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MOD file DEFE 24/2032/1

The Black Vault · 492 pages · text from the file's own layer

This Ministry of Defence file, released through The National Archives and published by The Black Vault, holds the MOD's 2002 handling of Dr David Clarke's requests for UFO documents under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. It includes the MOD's 9 December 2002 reply, which covered reports from 1976, 1980, 1993 and 1996 and charged £260. It also contains internal emails and file requisitions, plus Foreign Office and United Nations papers from 1978 on Grenada's proposal for UFO research.

  • p. 40 …But, unlike with the aircraft reported by the noble Earl, I have never seen one. I…
  • p. 43 …the United States of America which has never been made known to the public and even…
  • p. 45 …will be, Yes, and yet they have never seen one. We are asking you to believe…
  • p. 46 …selfish- ness and tendency to panic as never before since the days of the Crusades. The…
  • p. 47 …I never reached that standard of mathematics. However I know that Einstein believed that ele~tro…
  • p. 51 …The difficulty about such an explanation is that they never seem to come into actual contact…
  • p. 53 …some of the things he told us. Never- theless, I feel that it is of immense…
  • p. 58 …What sort of an interpretation would somebody who had H.L.8 Q never read about…
  • p. 59 …l should lib:1 have never seen ball lightning, but the 1 to go into the…
  • p. 60 …She said "I don't \Vant to, because it will spoil it all." They said " Never…
  • p. 62 …Of ;orts of sightings ~never it has been n·estigation they tttral phenomena pet to say…
  • p. 67 …1308 fro,m h;m ag~;n ~n many other occ";?"'· ' Why have they never tded…
  • p. 112 ..~ say that in the Air Force, for tne moment, they have never seemed to come directly…
  • p. 131 …informed that 11so far the military have never fonnd an-ything of D.nt1tjgressive nature fro…
  • p. 161 …Air Force, for tile moment, they have never seemed to come directly under air defence. ' . I…
  • p. 177 …informed that 11so far the military have never found anything of an~~gressive nature from the…
  • p. 187 …But it would be a brave man who said there could never, ever,be manned inter…
  • p. 190 …a cloud descended and picked up ~he regiment and it was never heard of again ••••••• (checking…
  • p. 192 …Let me assure this House that Her Majesty's Government has never been approached by people…
  • p. 209 …But it would be a brave man who said there could never, ever,be manned inter…
  • p. 212 …a cl6ud descended and picked up :the regiment and it was never heard of again ••••••• (checking…
  • p. 214 …Let me assure this Rouse that Her Majesty's Government has never been approached by people…
  • p. 300 …despite agreeing to complete a report form, this has never been returned - I wonder why? (13)
  • p. 320 …Mrllllllll stated that he had been a Met Officer for 8 years and had never~nything…
  • p. 368 …despite agreeing to complete a report form, this has never been returned - I wonder why? (13)
  • p. 399 …Significantly, the plot was never present on radar displays from the NATS sensors at Cromer and…
  • p. 417 …RAF Northwood was never involved in this event. confusion has arisen because Gt Yarmouth coastguard, referred…
  • p. 432 …Significantly, the plot was never present on radar displays from the NATS sensors at Cromer and…
DR CLARKE- REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
Request 1
Copy of the file relating to a UFO report by Mrs J Bowles and Mr E Pratt near
Winchester, Hampshire, on 14 November 1976.
File AIR 2/18977 identified. Recalled from the PRO. It contained 11 UFO reports
made to the MOD between 5th and 301h November 1976. There were no reports for
the 14th November and none from Mrs Bowles or Mr Pratt. Dr Clarke informed in my
letter of31 October 2002.
Request 2
Copy of the files containing briefing and background notes on UFOs prepared by
the Head of S4(Air), with contributions from RAF Ops (GE)2 and DI55 for
reference by Lord Strabolgi in his closing address during the House of Lords
debate on UFOs, 18 January 1979.
We had two files on this -D/DS8/75/3/1 Parts A and B- Parliamentary
Correspondence-House ofLords Debate 1979. Both were destroyed in 1990.
Dr Clarke was informed in my letter of 16 September 2002.
In his reply of 7 October Dr Clarke expressed surprise at this because a file
D/DS8/75/3- UFO Parliamentary Correspondence, was listed as being held by the
MOD in answer to a PQ by Lord Hill-Norton on 14 October 1998. This file was in
fact a general Parliamentary Correspondence file. When retrieved from archives it
was found to contain the following background papers, relevant to the Lords debate.
1. Signal message (Unclassified) from UKMIS New York to FCO dated 6 Dec 1977.
Concerning a draft UN resolution on UFOs.
2. Signal message (Confidential) from FCO to UKMIS New York dated 1 Dec 1977.
Talks of UK opposition to a Grenada resolution on UFOs and our intention to vote
against any such resolution.
3. Signal message (Restricted) from FCO to UKMIS New York dated 30 November
1977.
Ministers view that an agency on UFOs would reduce the credibility of the UN and
the UK should oppose it.
4. Agenda Item No.128, 33rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly, dated
15 September 1978. (Restricted).
Concerns the establishment of an agency or department of the United Nations for
undertaking, co-ordinating and disseminating the results of research into unidentified
flying objects and related phenomena.
5. Letter from the United Kingdom Mission to the United Nations, to UN Dept of
FCO, date 21 November 1978. (Restricted).
Refers to a letter circulated to Missions by the Permanent Mission of Grenada
concerning their wish to set up an agency for the study of UFOs.

Cases discussed

About this file

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