295 lines
16 KiB
Plaintext
295 lines
16 KiB
Plaintext
SUBJECT: NORTH QUEENSLALND UFO SAGA FILE: UFO2387
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ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
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This is a transcript from the original article printed in the
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'FLYING SAUCER REVIEW', Volume 15, No. 3, May/June 1969 issue.
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It is part of the 'official' Tully report which includes a report
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by Stan Seers, ex-president of QFSRB (now URQ), letters between
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people involved in the investigation, newspaper articles of the time,
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the below article, etc.. etc...
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NORTH QUEENSLAND UFO SAGA - By Stan Seers and William
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Lasich.
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The sparsely-populated coast of North Queensland opposite
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the Great Barrier Reef abounds in vegetative growth. Tall reed
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or cane concealing "flying saucer nests" form a notable feature
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of the UFO saga which began(1) with the adventure of George
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Pedley, a 27-year-old banana farmer of Euramo near Tully, some
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95 miles south of Cairns.
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At about 9.00 a.m. on the clear sunny morning of Wednesday,
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January 19, 1966, Pedley was driving a petrol tractor across
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the property of a friend and neighbour, Mr. Albert Pennisi,
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cane farmer and resident of some 19 years.
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The farm track along which he drove wound its way towards,
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and thence alongside, what is locally known as Horseshoe Lagoon.
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This contained an area of still water about 5ft. deep and an
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acre or so in extent, much of which was covered by a thick
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growth of water reeds, the stems of these, about 1/2in. in
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diameter protruding above the surface to a height of
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approximately 2ft.
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As he approached the lagoon, which was to his right, with
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the sun by this time well up in the sky to his left, he thought
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he detected a misfire in the tractor motor. Almost immediately
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over the noise of the tractor he heard a sharp hissing noise,
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and then to his amazement he saw rising from the reeds,
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approximately 25 yards to his right and slightly ahead of him,
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a saucer-shaped object which ascended fairly slowly to an
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estimated height of 60ft., tilted a little to one side and then
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with a burst of speed quickly vanished in a south-westerly
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direction. Except for the original hissing noise, no other
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sound was heard. The total time of observation was estimated at
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4 to 5 seconds.
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Mr. Pedley stated that the object was approximately 25ft. in
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diameter, about 9ft thick at the centre, silver-grey in colour
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and generally sharp in outline. He jumped from the tractor and
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hurried across to the lagoon from whence the object had
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ascended and immediately discovered a circular flattened area
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within the tall green reeds. The flattened stems were radially
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distributed in a noticeably anti-clockwise manner(2). He was
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emphatic that the swathed reeds were at that time quite green,
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as were all other reeds outside this area. The swathe of
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newly-flattened reeds formed a "nest" of 30ft diameter.
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He further noted an area of giant water couch grass
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immediately outside the perimeter of the "nest", about a square
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yard of which had been apperently clipped short and the
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clippings removed. Pedley is positive in recollection that the
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water of the "nest" was STILL SWIRLING slightly in a circular
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motion at the moment when he first saw it.
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After a few minutes he returned to the tractor, started the
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motor and went on his way. When questioned later, Mr. Pedley
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stated that he could not remember whether or not he switched
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the motor off when leaving it, stalled the motor when stopping,
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or whether it just cut out after he left it, but is quite
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certain that the tractor motor was "dead" when he returned
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since he clearly remembers restarting it. The motor electrical
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ignition system was the conventional one for the model.
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Later in the day he felt that he should tell someone of what
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he had seen, so called on Mr. Albert Pennisi, owner of the
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lagoon and surrounding property and related to him his
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experience. At about 4.00 p.m. they returned together to the
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lagoon. Mr. Pennisi stripped, waded out to the "nest" and found
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that it was possible to swim through from side to side BELOW
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the flattened area, without meeting with any obstruction,
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indicating quite clearly that the whole mass of the "nest" was
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actually FLOATING on the surface.
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Shortly afterwards, at about 5.00 p.m., Mr. Pennisi, using
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colour film took a series of photographs. The prints
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subsequently obtained, clearly substantiate a remarkable
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feature which both witnesses had observed and remarked on. The
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flattened reeds in the "nest" had turned noticeably brown, but
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ONLY ON THE UPPER SURFACES. The underside of each reed nearest
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the water still remained quite green. this "browning" of the
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upper surfaces of the reeds had quite obviously taken place
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since 9 a.m. that morning.
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A resurgence of "nest" phenomena at the same Tully lagoon
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has occurred recently (January/February 1968). Sometime
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earlier, noting a prediction of sunspot maximum for May 1968 by
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the Swiss authority M. Waldmeive, QFSRB [Queensland Flying
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Saucer Research Bureau - now; UFO Research Queensland. M.W.]
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were primed(3) to the possibility of increased UFO activity in
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1968.
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With this in mind, it was decided to set up two monitor
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stations, No. 1 in the Tully district (North Queensland) and
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No. 2 in the South, some 20 miles out of Brisbane. The precise
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location of sites must remain undisclosed, since the monitors
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operate virtually unattended at some distance from habitation.
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The equipment at No. 1 station was set up by Mr. Vince Mele
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with the assistance of an electronics friend. The monitor is
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built around a photo-cell and sensitive magnetic compass. The
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photo-cell light beam is interrupted if magnetic dusturbance is
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present, and the fluctuation of photo-cell current then
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activates the cine-camera release. The camera (Eumig 8mm auto.)
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is energised so long as magnetic field disturbance continues
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(five frames exposed per 2-second interval).
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During February a spontaneous magnetic field disturbance was
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actually recorded during initial trials. On the same day a UFO
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sighting was reported by an isolated witness, some eight miles
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from the base. Heavy cloud cover in the area impeded further
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observation of the UFO flight trajectory. The information was
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not enough to provide 100 per cent proof that the detector was
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UFO-triggered on this occasion. Nevertheless things looked
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quite promising.
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At the end of February both monitors were fitted with
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cameras, tested and operating. On March 2, Tully lagoon
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contained four nests, then about three weeks old. The camera
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site was screened from view some 50ft. from the nearest "nest".
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On this date radio 4KZ broadcast an arresting news flash! An
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airliner en route Cairns to Iron Range had been paced at
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6,000ft. for some minutes by a UFO some 2,000ft above the
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aircraft. Both airline pilots witnessed the event. Somewhere
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over Cooktown area the UFO broke contact and shot off at
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enormous speed (described as something like 1,500 m.p.h.). An
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inspection of the No. 1 monitor found the camera still in
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motion although all 25ft of colour film(4) had been run through
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and the batteries were nearly exhausted. The roll of 16-mm film
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was removed and reversed for a second run, and new batteries
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installed. (Technically this indicates the field perturbation -
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cum UFO - was present for the whole 10 minutes the film was
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run.)
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On March 4, two days later, quite a number of local
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inhabitants reported the passage of another UFO. An inspection
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of the monitor again revealed that it had been "triggered", but
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this time, for some unknown reason, only some 15 or 16 frames
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had been exposed. An examination of the batteries which had
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been carefully tested and were fully charged when fitted,
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revealed that they were quite flat.
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The remainder of the film was wound through by hand, removed
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from the camera, sealed in the usual container and addressed to
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Kodak Ltd., Melbourne, for processing, all of this in the
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presence of two reliable witnesses. It was then conveyed to
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Tully for posting, the packet was weighed, and the charge was
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14 cents. Some 10 days later a letter was received from Kodak
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stating that the container, which was returned to the sender,
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HAD BEEN EMPTY ON ARRIVAL! The empty container still had the 14
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cent stamp attached, and a quick check at the Post Office
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established that the postage on an empty container was 5 cents
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only. Further exchanges with Kodak Ltd. produced no results.
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The loss of the film was reported to the civil police who
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were very co-operative, but after a careful detective
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investigation interstate, were unable to shed light on the
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mystery of the vanished film so far as can be quoted from
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official statement. Unofficially, however, a hint was thrown
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out by a person of reliable character and seemingly well
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informed in police matters, that it was likely that
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Commonwealth authorities had taken possession of the film and
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therefore it would be useless to pursue enquiries further.
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To complete the "cloak and dagger " atmosphere, even more
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bizarre was a seemingly casual suggestion conveyed to one of
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the UFO investigators by an individual undoubtedly
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knowledgeable in government intelligence activities. This
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"contact" advised our UFO researching colleague that NEXT time
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the UFO camera ought to be loaded with black and white film. Is
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this too incredible? No, probably just the verdict of hard-won
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experience in the photographic lab. of "salvaging" difficult
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aircraft images, under-exposed and diffused by grain and
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distortion. Even perhaps of UFOs?
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It is not without interest also to record, shortly after
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loss of the film, circa March 13, two R.A.A.F. [Royal
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Australian Air Force] helicopters were observed for some time
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deploying over the site of the very lagoon significant to the
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events described, by the owner of the properties concerned.
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Several "saucer nests" were still visible at this date.
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Mr. Colin Bennett, M.L.A., [Member of the Legislative
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Assembly] Barrister, after studying complete documentation of
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the incident, expressed keen interest and promptly offered his
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every assistance in inquiries. Mr. Bennett then wrote to
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Canberra [Federal Government] concerning the missing UFO film,
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presenting, he stated, "a submission to the Commonwealth
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Authorities in rather strong terms."
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In a reply from Canberra dated August 29, Mr. Gordon Freeth,
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Minister for Air stated he was unable to offer any suggestion
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as to the fate of the film. He denied positively the Department
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of Air had ever, at any time, removed from Kodak Ltd., material
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relating to UFOs.
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So far a disappointing outcome for UFO researchers. Could it
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be that sensible lifemanship indicates the affair might as well
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be allowed to fade into limbo? Let the UFOs "buzz-off" so we
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can get on with our own affairs. A public philosophy endorsed
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by our officialdom!
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MORE VISITATIONS
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However the UFOs must be immune to exorcism, or have ignored
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the message, since the Cairns-Tully area continues to sport its
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UFO-active events. A further "nest" was discovered soon after
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on April 25 in a cane field close to Cairns (25 miles north of
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Tully). Flattened stems lay in an oval-shaped area 70ft. by
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30ft. These were described by a horse-riding party as
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completely screened by standing cane.
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A more recent close encounter with a UFO (October 1) was
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reported by Louie Maule, 35, a Tully district farmer. Near on
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8.00 p.m. he was headed north driving home from South
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Johnstone, when he saw descending from the night sky, a large
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black object ringed with red lights. "I got a shock", Maule
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said. "It was GIGANTIC and looked to be slowing up."
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The headlights of a passing car momentarily obscured his
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vision, and he slowed to a stop. "When I looked again it was
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travelling towards South Johnstone at maybe 100 m.p.h."
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Interviewed by Vince Mele, the motorist Louie Maule stated
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the UFOs' altitude was about 500ft. It was circular in shape,
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and about 60ft. in diameter, as clearly out-lined by the red
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lights around the perimeter. The red-ringed disc was last seen
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to bank and proceed towards the clouds at very high speed.
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On the same evening, some 3 miles to the north, Vince Mele
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had set up his mobile detector on a hill site overlooking the
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surrounding area. Promptly at 8.00 p.m. his detector alarm
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sounded and it was two minutes before the alarm re-set itself
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automatically. After this, it was quiet for the rest of the
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evening.
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Although it must be noted that Vince Mele did not himself
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see any lights, the October 1 incident now seems to provide
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the first good evidence for independent visual sighting
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correlated with triggering of the detector by the ambient field
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of a UFO.(5)
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A Continued Mystery
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The Tully UFO photographs (presuming something WAS on the
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film) are by no means the first UFO shots to disappear from the
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Australian scene. A recapitulation made at the CAPIO Convention
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(Canberra, July 1968) produced the following list:
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1. 11.00 a.m., August 23, 1953, of nine photographs taken at
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Port Moresby by T.P. Drury, Deputy Minister of Civil Aviation,
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the five best shots were "lost" by CAD, who had loaned them
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to the United States Air Force, Washington. **[I will type
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up and post the full report on this particular sighting
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shortly. It is contained in the complete, original 45 page
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report entitled "Flying Saucers Over Papua - A Report on
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Papuan Unidentified Flying Objects." dated March 1960, by
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the Revd. Norman E.G. Cruttwell, M.A. Oxon, of the Anglican
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Mission, Menapi, Papua, New Guinea, and documents a lot of
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the 79 Papuan sightings of the time, including the full
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report on the 'Father Gill' case. M.W.]**
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2. Daytime, Easter 1954, some 200 photographs, cine and
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stills, of an object pacing three young men in an Austin
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sedan, driving through the interior near the Western and
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South Australian border. "Borrowed" by the R.A.A.F. and
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never returned.
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3. 11.00 a.m., July 7, 1961, 6in. by 3in negative of the
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"Thing" observed by scores of North Queenslanders and
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photographed by R.T. Sheward of the Cairns Post. This
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negative was sent to Kodak Melbourne by Mt. Stromlo
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scientists. This time the container did not arrive empty -
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according to Kodak, IT JUST DID NOT ARRIVE.
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4. 3.25 a.m., May 27, 1965, several photographs taken by an
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airline pilot (Ansett-ANA) of a UFO pacing an air liner in
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flight for 10 minutes over Bougainville Reef en route to
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Port Moresby. Film confiscated by the authorities.
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5. Actual time unknown, March 4 of this year, Tully, North
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Queensland, Missing cine film. We wonder where they all
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are?
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NOTES
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-!!!-
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(1) 'Queensland Again' by Judith Magee, FLYING SAUCER REVIEW,
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March/April 1966 (Vol. 12, No. 2.)
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(2) Clockwise swirl observed contrary to hypothetical ground
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effects from a helicopter landing. Rotor blades are driven
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with left-hand screw motion.
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(3) A study of the graphs (1851 to 1961) contained in the work
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'Anatomy of a Phenomenon' by Jaques Vallee strongly suggests
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the possibility of peak UFO activity being related to maximum
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and minimum sunspot activity and/or geo-magnetic activity. The
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latter could well be the significant factor, in view of the
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UFOs' well-known electro-magnetic effects.
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(4) Film was Kodachrome II, ASA speed 25.
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(5) No electric cables, geophysical prospecting, etc., are
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present in the area to act as source of magnetic field
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disturbances.
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****End****
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**********************************************
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* THE U.F.O. BBS - http://www.ufobbs.com/ufo *
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