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This is a New Zealand Defence Force public release of RNZAF file AIR 39/3/3, "Flying Saucers," which covers 1952 to 1955 and was declassified in September 2010 under the Official Information Act. It collects sighting reports from the public and military personnel, press clippings, and a table of 1952 sightings. It also holds Carter Observatory opinions attributing some reports to meteors. A large part covers the inquiry into lights seen from National Airways Corporation Flight 108 on 31 October 1955, which the RNZAF could not fully explain as Venus.
“United Press”10 pages
# so familiar to , me—and somehow so reassuring;" said Mr Lumsden. ## Reputation There was no war-time explanation of the "mysterious lights, and there has not been a completely feasible one since. "According to this week's report, the New Zealand light was well-behaved. The French ones, on the other hand, seemed to be piloted by mischievous types and darned good fliers. Anything that could dive, turn, and keep station with a Hurricane in those days certainly knew its way about in the air." According to some authorities, that part of France and the Channel gained quite a reputation for such visitations. But the lights seem to have emigrated to New Zealand now-or rather to have extended their influence all round the world. Experiences similar to that of last Monday night have been reported from Europe, America, and Australia. ## Kept Behind "The lights had been visible altogether for 15min. They appeared to remain at an even distance from one another, except for on brief period when they drew closer together. They varied slightly in relative height from time to time, but the starboard one was always slightly lower than the other. Had they been wingtip lights, the aircraft carrying them would have been flying starboard wing down to "The Hurricane continued to fly on a course of 320deg at an indicated speed of 260 m.p.h. and gradually drew away from the lights, which appeared to continue to follow. When about five to ten minutes from the English coast, which he recrossed at Hastings, he lost sight of them one slightly above the other. "Thinking at first that these were tracer flak, he was at once struck by the slowness with which they climbed. He turned a full circle to starboard, and again saw the lights to the north-east, behind him on his left, but rather larger and brighter. They were now on a level with him at 7000ft, and no longer climbing. "He then did diving turns out to sea and flattened out at 4000ft, heading north-north-east. The lights followed his general direction, always astern, and descended to about 1000ft below him, soon climbing again when he remained on a level course. "He turned sharply to port and made a complete orbit and found that the lights were keeping behind him on the turn. He jettisoned his longrange tanks to obtain more manoeuvrability and turned tightly to port, only to find that the lights still stayed behind.
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