A 1955 memo has recently been further declassified by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), chronicling a unique event: the sighting of a “saucer-like” craft by a former U.S. Senator while in Russia during the height of the Cold War. The declassified top-secret memo, written by Herbert Scoville Jr., then-Assistant Director, Scientific Intelligence for the CIA, provides a fascinating account of former Senator Richard B. Russell‘s encounter with unknown objects seen by multiple witnesses.

The document was released after The Black Vault filed a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) case on January 6, 2020. The case took just over two years to review and declassify the two page memorandum, and despite the memo being released prior in redacted form in 1978, the memo has now been released, in full.

The memo is a record of an interview conducted with Senator Russell by Dr. Francis Clauser, a consultant with the Office of Scientific Intelligence, and Scoville himself, which took place on October 27, 1955. Russell’s observations are detailed and reveal a scenario that appears to remain unexplained after the Senator’s return to the United States.

“On an hour and one-half out of Baku,” the document states, “the subject [Russell] suddenly noticed a greenish-yellow ball rising rapidly.” Russell was quick to alert the rest of his party, exclaiming that he had just witnessed a “flying saucer.” Despite initial skepticism, the entire group soon became convinced after observing a second similar object ascending rapidly into the sky.

The two objects were initially spotted at considerable altitude, with no reference points to estimate their size or distance accurately. The objects gave the impression of “whirling” and followed a single trajectory without any visible breaks in their flight pattern. Strangely, no lights were associated with the objects – only a “yellowish glow.”

A crucial factor to consider is the testimony that the sighting took place while the party was traveling by train – a mode of transportation explicitly requested by Senator Russell. The document notes, “This tends to refute the theory that the train trip was arranged in order to stage the operation for Senator Russell’s benefit.”

In addition to his UFO sighting, Senator Russell also made a noteworthy observation during a motor trip between Moscow and Borodino. He reported seeing multiple caserns (military barracks) with personnel and radar installations, one with a “big egg beater object” around 20 feet away.

This incident was previously revealed within a October 15, 1955, “Current Intelligence Bulletin” released by the CIA, along with other files within Project Blue Book. Further information can be found on the Enigma Labs website.

Scoville concludes in the memo that Senator Russell’s testimony does not support the theory that the Russians have developed saucer-like or unconventional aircraft. He suggests the objects could have been “the exhausts of normal jet aircraft in a steep climb.” Yet, the nature of the sighting leaves open the possibility of more unusual explanations.

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EDIT 7/11/23 – 8:00am: Additional context with previously released documents has been added to the article.

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Top Secret CIA Memo Reveals Senator’s “Saucer-Like Craft” Sighting in 1955 [4 Pages, 0.5MB]

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