Bizarre UFO witnessed at RAF Boulmer - July, 1977.

Very interesting (radar confirmed) UFO report which describes a truly bizarre object in the skies near RAF Boulmer - the British MOD document for this incident was said to be so so sensitive that "an extra three years was added to its 25 year release date".

Eyewitness Statement:

"There were bright objects hanging over the sea.The closest object was luminous, round and four to five times larger than a Whirlwind helicopter.
The objects separated. Then one went west of the other, as it manoeuvred it changed shape to become body-shaped with projections like arms and legs".

Flight Leiutennant A.M. Wood. - RAF Boulmer,Northumberland.
UFO also correlated on multiple radar and witnessed by two RAF personnel
UK M.O.D. Declassified Report.

Boulmer reports of UFO sightings were hushed up


[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/0db834f6f7df.jpg[/atsimg]

THE X-Files came to RAF Boulmer as strange flying objects were spotted hovering over the North Sea by a fighter pilot at the base.
In a case that would intrigue TV’s Mulder and Scully, bright objects were spotted by RAF staff in 1977. They changed shape as they watched. So sensitive was the sighting that all records of it were hidden from public gaze and have only just been released under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI).

It was stored in the Ministry of Defence’s “possible extra-terrestrial contact” department, known only by the code name SF4. It is one of many sightings listed by the Government where credible witnesses, such as military staff, policemen and airline pilots, have reported UFOs. The drama started in July 1977, when Flight Lieutenant AM Wood reported seeing the objects, saying the nearest was luminous, round and four to five times the size of a Whirlwind helicopter.

The two possible UFOs were seen hovering at a height of around 5,000 feet and were three miles out to sea.His report is backed by those of Corporal Torrington and Sergeant Graham, who say the objects parted, with one going west and changing shape as it went.
The objects, with one then looking body shaped, were watched by the three men for one hour and 40 minutes.A radar station at the base also picked up the objects in the same position before they vanished.Checks were made to RAF West Drayton to see if it had spotted them. Flt Lt Wood is described as “reliable and sober” in the report, which adds that radar staff at RAF Staxton Wold also picked up the strange objects.
The RAF Boulmer report was deemed so sensitive that instead of being released to the public 25 years later as normal a further three-year ban was imposed.It is only because of the FOI Act, which came into force on January 1, that the case was reviewed and the details declassified.

Radar Confirmation

One of the most puzzling came from RAF Boulmer, an important radar control centre on the coast of Northumbria. In the early hours of 30 July 1977 airmen on the night shift were alerted by a call from a civilian who could see two bright objects hovering over the North Sea. The duty controller, Flt Lt A.M. Wood and a group of airmen then emerged from their bunker and saw the UFOs for themselves.

In his detailed report to MoD, Flt Lt Wood says the objects were close to the shore and stationary, at a height estimated between 4-5,000 feet. They appeared to move apart and then together as they slowly climbed into the clear sky. “No imagination was required to distinguish the shape,” he wrote. “Westerly object [was] conical with apex at top. Object seemed to rotate and change shape to become arrowhead in shape. The easterly object was indistinct.” He said the UFO closest to the base was “round, luminous, [and] 4 to 5 times larger than a Whirlwind helicopter.”

Flt Lt Wood’s story was supported by Cpl Torrington and Sgt Graham who were on duty at a picket post outside Boulmer’s underground operations room. They said the westerly UFO moved “and changed shape to become body shaped with projections like arms and legs.” All were described as “reliable and sober” in a MoD report. The descriptions, and more significantly, the fact these UFOs were visible for one hour forty minutes make me suspect they may have been bright stars or planets. But in his report Flt Lt Wood says that shortly after disappearing visually, two unidentified contacts were detected on the base radars at a range of between 20 and 30 miles out to sea. These slowly moved northeast as they climbed, “then parted, one climbing to 9,000 feet estimated and moving east, the other holding 5-6,000 ft.”

While the UFOs were being tracked, he contacted the controller at RAF Patrington, an early warning station on the East Coast. He confirmed the two unidentified blips were visible on the radar picture there, which was relayed directly to RAF West Drayton in Middlesex. But oddly, the Senior Reporting Officer at headquarters was less forthcoming when asked if he could see the UFOs.

British Ministry of Defense Document request -RAF Boulmer (pdf)

Links:
www.ufo-blog.com...
www.northumberlandgazette.co.uk...
www.uk-ufo.org...

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

The material released by the Brits and everyone else due to the FOI Act is priceless! I just wish more people would jump on it and use it in arguments for the validation of UFO encounters.

I feel like when the Brits released the papers and documents, they were all but admitting that they acknowledge an active UFO presence here on Earth. Now if we could just get the States to follow suit! I don't understand why we haven't done it yet, despite all the pressure from around the globe!

S & F from me!

Edit for spelling.

[edit on 21-11-2009 by dwiggen]

reply to post by karl 12


Excellent find Karl 12. Everyone keeps talking about disclosure, and while I'm not sure what they mean by that, isn't this disclosure of sorts? I mean 28 years or 50 years after the fact we are finding out disclosure of more official details that were previously kept secret from us.

The stuff less than 25 years old may still be secret but the fact that it's 25 or 28 years old to me doesn't diminish its interest. (the 3 extra years part is interesting too!)

Now I still don't know what the heck it was, but now at least it's nice to know what the official records show.

Originally posted by ArbitrageurExcellent find Karl 12. Everyone keeps talking about disclosure, and while I'm not sure what they mean by that, isn't this disclosure of sorts?

Yeah, it's a kind of 'creeping' disclosure, isn't it?

A bit frustrating, though.

reply to post by karl 12


why the heck would it take on a humanoid shape? disturbing...

Thanks for the replies -it certainly sounds like a freaky object (witnessed by several credible RAF personnel) and I don't think I've ever heard of a UFO changing its shape to become "body shaped with projections like arms and legs” before.

Its also interesting that the objects were confirmed on separately located radar screens:

..were detected on the base radars at a range of between 20 and 30 miles out to sea. These slowly moved northeast as they climbed, “then parted, one climbing to 9,000 feet estimated and moving east, the other holding 5-6,000 ft.”

While the UFOs were being tracked, he contacted the controller at RAF Patrington, an early warning station on the East Coast. He confirmed the two unidentified blips were visible on the radar picture there, which was relayed directly to RAF West Drayton in Middlesex.

No wonder the British Ministry of Defense postponed the release of this document due to it being 'too sensitive' - I wonder just how many other reports are actualy out there.

Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

Originally posted by dwiggen
The material released by the Brits and everyone else due to the FOI Act is priceless! I just wish more people would jump on it and use it in arguments for the validation of UFO encounters.

Dwiggen, thanks for the reply and you're not wrong about the importance of government documentary evidence.

In this interview Timothy Good states there are a great many other British top secret documents out there and the majority of the reports that have been released are never classified higher then 'confidential'.

He also says that the British Ministry of Defense spent eleven million pounds on investigating the UFO problem in 1978 alone.


According to this article many of the official UFO reports are housed in Kew, London which is where the Boulmer report was eventualy released from:

The National Archives Office in Kew, formerly known as the Public Records Office, holds the largest database of secrets in the world. Millions of documents in electronic and hard copy have been painstakingly filed under classified headings ranging from "restricted viewing" to "top secret".

For an investigative journalist there can be no more exciting a phrase than the words that flashed across the top of my documents: "Classified - not for release until 2010". The black ink stamp of secrecy meant that mine was the first unrestricted eye to see these documents for 30 years.

Since the 1950s, when the first reports of UFOs reached this country from America, the men from the ministry had maintained a contemptuous silence about the possibility of alien visitors. So it is still surprising to me, even today, that there exists at the heart of the Ministry of Defence, working in a committee room supported by secretarial staff, a special unit whose sole purpose is to investigate and collate reports of UFOs. These papers are Britain's very own X-Files.

Many of the documents contained fanciful reports from old ladies, children or UFO enthusiasts - and, on the whole, they do not make very convincing reading. But after a great deal of digging I finally came across a slightly thicker file, with much more MoD correspondence than any of the others. This time the observers were not children, confused old ladies or UFO nuts but an RAF pilot and two NCOs based at RAF Boulmer in Northumberland.

In July 1977, Flt Lt A M Wood reported "bright objects hanging over the sea", the closest of which was "luminous, round and four to five times larger than a Whirlwind helicopter".

Link

Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

Interesting British military account from the same month:

Minley Manor Woods,July 1977

Hannah Green and her family were driving through the woods when their attention was drawn to two "coach-loads" of troops" who entered the woods by what was known as the "Fleet Exit". They had to reverse and go back and as they did so they noticed just to their what looked like a small, man-made valley with steep sides about fifteen feet deep. Inside this small valley, there were two clear burn marks, which looked like something had either landed or crashed. The presence of so many soldiers milling about concerned the family so they swung the car around and drove back in the direction from which they had come. As they approached a bend on the road they saw standing on a gentle slope two of the strangest looking "men" Hannah had ever seen. Both were of an impressive height, but were exceedingly thin and dressed in "all in one, white, tight-fitting suits with headgear like the astronauts in the Apollo mission wore". For a moment the two "men" remained stationary, however, as Hannah and her family watched transfixed, both suddenly broke into a run and headed for a clearing. Most bizarrely of all, as Hannah continued to follow the path of the two men, they disappeared before her very eyes.

www.ufoinfo.com...

Originally posted by Arbitrageur
.. I mean 28 years or 50 years after the fact we are finding out disclosure of more official details that were previously kept secret from us.

The stuff less than 25 years old may still be secret but the fact that it's 25 or 28 years old to me doesn't diminish its interest. (the 3 extra years part is interesting too!)

Arbitrageur, I also find it interesting that the MOD deemed this report too 'sensitive' and postponed its release - I always thought the establishment had trotted out the line that 'UFOs are of no defense significance'.

Theres another UFO incident here which the MOD also deemed 'sensitive' - so sensitive in fact that they broke with all official protocol when reporting and investigating the incident.

Do you not think it could be seen as a little irresponsible for the MOD to be closing the UFO reporting desk in the light of all these 'sensitive' incidents?

Cheers.

Originally posted by Malcram
Yeah, it's a kind of 'creeping' disclosure, isn't it?

A bit frustrating, though.

Hey Malcram -don't know if you've seen the work of this guy before but Internos has made a very good thread about him.

Vicente-Juan Ballester Olmos

The present edition of the FOTOCAT Project’s Blog is to announce the publication of the paper STATE-OF-THE-ART IN UFO DISCLOSURE WORLDWIDE, by Vicente-Juan Ballester Olmos.

This is the first synthesis or synopsis ever done of the status of declassification or release of official UFO archives by every Government in the world, accurately updated to May 2009.

The state-of-art in UFO disclosure worldwide

Cheers.

More on RAF Boulmer incident from researcher Alfred Dodds:

The sighting of the UFOs, which were reported to be three miles out to sea at a height of about 5,000ft, was supported by a Cpl Torrington and Sgt Graham of RAF Boulmer, who were positioned at a picket post at the station.

They also observed the strange objects for an hour and 40 minutes and reported the sighting to their commanding officers.

The MoD report confirmed that the objects had been visible on radar at RAF Boulmer as well as the base at Staxton Wold, North Yorkshire.

It said: “On seeing the objects on radar, the duty controller checked with the SRO as to whether he could see the objects on radar supplied from RAF Staxton Wold.”

Researcher of the paranormal Alfred Dodds, 66, of the Northumberland UFO Research Center, said last night: “There have been quite a few sightings of UFOs in Northumberland over the years, with several in the vicinity of RAF Boulmer.

“And I had heard rumors of this particular incident, so it is very interesting to hear that it has been officially confirmed. Hopefully, we will see more incidents come to light as further classified UFO documents are released under the Freedom of Information Act.”

Link

Interesting. Some very odd craft around that month by the sounds of it. I also remember this one from the same year and month, but no mention of morphing!

RAF Benson, July 1977
www.ufoevidence.org...

"Three large craft in the sky."

I was with friends on a camp site in Wallingford at night aroun 10.30 p.m. Someone noticed thes large craft in the sky which was clear that night. The craft were around a thousand feet up in the sky and were hovering. This lasted for about 15 minutes till some fighters, presumably from the nearby RAF base at Benson appeared in the sky and were seen to buzz the craft. Soon after wards the craft shot off from left to right at an indescribable speed, certainly faster than any craft of this world is capable of.

Same objects? Possibly...

Boulmer, Benson & Minley Wood

I've mentioned this before but worth repeating, as it sort of dovetails with the extra 3 year thing. I was told by a person, after a dinner party that.

"There are a number of UFO incidents, from Britain, that have never been made public at all".

I've heard rumours of one incident , about 8 years ago, quite local to me involving an airfield that has never been acknowledged. I have passed , what little i know of the supposed incident on, to a couple of people and they are , themselves, attempting to drop into it conversations, with the appropriate people, to see what response it elicits.

there have been many times, over the years, when i have thought, there is a natural prosaic explanation for all sightings. However, just about every time i start to think this, something has cropped up , a tale, an anecdote, a person you find very credible, who throws a spanner in the prosaic works, as it were.

One of the problems with adopting the stance of the , dyed in the wool skeptic is this. If you are vocal about how stupid you think the whole phenomenon is, there is no way, any one is going to take you aside and tell you some strange story. For the simple reason, they often think themselves crazy they don;t really need someone else telling them they are just a deluded fool.

The sighting detailed in the OP, is yet another classic case of. "Ok, now that really is crazy, no-one is going to believe this". Yet, there was radar confirmation of it.

if there's one phrase that really does get my goat. it's that one trotted out by smug skeptics time and time again like some mantra. Namely,

"Keep an open mind, but no so open as to let it fall out"...

Well i guess when the people who reported this sighting did so, they were of the thought that. Their own minds had just "fallen out", how else do you accept something so crazy as a craft that, can mimic a human form?

I do wonder if that. Some of the cases yet to come to light, it's not so much secrecy on behalf of the military for purely military reasons but. They don't want to, actually, give the full details because They are so, palpably, a slap in the face of the human psyche and what we think we know about science and might lead people to ask questions about their sanity and their ability to command such an important position, be it a radar op, a base commander, or a high ranking civil servant?

reply to post by markymint


Markymint -good find.

Seems there was also a bit of a UFO flap in Pembrokeshire, Wales three months earlier with different witnesses (on different dates) all reporting similar UFO occupants wearing silver diving suits.

Pembrokeshire Humanoid sightings - April,1977


[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/4046db20d269.jpg[/atsimg]

April 7, 1977; Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales

5:00 AM. Mr. Cyril John, age 64, a former local political leader, was up early for an early start to London when he noticed a light shining in his bedroom window. Looking out he observed two objects. The first was a silvery-gray egg-shaped object with a bright orange-red light on top of it. It was about four feet across and was rocking gently in the air about 60 meters away. The second was a seven to eight foot tall humanoid figure, who floated in the air with arms out and legs bent back, like a "free fall parachutist." There was only about 35 feet between the man and the observer. No features could be seen on the figure's face, and it wore a uniformly silver-gray "boiler suit." It remained motionless in the air for more than 25 minutes. Then both the being and the ovoid object began slowly moving off, gradually disappearing from view in the distance. (Source: David F. Webb and Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case 1977-17 [A1719], citing Randall Jones Pugh, British UFO Research Association).

April 20, 1977; Herbrandston, Pembrokeshire, Wales

Mark Marston, age 11, was looking for bird's nests in a hedge when "a red glow appeared in the sky 50 yards away." A few moments later a figure appeared and drifted through a closed gate at the other end of the field. It was dressed in a silver suit, like a diver, with a large helmet and a square, featureless face. It approached Mark rapidly, who turned and fled for home, screaming. (Source: David F. Webb and Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case 1977, citing Randall Jones Pugh for BUFORA).

April 19, 1977; Little Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales.

2:00 AM. The radio of hotel owner Rosa Gremville suddenly went dead. Moments later she heard a loud humming noise outside and looking out she was dazzled by a "huge moon lighting up the area, moving about like a seesaw." It descended and landed in a field 100 yards behind the hotel. "It was round, with flames coming from the top of a dome. There was a light on it, like a pulsating star." Two creatures 8 or 9-feet tall emerged from the dome through the flames. They wore cream or silvery colored jumpsuits. She could see no facial features nor any hair on these creatures, even though see tried to discern what they looked like through a pair of binoculars. They looked as though they had hands, but she saw no fingers. "I though their feet were webbed." The figures walked around near the object for about 15 minutes. Mrs. Gremville wanted to scream, but she had lost her voice. She went in search of another witness and when they returned the UFO and humanoid figures had gone. Burn marks were found on the ground at the site the next day. (Sources: David F. Webb and Ted Bloecher, HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports, case 1977-18; Randall Jones Pugh, FSR, August 1977, p. 6 for BUFORA).

NICAP 1977 Chronology

Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

What i find interesting is the fact that the objects were seen near water. I believe that some of the things that we could find in our oceans are just as amazing and bizarre as anything we could find among the stars.


Wouldn't it be something if this was an attempt at contact from ocean dwellers, as opposed to beings from space?

Very nice find! The documents repeat that the sources are credible numerous times...and even go as far as stating they were sober to clear up anyone that thinks these officers and military employees were buzzed and or crazy.

That being said I can't wait to hear what skeptics and debunkers have to say about this case, and the many more to come soon.

The old "they are crazy" theory seems a little ridiculous here. Also Chinese balloons, weather balloons, clouds, birds, image manipulation and video manipulation don't fit here. Lets just get that out of the way before we start hearing about how the radar and officers caught a bird maneuvering in a phenomenal way

reply to post by FireMoon


Firemoon, thats a wonderful post and I think you make some very astute points.

As you say, the RAF Boulmer UFO does sound incredibly bizarre yet it was confirmed by two different radar stations to be in the same area of sky as the RAF personnel were indicating.

What the object actualy was is a complete mystery but I think if the British Ministry of Defense took this UFO incident extremely seriously then so perhaps should everyone else (including UFO cynics).

As for the Sagan quote about 'keeping an open mind but not so open your brains fall out' - I do think it's pretty sound advice but I also think that the more and more a person objectively looks at evidence surrounding the UFO subject, the more and more it becomes increasingly difficult to dismiss.


P.S. To his credit, Carl Sagan also makes another good point below about the dangers of excessive scepticism:

"If you are only skeptical, then no new ideas make it through to you. You become a crotchety old person convinced that nonsense is ruling the world. (There is, of course, much data to support you.) But every now and then, a new idea turns out to be on the mark, valid and wonderful. If you are too much in the habit of being skeptical about everything, you are going to miss or resent it, and either way you will be standing in the way of understanding and progress."

Carl Sagan

Against Excessive Scepticism -Collected Quotes

Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

reply to post by karl 12


Sadly , i believe the Pembrokeshire Spaceman has been shown to be a hoax. Channel 5 in Britain ran a series on UFOs and this one was discussed at length. Several of the people involved in the hoax were interviewed and it did seem to hold water, what they were saying. They gave details that really, only those involved, could have known about . They just didn't expect it to receive so much publicity so, kept quiet about it for a good few years.

I've had a look around on youtube but it doesn't look like the episode has been up loaded. Will keep searching, i would assume the whole series must be around somewhere on line.

reply to post by FireMoon


Firemoon, very good call there mate -would love to see those interviews and am all for debunking UFO occupant reports where appropriate. I'm aware of Channel Five programming in the UK -do you recall the name of the series as there are a few sites out there which might have it.
Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]

Originally posted by Strel
What i find interesting is the fact that the objects were seen near water. I believe that some of the things that we could find in our oceans are just as amazing and bizarre as anything we could find among the stars.

Strel, thanks for the reply -it seems like theres a lot of reports of unknown objects entering and emerging from the world's oceans - Carl Feindt is said to one of the experts in this aspect of ufology and, if you've not seen it before, theres a realy interesting interview with him here.
Cheers.

Originally posted by Smell The Roses
Very nice find! The documents repeat that the sources are credible numerous times...and even go as far as stating they were sober to clear up anyone that thinks these officers and military employees were buzzed and or crazy.

Smell the Roses, it certainly is a strange one mate and I think the British MOD were genuinely stumped on this one - as mentioned above it realy does make you wonder just how many other UFO documents are being witheld due to them being too 'sensitive'.

Theres another very intriguing account below describing UFOs over the sea from senior British Air Ministry official Ralph Noyes:

"Here we had a number of object seen coming in across the North Sea on coastal radar. It looked like a Russian mistake. Jet aircraft were scrambled. The objects were travelling at quite impossible speeds like 4-5000 mph and then came to an abrupt halt near to one of these stations not very high up. Jet aircraft picked them up on aircraft radar. The objects then simply made rings round them."

"Inevitably this led to the sort of enquiry which you would put in hand if you had any military responsibilities. Had something gone wrong with ground radar or with aircraft radar? We experienced pilots going out of their minds? Were people having fantasies? We *had* to investigate cases of that kind. Over the years - although there were not an enormous number of such cases - there were a sufficient number to persuade me, and a number of air staff friends with whom I had to work, that something was going on, sporadically, in British airspace which we could not explain."

"But we did not particularly want to make public statements about that. Not for something that we had no explanation."

Ralph Noyes,Senior Official with British Air Ministry - retired as Under Secretary of State in 1977

Link

Cheers.

[edit on 02/10/08 by karl 12]