What does 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 reveal?

SHAEF Air Staff reference file is SHAEF/AIR/TS.37153/A-2, opened by Air Commodore C.M. Grierson, A.C. of S, A-2. Grierson tells U.S.S.T.A.F. on 11 February 1945 that the volume of 415th Night Fighter Squadron reports means "there must be something more than mere imagination behind the matter" and that pilots "are becoming slightly worried." 415th Night…

Which agency produced 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45?

415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 is a primary-source record from Department of War. Its original classification was SECRET (declassified, NND 947020).

When is 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 dated?

415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 is dated 1945-03-16.

What programs and topics appear in 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45?

415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 references SHAEF A-2 Air Staff, 415th Night Fighter Squadron, 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group / 107th Photo Recon Squadron, XII Tactical Air Command, First Tactical Air Force (Provisional) and Air Ministry D.D.I.2.

What does 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 say, in its own words?

"We have encountered a phenomenon which we cannot explain; crews have been followed by lights that blink on and off changing colors etc. The lights come very close and fly formation with our planes. They are agitating and keep the crews on edge when they encounter them, mainly because they cannot explain them." (source p. 14).

← Files

DISCLOSURE / FILE

415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45

331_120752_Numeric_Files_1944–1945_37153_German_Armament_Equipment_Documents

SHAEF Air Staff file 37153 collects January-March 1945 messages and witness reports on "night phenomena (foofighters)," cylindrical objects, and blinking lights tracked by the 415th Night Fighter Squadron and other Allied units over Germany and France.

Brief

The file routes complaints up from the 415th Night Fighter Squadron through XII Tactical Air Command, First Tactical Air Force, and on to SHAEF Air Staff under Air Commodore C.M. Grierson, who in February 1945 told U.S.S.T.A.F. the reports were too many to dismiss as imagination and that pilots were "becoming slightly worried." The 415th's S-2, Capt. F.B. Ringwald, attached verbatim sortie-report extracts from December 14, 1944 through January 29, 1945 describing red, orange, amber, and white lights that formed up on aircraft, followed evasive maneuvers, and disappeared on command. A parallel daylight thread covers a March 1, 1945 sighting by a 107th Squadron/67th TAC/R pilot of a 12-foot aluminum-colored cylinder floating vertically at 9,000 feet near grid F-5710; the pilot attacked it, producing "a red flame" without smoke, and the cylinder did not disintegrate. By March 13, 1945, Air Ministry's D.D.I.2 (Group Captain E.D.W. Hopkins) replied that Bomber Command crews were reporting similar phenomena and offered Me.262s and flak rockets as the "most likely explanation," while conceding the affair was "still something of a mystery."

Metadata

Agency: Department of War
Release: 5/8/26
Incident: 3/18/45
Location: Germany
Type: PDF • .pdf
Length: 17 pages
Classification: SECRET (declassified, NND 947020)
Programs: SHAEF A-2 Air Staff, 415th Night Fighter Squadron, 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group / 107th Photo Recon Squadron, XII Tactical Air Command, First Tactical Air Force (Provisional), Air Ministry D.D.I.2, A.D.I.(K), U.S.S.T.A.F.
Tags: foo fighters, cylindrical object, blinking lights, formation flight with aircraft, WWII, 1944, 1945, Germany, France, 415th Night Fighter Squadron, 67th TAC/R, SHAEF A-2

Key points

SHAEF Air Staff reference file is SHAEF/AIR/TS.37153/A-2, opened by Air Commodore C.M. Grierson, A.C. of S, A-2.p.11
Grierson tells U.S.S.T.A.F. on 11 February 1945 that the volume of 415th Night Fighter Squadron reports means "there must be something more than mere imagination behind the matter" and that pilots "are becoming slightly worried."p.11
415th Night Fighter Squadron's December 1944 training/tactical summary reports crews "followed by lights that blink on and off changing colors" that "fly formation with our planes."p.14
Capt. F.B. Ringwald, 415th Intelligence Officer, attaches verbatim sortie-report extracts covering 14-15 December 1944 through 29-30 January 1945.p.17
On the night of 22-23 December 1944 near Sarrebourg-Strasbourg, two lights climbed from the ground, leveled off at the aircraft's altitude, stayed on its tail for about two minutes, then peeled off; they "appeared to be under perfect control at all times."p.15
On 1 March 1945 a 107 Squadron / 67 TAC/R pilot at grid F-5710 sighted and attacked an aluminum-colored cylinder about 12 feet long and 1 foot in diameter floating vertically at 9,000 feet; it "partially deflated," produced "a red flame .. without smoke," and did not disintegrate.p.9
Gen. Quesada's HQ IX TAC informed SHAEF on 5 March 1945 that the 67th TAC/R photographs of the cylindrical object were unsuccessful, with a written report to follow.p.6
Air Ministry's D.D.I.2 (Group Captain E.D.W. Hopkins) replied on 13 March 1945 that Bomber Command crews had "for some time been reporting similar phenomena" and suggested Me.262s and flak rockets as the "most likely explanation," while noting "the whole affair is still something of a mystery."p.2

Verbatim

We have encountered a phenomenon which we cannot explain; crews have been followed by lights that blink on and off changing colors etc. The lights come very close and fly formation with our planes. They are agitating and keep the crews on edge when they encounter them, mainly because they cannot explain them.
p.14
From the number of reports quoted in the 2nd W/Ind. from the 415th Night Fighter Squadron, it would seem that there must be something more than mere imagination behind the matter, and in view of the fact that pilots and crews are becoming slightly worried by them, it is considered that everything possible should be done to get to the root of the matter.
p.11
An aluminum colored cylinder shaped object, about 12 ft long and 1 ft in diameter was observed floating in the air at 9,000 ft. It appeared to be suspended vertically with small fins and a mast projecting from the lower end. The object was attacked and partially deflated, a red flame resulted without smoke. The cylinder did not disintegrate.
p.9
Bomber Command crews have for some time been reporting similar phenomena. A few of the alleged aircraft may have been Me. 262 and for the rest, flak rockets are suggested as the most likely explanation.
p.2
The whole affair is still something of a mystery and the evidence is very sketchy and varied so that no definite and satisfactory explanation can yet be given.

Most interesting

The file is one of the earliest institutional uses of the term "foofighter" in Allied command correspondence, with the 415th's intelligence officer formally defining it in a footnote on page 17.
SHAEF's A-2 chief Air Commodore C.M. Grierson treats the sightings as a real intelligence problem, not a morale issue, and routes the matter to both Air Ministry and SHAEF's Scientific Investigation Division (Mr. Robertson).
The Air Ministry's competing explanations, Me.262 jets and flak rockets, do not match the witness data on page 15 of lights pacing aircraft at matched altitude for minutes at a time under "perfect control."
The cylindrical-object sighting near grid F-5710 on 1 March 1945 is a daylight, photographed event by a 67th TAC/R reconnaissance pilot, distinct from the 415th's nighttime light reports, suggesting the file mixes at least two separate phenomena under one reference number.
Air Ministry's D.D.I.2 reply notes Bomber Command had "for some time" been logging similar reports, pointing to a wider Allied dataset that is not reproduced in this file.

Cross-references

PDFUSAF Flying Discs File 319.1, 1949-50Department of War
PDFAir Materiel Command's Disc Files, 1946-47Department of War
PDFDepartment of War Disc Intake, 1948Department of War
PDFTop-Secret Air Force Report on Netherlands UFOs, 1948Department of War
PDFSoviet Trans-Caucasus Aircraft Sighting, 1955

Common questions

What is 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45?: SHAEF Air Staff file 37153 collects January-March 1945 messages and witness reports on "night phenomena (foofighters)," cylindrical objects, and blinking lights tracked by the 415th Night Fighter Squadron and other Allied units over Germany and France.
What does 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 reveal?: SHAEF Air Staff reference file is SHAEF/AIR/TS.37153/A-2, opened by Air Commodore C.M. Grierson, A.C. of S, A-2. Grierson tells U.S.S.T.A.F. on 11 February 1945 that the volume of 415th Night Fighter Squadron reports means "there must be something more than mere imagination behind the matter" and that pilots "are becoming slightly worried." 415th Night…
Which agency produced 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45?: 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 is a primary-source record from Department of War. Its original classification was SECRET (declassified, NND 947020).
When is 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 dated?: 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 is dated 1945-03-16.
What programs and topics appear in 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45?: 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 references SHAEF A-2 Air Staff, 415th Night Fighter Squadron, 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group / 107th Photo Recon Squadron, XII Tactical Air Command, First Tactical Air Force (Provisional) and Air Ministry D.D.I.2.
What does 415th Night Fighter 'Foofighters' File, 1944-45 say, in its own words?: "We have encountered a phenomenon which we cannot explain; crews have been followed by lights that blink on and off changing colors etc. The lights come very close and fly formation with our planes. They are agitating and keep the crews on edge when they encounter them, mainly because they cannot explain them." (source p. 14).

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