The official U.S. Air Force statement was that the debris recovered from the Roswell crash on July 8, 1947, was just a "Weather Balloon." However, a secret memorandum written by General Nathan Twining on Septmeber 23, 1947, suggests otherwise.

General Nathan F. Twining was appointed commanding general of the Air Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in December of 1945. He remained there until October 1, 1947.

General Twining was sworn in as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by President Eisenhower on August 15, 1957. This made General Twining the senior military adviser to the president, the secretary of defense and the National Security Council.