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March 2009 highlights guide

The National Archives (UK) · 2009-03 · 8 pages · text from the file's own layer

The National Archives (UK) issued this highlights guide in March 2009 to help readers navigate a newly released batch of Ministry of Defence UFO files. It explains how to use the PDF bookmarks and lists key stories highlighted by Dr David Clarke in files DEFE 24/1938 and DEFE 31/176 to 31/181. These include the Calvine diamond-shaped UFO photographs, RAF Tornado crews overtaken over Germany in November 1990 by what was later found to be Soviet rocket debris, and a Heathrow boomerang sighting. It ends with an index of reports by region.

  • p. 3 …letter from RAF Wattisham to MoD and Norfolk police. DEFE 31/176 p224 A project to…
  • p. 7 …p128) Nottinghamshire DEFE 31/176 (p429 – 431) Norfolk DEFE 24/1938 (p38 – 39) Northern Ireland DEFE…
p257
A helicopter crew reported a close encounter with a “very bright
flashing red light” on the night of 21 February 1988. The UFO appeared
to be 200 – 300 yards long, with red and white lights and appeared to
“swerve to miss the helicopter” as it descended. No location is
specified in the report.
p429 – 431
A re-fuelling exercise over the Midlands is mistaken for reports of a
sightings of as UFO as “big as a football field.”
p423
Details about a project to produce a computerised database of UFO
reports, the main purpose of which is to supply information in the event
of relevant Parliamentary questions to ministers (further information at
p224 of this file)
DEFE 31/179
p157 – 158
Defensive press lines are prepared by the MoD after colour
photographs of a large diamond-shaped UFO hovering over Calvine
(Scotland) are sent to the Daily Record in Glasgow. Details of this
sighting, which has remained a secret until now, was dubbed by one
former official as “one of the most intriguing [UFO] cases in the MoD‟s
files” (for further information see DEFE 31/180 p37-38 and p55-57).
p183 and p197
The MoD UFO desk asks MoD Security to carry out background
checks on two „persistent correspondents‟ who have been plaguing
desk officers with letters and tape-recording phone conversations with
officials.
p209 – 217
Investigation papers into a report of a UFO near Belfast Airport in
December 1989 (see also DEFE 24/1938 p2-9)
DEFE 31/180
 p13
In 1992, an illuminated airship advertising the Ford Mondeo caused a
large number of UFO sighting reports when it flew over central London
at night (see also DEFE 31/181 p73)
 p37 – 38
Image (poor quality photocopy) of a large diamond-shaped UFO
hovering over Calvine (Scotland) and what was later identified as a
Harrier.

Cases discussed

About this file

Document, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 8 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.