In July 1952, the US Air Force held a major press conference to tell the public what they knew about flying saucers. Project Blue Book director Capt. Edward Ruppelt participated, and he later wrote:
“Prodded by the hubbub over the Washington flare-up and by the record crop of sightings, the Air Force called a press conference on July 29 at the Pentagon. Maj. Gen. John A. Samford, Air Force director of intelligence, went up against the biggest assemblage of newspapermen to turn out for an Air Force conference since World War II. He was accompanied by Maj. Gen. Roger Ramey, director of operations, and four technical men from ATIC-Col. Donald Bower, Capt. Roy James, Burgoyne Griffing, and myself.”
While not a formal report, Gen. Samford’s remarks addressed public concerns, updating them on the Washington reports and also addressing the larger UFO problem. Samford assured the public that UFOs were not a threat, admitted that reports of UFOs go back to ancient times, and that 20% of UFO reports remain unexplained. Taking questions from reporters afterward, he also addressed the possibility of an extraterrestrial origin for UFOs.
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