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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.
“Mars Hill”6 pages
Points of interest concerning the object (continued) If it was there during the previous 30 - 45 minutes we would have seen it ahead of us approaching Ohura due the excellent bisability in that area, in other words it just appeared in our view from the south. A planet dows not overtake at a steady altitude from the S.S.W. and disappear to the N.N.West. At 2006 hrs. we called Wellington concerning this light, and the planet Venus was below the horizon at 2010 hrs. therefore for the previous hour and its 15 degree travel the planet was below and behind the Cold Front lying out to the west, and it would account for us not seeing this planet during the night. This would also apply to flight 135, southbound. We still had this object in sight after the time that the Planet Venus was below the horizon. A similar object was later seen in the same area 2 hrs. later by two men. This object was in view for approx 5 - 10 minutes and was seen clearly by 3 pilots and one civilian and then seen briefly by Air Commodore Cohen. A planet's light could change its intensity due to the proximity of cloud, but this object was well clear of any cloud at first and still it did not appear as a steady light. ON FLET 135 VENUS WAS VISIBLE FROM 0730-0835 IN THE SAME APPROXIMATION BUT AT A FAR GREATER ARE. THE OBJECT WHEN AT MINIMUM INTENSITY WAS FOR SIMULAC THAN VENUS VENUS AT NO TIME APPEARED AS CLOSE TO OUR AIRCRAFT LAST NIGHT, AS ON THE NIGHT OF 1ST NOV WHEN THIS OBJECT WAS NO PORT. ... N.d. Number
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