Unidentified flying object seen by pilot in 1948

Summary

In May 1948, a U.S. Air Force pilot, Floyd Barnes, reported an unusual aerial phenomenon while flying between the Marshall Islands and Hickam Field. While at 9000 feet altitude, he observed a large white ball of fire about four to five miles ahead of his aircraft and slightly above it. The object was visible for only a split second, comparable to the explosion of a shell. No trails or "tails" were observed, which are typical of meteors or distress signals.

After the sighting, the pilot attempted to contact another aircraft in the area but received no response. As he approached the location of the fireball, a white light appeared on the water surface but quickly disappeared due to cloud cover. Later, more lights were observed 10 nautical miles north of the aircraft's course, which the pilot attributed to a surface vessel. Ten minutes later, another aircraft was seen flying in the opposite direction, but again, no communication was established. This report was included in Project "SIGN," an Air Force initiative to investigate sightings of unidentified flying objects.