Pentagon UFO Files Reveal Scouts' Claim of Disintegrating Silver Object Over California's Catalina Island

Three Boy Scouts reported witnessing a mysterious silver object moving rapidly across the sky above California's Catalina Island in 1952 before it appeared to break apart and disappear, according to declassified US government records released by the Pentagon.

The account is among several decades-old reports from the Southern California island featured in documents made public on 23 October. Although the records preserve descriptions of unusual aerial sightings, including 'flying saucers,' they do not provide evidence that the objects originated beyond Earth.

The records were included in the seventh release of historical unidentified anomalous phenomena files published by the US Department of War on 23 October 2026 under the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE). The initiative began with an initial release on 8 May 2026.

Boy Scouts Describe High-Speed Silver Object

One of the 28 files released by the US government documents a report of an alleged sighting on 25 June 1952. Three Boy Scouts attending a summer camp at Camp Fox were hiking in the mountainous terrain of Santa Catalina Island. According to an Air Force intelligence report documenting their account, the boys described an object that was 'silver in color.'

The description also said the object's 'altitude is uncertain,' and that its speed was 'faster than a conventional jet.' The witnesses also reported seeing the object make an upward turn shortly before its 'disappearance by disintegration.'

The officer who prepared the report said no attempt had been made to assess the witnesses' reliability and described their experience as 'probably meager at best'. The document records the Scouts' account but does not independently establish what they saw.

Other Reports Documented

The Boy Scouts were not the only unexplained aerial observation associated with Catalina Island reported. The newly publicised records include a report of an observation on 16 November 1953, when an unidentified person saw a round object with a purplish-white appearance above the island.

According to the documentation, the object initially appeared motionless before travelling north-west towards Los Angeles over approximately 10 minutes. Two other reports described earlier and later observations.

In a letter dated May 1949, Avalon resident Percy Wackey relayed an account from his wife and another person who reportedly saw six objects over Catalina Island on 28 April that year. 'My wife and a school teacher saw six objects in the sky, not in a group, but singly,' the handwritten report read.

'A few minutes later after going to my daughter's home, on the next street and corresponding block, she and my daughter and my grandson saw four more. All traveling in the same direction,' the report added. An Air Force annotation indicated that the information was insufficient for evaluation, according to the report.

In another incident, dated 15 March 1955, Avalon resident Paul J. Carr reported seeing a bright orange object for approximately two seconds. The officer recording that observation considered an astronomical explanation possible and concluded that further investigation was unnecessary.

Pentagon Files Offer No Proof of Extraterrestrial Activity

The documents form part of the US government's effort to make historical records concerning unidentified anomalous phenomena, commonly known as UAPs or UFOs, publicly accessible. The Pentagon's official archive explains that some cases remain unresolved because investigators lack enough information to reach a definitive conclusion about what observers encountered.

An unresolved classification does not, by itself, indicate that an object was extraterrestrial or technologically advanced. In a 2024 historical review, the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office reported finding no verifiable evidence that investigated UAP sightings represented extraterrestrial activity or that the US government possessed extraterrestrial technology.

The newly released records document several historical reports of unusual sightings over Catalina Island, but they do not establish the identity of the objects described by the witnesses. The Scouts' account remains unexplained in the material reviewed.