UFO research guide, August 2011

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3) Public correspondence;
4) UFO sighting reports
There are several files documenting the UK Government’s policy on UFOs, including
references to how and by whom it was drawn up and how it evolved. These papers
illustrate how a number of different branches and divisions with MoD were involved at
different times handling policy and investigations. Policy files created by the former Air
Ministry DDI (Tech) and their successor, the Defence Intelligence Staff, can be found at
references DEFE 31/118 (1953-1963) and DEFE 31/119 (1967).
Air Staff policy can be followed at AIR 20/11612 (1967-68), AIR 2/18117 (1967) and AIR
2/19086 (1970-75). UFO Policy, 1985-1995, was opened in August 2011 at
DEFE/1958/1 anda file containing details of a 1997 review of UFO Policy by Sec(AS)
can be found in DEFE 24/1986/1. Two further files in this sequence, UFO Policy 1998-
2000 and UFO Policy, 2000-2002 were opened in 2011, at DEFE 24/2006/1 and DEFE
24/2019/1.
Examples of Parliamentary correspondence can be found at DEFE 24/1535. This file
also contains papers relating to the British Government’s response to the Prime Minister
of Grenada’s attempts to table a debate on UFOs at the United Nations in 1977-78.
Other contents include references to the French Government’s UFO policy and the study
group established by the French Space Agency, based at Toulouse. A series of files
contains responses to Parliamentary Enquiries on UFOs, at DEFE 13/1183, DEFE
13/1187, DEFE 13/1188 and DEFE 71/97-100 . There is a substantial collection of
papers relating to the UFO debate held in the House of Lords in January 1979. A
number of MoD branches, along with the Foreign Office and the Department of Science
& Energy, contributed to the Government's response in the Lords. DEFE 19/253
contains RAF Chief Scientist papers, DEFE 31/172 contains DIS papers, while AIR
20/12966 is the Head of S4 (Air)’s file on the debate and its aftermath.
DEFE 24/1970/1 (Parliamentary Questions and Enquiries on UFOs 1985-1995) was
opened in August 2009. A number of more recent files containing MoD responses to
parliamentary questions and enquiries from MPs were released in 2010 and 2011
covering the years 1995 to 1998. This period represented a high-water mark for reported
UFO sightings in the UK, see for example DEFE 24/1983/1 and DEFE 24/2004/1. Two
files containing Parliamentary Correspondence on UFOs were opened in March 2011:
DEFE 24/2018/1 covers 1998 and DEFE 20/2092/1 covers 2001-2006. DEFE 24/2033/1
and DEFE 24/2034/1, opened in August 2011, cover Parliamentary Questions 1998-
2001.
UFO report files contain a mixture of letters from members of the public and reports
from official sources such as the police, coastguard and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Many reports take the form of military signals received by MoD via a variety of RAF and
RN stations. The most frequent method of reporting a UFO sighting was via a standard
proforma, originally based on a USAF questionnaire. An early draft of this report format
can be found at DEFE 31/118. A version of this questionnaire is still used today by the
Ministry of Defence. The proforma contains 16 questions, a-q:
• (a) Date, time and duration of sighting
• (b) Description of object