Document · Government record · 1930-1954 (retired 31 August 1954)
Final personnel record of Col. Howard M. McCoy, USAF (1954)
The 298-page Air Force personnel file of Col. Howard M. McCoy, who ran Air Materiel Command intelligence at Wright Field from October 1947 to August 1949, the years of Project Sign and Project Grudge. It records that he also ran a classified 'Science Survey Office' that was 'abolished for unknown reasons' soon after he left, and that he moved on to the CIA. The file never mentions UFOs; war.gov's description is what ties him to Sign and Grudge.
On the record
- Career: West Point 1930, pilot, Caltech MS in aeronautical engineering, Wright Field propeller lab, ATSC Europe 1944-45, T-2 intelligence 1945-49, ICAF 1949-50, CIA 1950-51, OSD 1951-54, retired 31 August 1954.
- Mission wording: 'Air Technical Intelligence Service for the USAF required for the prevention of technological surprise'.
- Replaced on 8 August 1949 by Col. Harold E. Watson.
Open questions
- What did the Science Survey Office do, and why was it abolished?
- Why was his flying status suspended in June 1949?
Cases (1)
Connected
PURSUE Release 07 (war.gov, 23 October 2026) documentCol. Howard M. McCoy personUnited States Air Force org