The Twining Memo remains significant because it shows that, at the dawn of the modern UFO era, senior U.S. military officials considered at least some flying-saucer reports worthy of serious investigation.