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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.
“Open Minds”13 pages
116 St. Johns Road, Remuera, AUCKIAND.
11th November, 1955.
Squadron Leader Golding, Air Department, WELLINGTON.
Dear Sir,
Since our last conversation I have read in the newspapers a statement from the R.N.Z.A.F. Authorities, that they consider the bright light may be the planet Venus, but that they cannot understand its change of position because I stated that we did not alter course.
To me, this appears to be now, that my ability as a pilot, and also my reputation, is being questioned. I did not wish to be involved in this inquiry; I saw a bright object; it passed my aircraft and I hotified A.T. Control, and as far as I was concerned that was the end of the matter. After watching this object, and after having read reports from overseas, the answer appeared quite simple. As you are no doubt well aware, there are hundreds, and I do not think that is an exaggeration, of similar reports by airline, military and private pilots, and as I see it this is just another report of a sighting.
I have been an airline pilot for ten years, eight of which are as captain, and have over 7,000 hours to my credit, and if the R.N.Z.A.F. authorities can believe that I could in moonlight conditions, in full contact with the ground, allow an aircraft on the auto-pilot to turn towards the West by $ 6 0^{\circ}-7 0^{\circ} $ to enable Venus to alter its position in relation to our course, then having realised this, and therefore alter back $ 6 0^{\circ}-7 0^{\circ} $ to regain my track, and still report the incident to A.T.C. upon arrival, then obviously I am a most incompetent pilot, plus a prize idiot for my behaviour.
Points that I wish to confirm, and as far as I am concerned are accurate, are :
We maintained a steady course on the auto-pilot of 330
ILE
f 330
altitude as
That the object passed our aircraft, at the same altitude as ourselves. Document, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. The text was read from the page images by an OCR model; expect the odd misread word. 445 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.