The Washington, D.C. Flap
On two weekends in July 1952, air traffic radar at National Airport and Andrews Air Force Base tracked unknown targets over the capital. Some pilots saw lights where the radar showed returns. Jets were scrambled but found little. The headlines grew so big that the Air Force held a large press conference on July 29.
The ledger
What the record shows, what people say, and the best explanation available so far.
What's documented
- Radar logs, pilot statements and the press conference transcript survive.
What's claimed
- Craft buzzed the Capitol and the White House.
Best explanation so far
At the press conference, General John Samford blamed temperature inversions that bend radar beams and create false returns. Some radar operators disagreed at the time.
Check the sources
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