Some old Australian cases located in CUFOS files

Barry Greenwood

Over the last few years, U.S. Boston based researcher and historian Barry Greenwood, and others, have been undertaking the large task of scanning files held by the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS.) Barry last visited CUFOS in Chicago in 2019; and, from this visit,  has just assembled 1.32 Gb of data on 980 separate PDF files. In order to ensure several copies of this data exist in diverse locations, Barry has kindly shared these with a number of individuals including Melbourne based researcher Paul Dean and myself. 

Paul and I have just started the task of looking through the 980 PDFs. Naturally, living here in Australia, we were initially interested in Australian material. As with any batch of sightings, some are more interesting than others. For the sake of posterity I will list details of cases found. 

February or March 1951, Flinders Naval Depot, Melbourne, Victoria.

This file consists of two pages of hand written letter, dated 22 May 1971, sent to Peter Norris of the Victorian UFO Research Society, by a man, Geoffrey A G Wagstaff,  identifying himself as a former member of the Royal Australia Navy.

At around 1630hrs local time the witness stopped his car at the West gate of the Depot, and then observed a cylindrical object in the sky, travelling at high speed in a North-Westerly direction. The witness and a sentry watched for 5-6 seconds. There was 30% cloud cover at the time, 3,000 feet altitude. The cylinder was climbing at an angle of about 20 degrees, It seemed to accelerate, then disappear from view in the distance. There was no noise and no vapor trail.

3 May 1964, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

The two page CUFOS file consists of a NICAP summary report form, with a typed set of notes at the end which stated that the sighting was reported to the U.S. Embassy in Canberra, and investigated by Donald Lamm, First Secretary (acting duty officer,) Dr. Paul Siple, Scientific Attaché, and Meredith Glenn and Hugh Fletcher of NASA. The source of this information is cited as Arthur L Label, Advisor on Telecommunications Negotiator, Telecommunications Division, State Department, Rm. 4826. 

Mr. and Mrs. Noel Hayden, at 0605hrs local time sighted two objects. One large, soft white light and one smaller pink or orange light. The first moved in a wobbly manner from WSW to ENE, turned NW and colided with a second, bounced and moved out of sight to the NNE. The second was stationary.

Comment: I have rarely seen any mention of UAP investigations by any embassy in Australia, so this is unusual. I found mentions of Donald Lamm, Paul Siple, and Hugh Fletcher on the Internet. Fletcher worked for NASA at the Honeysuckle Creek, A.C.T. Apollo telecommunications facility. 

I also located a multi-page Project Blue Book file on this event, which details the investigation by Embassy staff.

1964. Australia.

The file is two pages in length and consists of a sightings report work sheet and a handwritten letter from a Phil Savage of Newcastle, New South Wales dated 27 November 1969.

The letter recounts a sighting of strange lights when Savage was aged ten. It was a fair sized light which illuminated the surroundings and the road he was on. "The object swooped down from the sky in front of us and passed close overhead of our car(100 feet in the air) and must have going at one hell of a speed for when we looked out the back window it wa gone (after about a second) from our sight. The object seemed to be a fiery ball emitting a very bright white light (rather like magnesium.) Also it made no noise."

12 June 1964 . Near Melbourne, Victoria.

This is a three page file consisting of a sighting cover sheet and a newspaper articled dated 17 June 1964, from the "Mountain District and Knox Free Press."

At 1758hrs local time, people in two separate cars reported seeing an object over Hallam, visible for 4-5 minutes. Initially stationary it took off after a while. It had a red light in the front and a dim white light at the rear. Neither were flashing., it travelled west to east before curving south.

1965? Normanton, Queensland. 

This 3 page file consists of a letter, dated 18 August 1965, from a Mrs. D. Ringland of Gladstone, and a reply to her. There is a reference to a previous letter which is not on this file.

Craft seen standing on four legs with wheels and an occupant (midget.) Night.

July 1965 Gelorup, Western Australia.

This file is 10 pages in length, a report by Unexplained Phenomena Investigations Bureau of Western Australia, dated July 1977.

Noel Jones, 32, of Eaton, at 2100hrs local time, for 15-20 minutes, and another witness reported seeing, on the ground, 400 yards away, which then rose to about 50 feet altitude. It made no noise. The nearest they got to the object was 150 yards to the west of their house. It disappeared over the horizon. It lit up the tree tops and ground as it went away.

15 July 1965. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

This file is 62 pages long and consists almost exclusively of newspaper articles about this classic sighting, which by all data appears to be a daylight observation of the planet Venus. The sighting made news around the world.

At 1100hrs local time a metallic looking, silvery light was seen "hovering" over the Canberra airport to the North East at an angle of 20-30 degrees elevation. Air Traffic Control staff saw it. After 40 minutes it was lost to view.

18 August 1969. Balcomba Station, near Rockhampton, Queensland.

Three page undated letter sent to the Queensland Flying Saucer Research Bureau. At 0615hrs local time before sunrise,  on a fine day with scattered clouds, a man was driving when he saw, at 40 degrees elevation, travelling to the SSE for 8.5 minutes a small light with a bright red trail. It dipped down, hovered, then took off again.

12 February 1976. to 14 April 1976. Maydena, Tasmania.

Between February and April 1976 there were at least nine separate occasions of sightings in a small Tasmanian locality reported to the Tasmanian UFO Investigation Centre. Newspaper reports spoke of hundreds of people who had observed lights in the sky. On all  but one  occasion there were two lights reported, red to orange in colour. Various reporters said they heard an associated humming sound. Investigation by TUFOIC personnel failed  to determine a conventional explanation. 

This 56 pages of documents provides report forms; investigation notes and newsclippings.

17 February 1976. Tarraleah to Berriedale, Tasmania.

At 0300hrs local time two witnesses were in a truck and were followed for 3.5 hours by a bright white domes shape with orange lights It appeared to come close to the truck at one stage. No noise. It was a fine moonlit night. Nine pages of papers. 

23 March 1976. Australind, Western Australia.

At 1855hrs two witnesses reported observing an object in the western sky. As they watched it seemed to develop an upright central section that looked like the distant mast of a sailing ship. It approached them. Estimated as 6 km away over the Indian Ocean. There was no noise. It receded at speed till it disappeared. Two pages of documents.

29 April 1976. Eaton, Western Australia.

At 0045hrs local  time one witness reported seeing a pale green fluorescent light in the sky which sped noiselessly away. Two pages of papers. 

30 March 1976. No location mentioned.

At 2220hrs two witnesses reported seeing lights. Large star-like red lights. Pulsing. Viewed through binoculars Moved off in southerly direction. Lost to view. Four pages of papers. 

30 April 1976. Between Douglas Park and Maldon,  New South Wales.

A man stopped his car and watched an initially stationary object which he described as triangular with two apex lights. It seemed only 200 feet above the ground and skimmed the top of trees but lost to sight after 1.5 minutes. The file has five pages. 

12 July 1976. Between Campbelltown and Narellan NSW.

At 0550hrs local time a bright white light was seen in a paddock by a witness while driving, They shone their car lights onto the object which vanished, then reappeared/ The object seemed to emit a beam of light. At one point the object crossed the road only some 50 yards in front of the witness, at 200 feet up. It left to the west. Five pages of papers.