Alien Assault in Dechmont Woods, Scotland? : Revisiting the Bob Taylor UFO Encounter

Some more information.

Sorry I forgot to add these to the post initially but here is the refernce information in addition to the links already posted.

Dechmont Woods, Scotland, November 9, 1979:

Daily Record UK

Flying Saucer Review Vol 25 No. 6

UFO Data Magazine also has a great write up on the event (Issue 7), The whole package of pdf magazines (15 in all) is available free courtesy of Isaac Koi here : minus.com...

a reply to: mirageman

Thank you for posting this. I LOVE these old cases; they provide some of the best clues in my opinion,
as they have some of the best trace evidence and are often "close encounters" not just some silly light
in the sky.

I wish I knew whether anyone else smelled the "burning brake-lining smell"?

This link:

Smelling smells that are not there

Is interesting to me.

Now I'm not writing off this event as "just epilepsy'. Not at all. As a matter of fact, I'd say that
IF there was epilepsy involved, that might cause the brain to function in a slightly different
way ("mystics" are often accused of having epilepsy). Not as in a pure "delusion", but perhaps
another "channel". I mean, there were hefty physical effects in this case.. it wasn't all just
self-delusion.

Maybe people prone to epilepsy are more prone to "see high strangeness UFOs".

Just a thought.

Actually on that thought.. maybe people being so drugged up these days, for any
possible excuse, has "suppressed" these "transient brain effects" that may be
involved with "high strangeness UFOs.

I also wish I knew what the emotional state of the dog was.. and we don't know that..

I've read about cases where a person is being actively "abducted", and a nearby animal is
not disturbed in any way. (There are cases like this in "UFO Danger Zone" by Bob
Pratt.).

Finally, I'm looking into a connection with "Negative Ions" which are prevalent in forests
and near running water. (2 big places some of the best cases occur in).

Was this case in a "sizable" forest area?

Kev

I am from Livingston and the landing site is not far from me.

I was at the site the morning after this encounter on my fathers shoulders at aged 5 waking to bangour hospital which was at the other side of dechmont law from Livingston.

This case is what got me started on my interest in UFO's and the paranornal and im still as interested 37 years later.

I have posted on this case under my username have have spoken with Nick Pope about it, recently asking if this case is due to appear in the next batch of MOD files to be released.

It was claimed bob eat some "berries" from the local area and hullucinated the whole event. Bob was a forrestry worker and had been for many years and knew fine well there are no edible berries in dechmont law.

Also the craft being transparent, I heard of this via a new ufo show that covered the case out last year sometime. It was never claimed by Bob that the ufo was tranparent in any of the research i have done into this case.

Livingston is a great place for sightings, i have seen a few odd things in the skies here and have most of them documented in ATS. feel free to check my username for the stories.

a reply to: zeetroyman

It was claimed bob eat some "berries" from the local area and hullucinated the whole event. Bob was a forrestry worker and had been for many years and knew fine well there are no edible berries in dechmont law.

This is my take on it too.

Taylor will have spent his life outdoors and wouldn't be in the habit of 'foraging' berries, eating agarics or munching on unidentified plants like nightshade.

A lot of 'bumpkins' have a lot of knowledge about their local fauna and flora. Much more than those who swoop in from towns and take their lack of a formal education as evidence of drooling ignorance and superstitions.

originally posted by: Morg234
a reply to: mirageman

It was the CIA One theory is that the encounter was a staged event, using the Hughes prototypical craft. This craft was supposedly established and tested in the British Isles in the 1960s and 1970s.

Operating in the wrong country? It would only be established, if anywhere, in the US. Not the CIA would or could operate in the UK.

I don't really think this is a popular theory by any means but someone put it out there as a possible explanation.

a reply to: zeetroyman

I find it unbelievable that a forestry worker would eat poisonous berries as well.

In addition to Kandinsky's comments I would question whether the belladonna berries would still be around by the first week of November in Scotland?

We've had a couple of very mild autumns south of the border recently but back in 1979 I think there were reports of snow on the ground before the incident and also not long after. Perhaps you can remember?

a reply to: zeetroyman

Also the craft being transparent, I heard of this via a new ufo show that covered the case out last year sometime. It was never claimed by Bob that the ufo was tranparent in any of the research i have done into this case.

I actually had to think about this because it's an interesting point you raise.

There are some contemporary (1979) news clippings in the MoD file DEFE 24/2038. None of those give a mention to the craft being 'transparent'.

However it is mentioned in Canadian publication - Journal UFO from Sept 1980



And also the Journal of Transient Phenomenon Vol 1 No.2 (which is bizarrely dated March 1979 before the incident occurred!)

Thanks for the articles Mirageman. certainly strange regarding the transparency reports. I will do some digging to see if i can see anymore reports.

My friends brother worked with bob for west lothian councils forrestry department and always said that once this happened, when he returned to work, it was never mentioned and he just tried to go about his daily business.

Never looked for publicity, never choose to discuss it and thats what make me know this is a genuine case.

Also the markings in the ground from the craft, bear in mind which were in a clearing in a forrest with no road access, it was estimated that the object weighed about 20 dons with 4 clear indentations in the ground where the landing legs had been.

I once witenessed a red,blue and white light very close together, fly directly over me not far from here at about 50ft. No sound, i could not see any visible craft and it just dissapeared behind a block of flats directly in front of me at roughly 3am.

certainly up for some sky watching if there are any locals willing to head out sometime.

a reply to: zeetroyman

Sorry I forgot to add that the first report is actually derived from the second one. It was written by Steuart Campbell (he of the black ball lightning/venus mirage/epilepsy theory described earlier in the thread.)

Now this becomes interesting.

Because the described 'semi-transparent' properties of the craft could explain why no one else saw anything in an area very close to a busy motorway in broad daylight. (The irony is that this aspect of the story comes from an outright debunker of the case!)

The markings in the ground are also a mystery. I am assuming Bob Taylor had to park his truck up because the clearing was not easily reached except by foot?

....certainly up for some sky watching if there are any locals willing to head out sometime.

Well I'd love to join you but I'm about 250 miles or so south west of you. Plus the fact that it doesn't get dark until well after 10:00pm around this time of the year as well!

Still I don't think the minute details of this case are complete by any means. I also did a search of the MoD documents and can't find much at all.

nice research Mirageman. I think the transparency is bogus, newer reviews of the case with "things added in"..

One documentry states his vehicle stopped suddenly and would not start hence he went on foot.

I have always heard that he parked up and went with the dog every morning checking the area over, making sure the access road gates where open or closed at the right times etc.

The clearing that the craft was in is surrounded by dense forrest, no road access. I have stood in this spot many times. Passed the access road today and its sad as they are slowly but surely removing all the trees. Lots of tree chopping going on up there.

regarding the motorway, i believe the craft came in at night early AM and bob stumpled across it at first light so traffic would be very light.

One fact about dechmont is that is does have a freshwater resevour underneath it, with a small access / plant room to take you down and under. im off long weekend next week so will try to grab a buddy and take a little trip up and take some photos, theres a plaque there as well documenting the landing site.

oh and re no MOD record, when i was speaking to Nick Pope last week and asked if this case is in the new batch of files he wasnt sure as he has not got eyes on yet. The new batch covers this date period so fingers cross.

a reply to: zeetroyman

The shape of the UFO is reminiscent of underwater submersible vehicles. The glass dome, the two ballast tanks and space at the back for accessories.

It's quite possible that nobody on the motorway didn't see anything. I've been on a double-decker bus that went right past the Orange blimp sitting next to a stream and nobody noticed!

a reply to: zeetroyman

If you can get photos that would be brilliant mate.

There is a fairly recent video here : Nat Geo * Untold UFO Stories Europe

The first half covers the Bob Taylor case. Alas he had already passed away by time it was made.

But I think it's important to find out if he really did mention anything about a semi-transparent craft or not. So I'll keep digging.

Thanks for the info. I still think this is one of our weirdest cases.

a reply to: mirageman

Since my own package of theories about high strangeness "UFOs" pretty much requires the ability to materialize/dematerialize at will, I'm very interested in whether this can be verified.

When i hear of people having sightings like this i always think of examples ive seen of what it would be like for someone in 2D to see something in 3D. I think what us 3D people are witnessing us something in the 4th or 5th demension leaking through.

The case was recently covered in episode one of a new series, UFOs : The untold stories. Different than most UFO shows, the skeptical side of the case is usually covered as much as the ET side. In this case David Clarke narrates a good portion of the case.

Most of the weight of the case came down to the torn trousers, its not enough to solidify the case, but no one came up with a good alternative to that part of the story.

An Imperial Probe Droid.

Its a good bet the Empire knows were here.

Great thread. Thanks for sharing.

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

I watched a documentary about this case, it was quite a few years ago but I seem to remember hearing that when Bob regained consciousness he said the dog was hysterical.

Also, I can understand why people would try and use epilepsy or even a stroke to explain this incident, however it doesn't account for the rips in bob's trousers. The trousers were examined I believe, and it was proven that an upward motion caused the tears.

This, along with the westall case from Australia, presents some of the most concrete evidence for extraterrestrials imo. Great post!

a reply to: jamespond

The latest documentary I know of on this case was about 2 years ago on Nat Geo (although outside of Europe that may be different). The only copy on Youtube I could find is this one.



Although a slightly better version can be seen at the link in this part of the thread.

The whole case is very odd. Even if we assume the tracks were in the ground before Taylor got there. Who made those tracks? Even if they were made by something mundane then how come Bob Taylor described being pulled by his trouser and how do we explain the damage to them?

I am not one to jump straight from It's unexplained to "it must be ET". I think popular culture embeds that instinct in us before we actually start thinking it through. However some 4 decades since this happened it's definitely unexplained, it's definitely a very odd encounter and it's entirely possible that Bob Taylor (and his dog) did encounter something not of this world or dimension.

One of the best cases IMHO. Although my friend 111DPKING111 tells me the Belgian UFO wave of 89/90 and the Levelland case are great cases too.

a reply to: jamespond

Good to know!

Sometimes animals go completely bonkers.
Sometimes animals (or humans) are killed.
Sometimes one is and the other isn't.

(head skritch)

Kev