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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.
“Stringfield”6 pages
# "Lighted Object In Auckland Sky A lighted object in the sky, flying silently at great speed, was seen by Mr D. W. Paul, of Hendon Avenue, Avondale, early yesterday morning. With him at the time was an Auckland taxi driver. 5 NOV 1955 "The taxi driver saw the object first," said Mr Paul yesterday. "We were going down Hendon Avenue about 1 a.m. and the object was flying parallel with us and to the south. Mr Paul said he stayed outside for some time in the hope of catching another glimpse of the object. A little while later an aircraft (later identified as an R.N.Z.A.F. Sunderland) flew at right angles to the object's course with its landing lights blinking. "He said it was "completely different from the other object." "It passed us in uncanny silence. The most remarkable fact was the absence of any noise. It was visible to us for about four minutes before vanishing into a cloud bank." At first there was a swishing noise, rather like a jet. It appeared to be a long object with three or four lighted windows, but the windows were much bigger than usual on aircraft.
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