Alameda: Cone-shaped object over NAS
Six witnesses, including five San Leandro residents and Navy Lt. Cmdr. J. L. Kramer, saw a cone-shaped object like a 30-foot ice cream cone flying over Naval Air Station Alameda at 5,000 feet, moving southeast at 75-95 mph with a vapor trail.
Background
Event Details
On February 7, 1950, at 5:30 p.m., a peculiar cone-shaped object was sighted over Naval Air Station Alameda (now closed) in Alameda, California. It appeared as a 30-foot-long ice cream cone, traveling southeast at an estimated 75–95 miles per hour and altitude of about 5,000 feet, emitting a visible vapor trail from its pointed end before vanishing.
Witnesses
Six observers reported the sighting: five residents of San Leandro and Lt. Cmdr. J. L. Kramer, a Navy air officer. Their accounts aligned on the object's unusual form and trajectory.
Official Response
Officials at Hamilton Air Force Base (now closed) confirmed an investigation. They proposed the vapor trail resulted from a conventional aircraft in cold air conditions, offering a prosaic explanation.
Media Coverage
Reports appeared in local papers: Alameda Times Star (Feb. 9, p. 1), San Francisco News (Feb. 9, p. 1), San Francisco Chronicle (Feb. 9, p. 3), and Palo Alto Times (Feb. 9, p. 14), highlighting the bizarre 'flying ice cream cone.'
Significance
This military encounter near a naval base underscores early Cold War UFO reports, blending civilian and military testimony with a skeptical official dismissal, typical of 1950s investigations.