USAF F-80 jet fighter pilot Captain Slater, another jet pilot captain, and a First Lieutenant of the 23rd Fighter Squadron saw, from the ground, a reddish star-like object to the east moving south over Munich at 200-500 mph, then turning slightly southwest then southeast. Slater called the Racecard DF Station. Racecard's radar tracked an unidentified target at 27,000 feet and 30 miles south of Munich, which climbed to 40,000 feet at 40 miles south of Munich, then circled.

Ruppelt's account:

Toward the end of November a wire came into Project Sign from Germany. It was the first report where a UFO was seen and simultaneously picked up on radar. This type of report, the first of many to come, is one of the better types of UFO reports. The wire said:

At 2200 hours, local time, 23 November 1948, Capt. ------ saw an object in the air directly east of this base. It was at an unknown altitude. It looked like a reddish star and was moving in a southerly direction across Munich, turning slightly to the southwest then the southeast. The speed could have been between 200 to 600 mph, the actual speed could not be estimated, not knowing the height. Capt. --- --- called base operations and they called the radar station. Radar reported that they had seen nothing on their scope but would check again. Radar then called operations to report that they did have a target at 27,000 feet, some 30 miles south of Munich, traveling at 900 mph. Capt. ------ reported that the object that he saw was now in that area. A few minutes later radar called again to say that the target had climbed to 50,000 feet, and was circling 40 miles south of Munich.

Capt. ------ is an experienced pilot now flying F-80's and is considered to be completely reliable. The sighting was verified by Capt. ------ , also an F-80 pilot.

The possibility that this was a balloon was checked but the answer from Air Weather Service was "not a balloon." No aircraft were in the area. Nothing we know of, except possibly experimental aircraft, which are not in Germany, can climb 23,000 feet in a matter of minutes and travel 900 miles per hour.

Google map of this location.