The FBI's Most Viewed File

Of all the files available in the FBI's online database, the most-viewed is a two-paragraph note from 1950 called the Hottel memo. The FBI never followed up on it. Now, some say it proves the existence of UFOs.

What Makes It So Intriguing

Of all the reports filed by the FBI, which do people want to read most? You might think it would be about John Dillinger or Roswell. But no. It's actually a file known as the Hottel memo, which dates back to March 22, 1950, and is only two paragraphs.

The mysterious file, which was uploaded to the Vault (the FBI's online database accessible to anyone with an internet connection) in 2011, was viewed a million times in just two years. The memo's author was Guy Hottel, then head of the FBI's Washington field office. His report details an account supposedly given by an Air Force investigator who says he recovered a trio of flying saucers — with an alien crew and all. The saucers were "circular in shape with raised centers, approximately 50 meters in diameter," according to the memo, and "[The aliens had] bodies of human shape but only 3 feet tall, dressed in metallic cloth of a very fine texture. Each body was bandaged in a manner similar to the blackout suits used by speed fliers and test pilots."

Why the FBI Doesn't Care

Atlas Obscura describes the Hottel memo as "what some believe to be a real life X-File." But the FBI says not so much. The agency even posted about it on their official website, addressing the controversy head-on and calling the memo "an unconfirmed report that the FBI never even followed up on."

The FBI says the memo doesn't reveal what conspiracy theorists are hoping it does. "When we launched the Vault in April 2011, some media outlets noticed the Hottel memo and erroneously reported that the FBI had posted proof of a UFO crash at Roswell, New Mexico and the recovery of wreckage and alien corpses. The resulting stories went viral, and traffic to the new Vault soared," the post says. In fact, though, Hottel took the memo down nearly three years after the famous Roswell crash, which happened in 1947. (Also: It was really just a balloon crash; balloon crash dummies and humans with head injuries explain away a lot of "alien sightings" in the Roswell area.)

The FBI statement continues: "... The Hottel memo does not prove the existence of UFOs; it is simply a second- or third-hand claim that we never investigated. Some people believe the memo repeats a hoax that was circulating at that time, but the Bureau's files have no information to verify that theory. Sorry, no smoking gun on UFOs. The mystery remains ..."

It's a bit mysterious that the FBI didn't investigate this report, too. After the Roswell crash, the country was so engulfed in alien mania that the FBI really did investigate UFO reports for a time to squelch rumors. They passed that duty back to the Air Force in July of 1950 — but that was four months after the Hottel report. This suggests that FBI officials "didn't think enough of [the Hottel] flying saucer story to look into it," according to the agency.

Want more mysteries? Check out "The Mystery Chronicles: More Real-Life X-Files" book by paranormal investigator Joe Nickell. 

Here is video link : FBI vault reveals UFO memo