Reported event: 18 November 1948 at Andrews Field, Camp Springs, Maryland. Original incident sheets 207, 207A and 207-B and the later intelligence summary reviewed 13 November 2026. Public release and catalogue dates are separate from the observation.
One case, several related accounts
An early intelligence report describes three reserve pilots encountering an unidentified light near Andrews Field, with a ground observer also reporting something unusual. The underlying incident sheets preserve a more useful distinction: Kenwood W. Jackson’s account, corroborated by Glen L. Stalker; a related account by Henry G. Combs; and Staff Sergeant John J. Kashner’s ground observation.
These are kept together as one canonical case because the original bundle links them. They are not three independent UFO encounters created to increase the case count. Their agreement and differences need to be examined rather than flattened into a single dramatic narrative.
Jackson and Stalker: 21:45 to 22:03
Incident 207 records 18 November 1948 and a starting time of approximately 21:45. Jackson’s narrative says the appearance crossed Andrews Field from northeast to southwest at an estimated 1,700 feet. His aircraft descended from about 4,000 feet and then circled, with the object described as occupying the outer circle.
The narrative describes three or four passes, a climb and an impression that the light could climb vertically or drop behind the aircraft. Switching on the landing light reportedly produced a brief dull glow and the impression of an oval without visible wings or tail surfaces.
Jackson’s sheet gives fifteen to eighteen minutes, and the narrative ends with loss of sight at 22:03 after climbing to about 8,000 feet. It explicitly says that Stalker corroborated Jackson’s statement. That establishes a documented report of corroboration; it is not a separate instrument record or a preserved independent transcript of everything Stalker saw.
Combs: a related, more detailed pursuit account
Incident 207A is also dated 18 November and gives approximately 22:00. Combs initially considered an aircraft with navigation lights turned off or extinguished. His narrative describes turning his own navigation lights off, attempting to approach, and trying to bring the appearance between his aircraft and the moon.
He described a continuous white light, a dull grey oblong appearance when illuminated, no visible wings and no exhaust flame. He estimated ten to twelve minutes and a wide range of apparent speeds. The narrative also includes an estimated close approach of 300–400 feet.
Those are witness estimates recorded in the file. They do not become measured target ranges or speeds simply because they appear on an official form. The aircraft’s own indicated speed is a different quantity from the inferred speed of something whose distance and track were uncertain.
The timing of this account overlaps Jackson’s, but the original sheets preserve different durations and details. They should not be presented as a precise second-by-second reconstruction of one aircraft’s movements or as proof that every observer saw every feature.
What the ground witness adds
Incident 207-B records Kashner on ground duty. He said a noise attracted his attention and that he saw a shining object crossing the sky. He compared the sound with a P-47, although louder, and thought the appearance did not resemble an aircraft. He also described hearing the noise again shortly afterwards.
The ground sheet leaves several key fields unspecified, including size and speed. It does not supply an independent measurement validating the airborne estimates. Its sound report is also worth preserving: an article describing this whole episode as uniformly silent would lose a material part of the original record.
The narrative identifies his statement as corroborating Jackson and Combs. That contemporary grouping supports treating the documents together, while leaving open precisely which part of the airborne sequence the ground observation corresponds to.
How the later summary compresses the evidence
Air Intelligence Report 100-203-79, dated 10 December 1948, condenses the episode into one paragraph. It collects the reserve pilots’ names, the attempts to identify the light and a ground report, but omits much of the original sheets’ structure.
The distinction matters when checking later retellings. The original pages reviewed here repeatedly say 18 November; a later secondary index giving a different date is not used to override the scans. Likewise, the report’s separate section on radar incidents in Japan does not supply radar confirmation for Andrews.
Nothing in these selected records establishes a recovered object, a photograph of the appearance or a completed technical identification. Their presence in an intelligence compilation shows official attention to the testimony, not official confirmation of an extraordinary vehicle.
Assessment, location and access
UKPX classifies the case as Insufficient evidence. Several linked accounts make it more than an anonymous modern retelling, but the preserved material reviewed here does not provide the measurements or identification needed to establish what caused the observations.
The map uses the broad Andrews AFB Census-designated-area reference. It is not an exact flight path, a target position or a viewing recommendation. Andrews remains an operating military installation: a map pin does not authorise access.
Sources and review scope
Original sources: Incident Summaries 173–233, PDF pages 83–88, covering incident 207, 207A and 207-B; all six pages visually read. The original federal text is included in the owner-supplied PURSUE Release 01 files, publicly catalogued at https://www.war.gov/UFO/release/. The entire 144-page bundle was not investigated for this case.
Comparison: Air Intelligence Report 100-203-79, DOW-UAP-D094, PDF page 20 / printed page 15. A public scan is available at https://www.nicap.org/docs/airintelrpt100-203-79.pdf. The source image reproduces only the federal narrative page; private addresses on other sheets are not reproduced.