Flying Saucers over Australia, 1950

The Day the Earth Stood Still, poster, 1951.

The rise of flying saucers

During 1950 there was a spate of sightings of flying saucers over Australia, with some 31 specific events identified by the author and described below. This was consistent with those in other parts of the world and in the years immediately prior (specifically since July 1947) and following. It has been suggested that this was due to increasing concern by Alien civilisations over the proliferation of nuclear weapons following the end of World War II and the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. As a result of the subsequent Cold War between the democratic West and Communist Eastern Bloc which lasted through to the 1980s and resulted not only in the proliferation of nuclear weapons but also the testing and detonation of some thousands, the threat of a global nuclear holocaust was real. This also saw the weaponisation of outer space through the deployment of nuclear-armed satellites and initiatives such as the Reagan-era Star Wars program in 1983.

The visitation by Aliens and flying saucers during the late 1940s and early 1950s can be seen as a not so subtle warning against going down a path towards planetary annihilation. It was also tied in with human experimentation with, and development of back-engineered Alien reproduction vehicles (ARVs) since the 1920s, initially in Germany. As early as 1951 Hollywood addressed this issue with the release of the film The Day the Earth Stood Still, in which the Michael Rennie Alien character Klatuu presents just such a warning. In hindsight, the movie contained much truth, both in regard to Alien visitations and also the unwarranted hostile response of governments worldwide, with the United States military in particular, aligned with a burgeoning military-industrial complex, failing to head the warnings and continuing their aggressive anti-Alien response to the present day (2023), regardless of the negative impacts upon humanity and the environment.

It appears that by 1950 Australian authorities were guided by the US demands for coverup and vilification of those reporting Alien and UFO encounters or sightings, thereby inciting a permanent environment of fear and ridicule. For some inexplicable reason, the subject also became the most Top Secret of all US issues, resulting in censorship by governments worldwide and within the media. This Above Top Secret status indicated that the military-industrial complex had a vested interest in Alien technologies, and something to hide in seeking to maintain US military and economic dominance. Australia would prove to be merely a pawn in this game. As a result, many sightings of Alien and msn-made UFOs were reported to Australian newspapers but never officially submitted to government. There was also widespread discussion amongst the general public, wondering was was really going on as the issue of life beyond Earth had profound spiritual and practical implications. In addition, many of those early UFO sightings and landings in the US, UK and Europe were reported and illustrated in Australian newspapers and magazines, and numerous fictionalised (though based upon fact) accounts began appearing on the big screen and in books, magazines and comics. Alongside the genuine accounts there were also frivolous mentions of fads, such as flying saucer hats, parties, model making, and racing horses, and fake reports by individuals. The official statements that all the encounters were either meteors or weather balloons or cloud inversions, etc., soon wore thin amongst those in the community who were interested in the subject or had first hand experience through sightings or encounters. Australia was not as prominent in the flying saucer debate as the US, though it did have a role to play, as the following newspaper reports reveal.

It is interesting to note the response of officialdom from the late 1940s, never confirming the existence of flying saucers and Alien life or encounters following the initial reports in 1947, and often denying the veracity of reports by bona fide witnesses, with associated ridicule directed at those who reported such things or showed an interest in the subject, sometimes leading to intimidation and murder. Just as the Roswell, New Mexico, UFO downings by the US Air Force and other crashes of June 1947 had been subsequently stated by officials to be weather balloons, so also explanations such as the lights in the sky over Australia being the planet Venus or a meteorite were presented ad nauseum. For example, the following report appeared in the Border Watch, Mount Gambier, South Australia, on 15 June 1950:

Explanation For Flying Saucers - Flying saucers, reported to have been seen for over a long period in various parts of the world, and variously described as a "new atomic weapon," a "revolutionary type of jet plane," and a "radar controlled missile," are simply air whirlpools, according to a report to the Air Council from the pilots of special high-altitude planes in the U.S.A.

To counter the suspicion of coverup and lies, and divert attention from the truth, there were also reports which purported to reveal that the flying saucers were simply innovative, man-made (American, Russian) craft and not Alien. Though in fact true, they were scoffed at and ignored by all except those in the know and ufologists, including those increasing millions who became aware of the coverup. For example, the following was published in the Coffs Harbour Advocate on 28 July 1950:

Flying Saucers "Good News". The flying saucers are real - they are made not in Russia or in Mars — but in the United States; and when the U.S. Air Force sees fit to release information on them it will be good news. ...So declares Henry J. Taylor, well-known journalist and radio-commentator, in the August Reader's Digest. The article is condensed from a broadcast. The saucers vary in size, Taylor says, from small white discs 20 inches wide to big ones 250 feet across. Nearly all are round; some are flat and edged up like saucers, others are raised in the centre like a pie. Some are guided, others are not. They emit no stream of light or smoke, have no indication of a propelling mechanism, and no sound. They can stand stationary in the air, then dash of to right or left with increasing speed. Their function is an important military secret. Nine out of ten reports of flying saucers are due to imagination or confusion, Taylor states. But several have been substantiated. Nine flying discs, sighted over the Pacific coast of America by United Airlines Captain E. J. Smith, were real. Five seen over the Cascade Mountains of Oregon were real. So were a hundred foot saucer observed over New Mexico in April, 1949, and a 250 footer sighted over Madisonville, Kentucky, on January 7, 1948. The saucer development is "a big and expanding experimental project which has been progressing in the United States for three years." Taylor says. It has gone through three stages, reaching peaks in public observation in July 1947, January, 1948, and April 1950. The saucers have grown bigger with each phase. A "flaming, cigar-shaped object about a hundred feet long," reported over Montgomery, Alabama, by two reliable airline pilots, was real, too, the author states. But it was not cigar-shaped, nor was it a "flying saucer." It was a US Navy experimental fighter, "a great jet airplane of incredible speed." Though nearly round, its extremely fast flight (another military secret) made it appear elongated and cigar-shaped to the human eye. Chances of finding a flying saucer are slight, because most are made of material which disintegrates in the air. If you found one, however, you would read the following message stencilled on it: "Military secret of the United States of America (and a number). Anyone damaging or revealing description or whereabouts of this missile is subject to prosecution by the United States Government. Call collect at once (telephone number) and address of a US Air Force Base). Non-explosive."

Whilst some of this report is true, it does not negate the reality of extraterrestrial spacecraft visiting planet Earth. In maintaining secrecy around this fact, the US authorities (e.g., the OSS, CIA, FBI, military police and other unnamed public and private security and intelligence forces) were often brutal towards eyewitnesses and whistleblowers, threatening individuals and their families with psychological and physical violence, confiscating their property, and on certain occasions killing those who threatened to expose their activities.

This suppression of the truth through an international coverup even went beyond the military-industrial cabal, into the churches and religious / spiritual instutions. The Vatican, for example, as the primary administrative arm of the Catholic Church, was fully aware of the existence of extraterrestrial life, and had been since its earliest days. However, some factions within, as in wider society, felt that a knowledge of, and belief in, the existence of Aliens, was a threat to the Church and its core belief system as promulgated through the Bible and theological doctrine. They therefore supported the coverup, whilst maintaining a close involvement in the ongoing process of engagement with Aliens and even, within its ranks, having those who saw extraterrestrial beings as merely the Children of God, like humans, and not to be feared. One unfortunate aspect of the negative stance was the development of a widespread belief, especially amongst the American Christian evangelical movement, that Aliens were demons, association with Satan / Lucifer and therefore to be feared. This, of course, played into the fear generated by the military-industrial cabal. There is no doubt that, as with humanity, there are extraterrestrial beings of the Light and of the Dark, and all those variants in-between. But to cast all extraterrestrial life as demonic is nothing less than evilness itself.

Another report from a reliable source offering a version of the truth to Australian readers in 1950 was published in the Townsville Daily Bulletin, Queensland, and more fully in the Argus, Melbourne, on 21 October of that year, with both sourced from AAP and SS.

"Flying Saucer Inter-planet Space Ship." Denver, October 18.— Flying saucers piloted by little men from another planet would land on earth soon. Professor Silas Newton, Denver University geophysicist, said to-day to a University class. He believes the saucers are inter-planetarv space ships operated along lines of magnetic force. These men of a foreign planet have been sounding the earth's magnetic fields in exploratory flights, said Professor Newton. The saucers are ready now for landing. He declared that four flying saucers had crashed on the earth and were being studied by the United States Government. A fifth had since crashed in Africa. Professor Newton added that bodies of 34 men ranging in height from 38 to 42 inches had been taken from the wreck. "They dare not land until they safely map the magnetic fields of this planet," he said. "I think that reported mass flights of saucers are evidence that the magnetic fields have been pretty thoroughly sounded and the saucers are now ready for landing. These men from a foreign planet, probably advanced beyond our scientific state by hundreds of years, have harnessed lines of magnetic force for propulsion like we harness the propelling powers of steam, oil, and jet." Newton added that this made possible flying the 161 million miles from Venus in about one hour.

An additional report based around Professor Newton's statements appeared as Space-Ship Sensation. Where does it come from? in the Truth, Sydney, on 22 October 1950. In addition, during October, addressing the proliferation of reported sightings of flying saucers, the International Astronomical Union, based in Copenhagen, declared them to be the result of sensational writing or mass hypnotism. Once again, a halt was put to open, scientific investigation and discussion around the subject of UFOs and Alien encounters. This was antithetical to the traditional scientific method and, unfortunately, remains in place to the present day, much to the chagrin of those with a genuine scientific interest in such topics.

The heavy-handedness of the US authorities in censoring and covering up the issue was evident on the following report published in the Advertiser, Adelaide, on 7 October 1950.

U.S. Air Force Seizes Flying Saucer Films. New York, October 6. Nick Mariana, manager of a baseball team at Great Falls, Montana, took movie color photographs of two flying saucers which buzzed over the base ball park like silver discs. They appear on his film for about three seconds. US Air Force officers stepped in, however, and Mariana surrendered his films to the Air Technical Command at the request of the special investigators. Mariana states that the Air Force officers cautioned him against giving any further information about the film.

Why the secrecy, threats and confiscation? No official reasons for this have ever been given, apart from the vague "national security concern" or "top secret" classification, which is merely a form of unwarranted and unexplained censorship. Other reports from the United States (e.g. Flying Saucers Top Secret, Morning Bulletin, Rockhampton, 5 April 1950) clearly stated that the flying saucers were the product of research by US entities such as the military. All of these reports were in turn officially denied. Even the Vatican denied sighting any Alien craft from its official observatory, despite the fact that Pope Pius XII assisted the Americans during 1945 with access to the captured flying saucer which had crashed near Magenta, Italy, during 1933, and was retrieved and stored by Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. One local report even went so far as to question the truthfullness of the Vatican statement:

What! No Flying Saucers? Jesuit astronomers who run the Vatican observatory in the Alban Hills near Rome said recently that despite their modern equipment and diligent observation they have not yet seen a flying saucer. "We are well provided with telescopes. We scan the heavens daily. But so far we have seen no trace of celestial crockery," a Jesuit told journalists touring the observatory. "They seem to be the invention of a few persons of exalted imagination." (Advocate, Melbourne, 27 July 1950)

The Vatican's carefully worded statement only referred to sighting flying saucers through its telescopes, shying away at the time from any more specific reference to its knowledge of Alien life. However, the last statement offers a derisive, blanket denial of the very existence of Alien life! This word play was common across the board, as governments and private organisations participated in coverups, denials, obfuscation and ridicule.

The present author has never sighted or otherwise encountered a UFO or Alien (Extraterrestrial), though believes in their existence. Prior to carrying out this research, his only knowledge of the topic came from films such as The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) and ET (1982), and an interest in science fiction since his high school days. For the majority of people like him, the subject of flying saucers, UFOs, Aliens and extraterrestrials is a non-event and something they rarely give thought to. It is either the most significant subject in the history of human kind, or the most trivial. In fact, it appears to be both.

From June 1947 the term flying saucer was commonly applied by newspaper editors to headings for stories about unidentified flying objects and Alien space craft. It was a term which quickly became well known amongst the general public, often in association with science fiction tales concerning so-called invaders from Mars. This had followed on the 1920s experiments by Italian pioneer of radio, Guglielmo Marconi, who promoted attempts to contact Martians through use of that new technology; and the infamous Orson Wells 1938 radio broadcast of a play based on the H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, which many took as fact and resulted in a certain level of hysteria. This fear of widespread public unrest and chaos was subsequently used as one of the reasons for a coverup. It is of course rubbish, as it presupposes that humanity is not able to deal with the concept of extraterrestrial life, and also that such life is threatening rather than peaceful and therefore requires control by the military. It is obvious to any intelligent person that civilisations that are able to travel between galaxies are more advanced than humans and would be peaceful rather than aggressive. If they were aggressive, it is clear that the Earth would have suffered long before now. Also, to have military authorities and private corporations solely responsible for this issue is, and has proven to be, the reason for the ongoing coverup and restriction on access to new technologies arising from studies of captured craft and Alien encounters. These new technologies, some of which have been available since the mid' fifties, include free energy, anti-gravity devices, fibre optics, integrated circuits, cloaking devices, scalar energy transmitters and weapons, point to point and interstellar propulsion, and thought transmission and control devices. The scientific fraternity, and humanity, demands free and open access to such technologies and processes.

The earliest Australian newspaper references to unidentified flying objects were in 1945 concerning the so-called Foo Fighters encountered by pilots during WWII, and the reports of 29 June 1947 about American Kenneth Arnold's sighting of "nine planes like flying saucers travelling at 1200 miles an hour" over Oregon on the 24th of that month. The earliest local sighting occurred just two weeks later over the Sydney area, on the evening of Monday, 7 July 1947.

Six individuals reported their sightings to The Sun newspaper, as reported the following day.

6 Claim They Saw "Saucers" Over Sydney.

Claims by six people that they saw "flying saucers" in the sky over Sydney last night were made to "The Sun" today. The reports came from Concord, Mortlake, Camperdown and Kensington. Mr. Jack Parker, of Camperdown, said that at 11.30 pm he saw a mysterious object in the sky at about 10,000ft. "I was with a friend, and we both saw it distinctly," said Mr. Parker. "It was white and appeared to be travelling at terrific speed. It kept a straight course, and we watched it for several minutes until it disappeared towards Botany Bay. It was slightly brighter than the moon." Mrs. H. Robinson, of Beaconsfield-avenue, Concord, said that, with a neighbor, Mrs. E. Oliver, she watched two silver objects glistening high in the sky above Mortlake Gasworks, about 11 am yesterday. "We watched them together for about 15 minutes," said Mrs. Robinson. "At first they were stationary, then they drifted slowly north. They appeared to be about 24 inches in circumference." A man who gave the name of Mr. E. Watkins, of Doncaster-avenue, Kensington, said that at 10.55 pm he had noticed seven "bright round objects" spinning at a great height and travelling very fast in the direction of Parramatta. Another Kensington man who refused to give his name, claimed that he saw a cluster of bright silver objects travelling westward. (The Sun, Sydney, 8 July 1947).

A sixth person arrived at The Sun office claiming to have invented flying saucers. He was perhaps the first, but certainly not the last, to falsify such claims over the coming years and muddy the waters in the public mind. Just a day later, on 9 July 1947, reports of the Roswell, New Mexico, flying saucer crash began appearing in Australian newspapers. Military officials quickly stepped in shortly thereafter declared it merely a weather balloon. They were subsequently shown to be lying.

Roswell Daily Record, 8 July 1947.

From this point on there was doubt surrounding the truth of Roswell, and a new breed of opposing researcher arose in the form of ufology and ufologists. The truth was that it was an Alien craft, and three bodies were retrieved from the crash site. Thereafter, reportage increased exponentially, based largely on sightings by individuals rather then the official release of information. The Australian experience provides ample evidence of this.

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Australian Reports from 1950

The following reports sourced from the National Library of Australia TROVE database specifically refer to flying saucers, though other term such as Foo Fighters or more general terms such as unidentified aircraft or lights in the sky were also mentioned but have not been a focus of the compilation.

January

* Flying Saucer?, The Mercury, Hobart, Tasmania, 19 January 1950. Letter to the editor.

Flying Saucer? Between 11 p.m. and midnight on January 10 I saw something appear over Mt. Wellington, shoot across the sky, very high up, and disappear over Bellerive. Its passage took under three seconds. Was it a flying saucer? Interested. New Town.

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February

[No reports of Australian sightings or encounters were located. However, there were numerous articles published locally on flying saucers seen in places such as Venice, London, Antarctica and the United States, thereby raising knowledge of the topic amongst the general public.]

* Flying Saucers [cartoon], News, Adelaide, 21 February 1950.

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March

* 15 March 1950 - Flying Saucer seen by A.N.A. pilot M. Porteous whilst flying between Perth and Adelaide. Not publically reported at the time, but referred to in report of 27 May 1950 reproduced below.

* Flying Saucers, Barrier Daily Truth, Broken Hill, 28 March 1950.

Flying Saucers. Once again there has been an outbreak of persistent stories of 'flying saucers.' Some time ago the rumors and tales filled papers for a few weeks and then gradually lost ground to other considerations. At that time there were a number of explanations given for what people had "seen," these ranging from optical illusions to meteorological balloons, from Venus to just pure imagination. Much the same explanations were advanced this time when early reports came to hand, but since then many more reports have come from persons who would hardly be sensation seekers or unreliable. There are such things as mass hysteria, and mass hysteria and mass hypnotism, but these phenomena could hardly account for the persistency of the flying saucer stories now being told. There was one story of men from Mars or some such planet, but from being a sensational story of an eye witness it turned into a rumor which someone had told to someone after being told by someone else altogether. However, although Man is making desperate efforts to conquer the Universe and visit other planets, it may be taken for pretty certain that we have not been receiving visits from outer space, much as the comic strip merchants may have hoped. The persistency of the stories suggests strongly that there are craft of some description being flown about, probably American experimental planes. As much has been stated, it being more than a hint by an American Senator, and a scientist in Europe during the war has claimed that Germany had developed craft that could be described as flying saucers. The quest for aircraft that are near perfect has been going on since the first aeroplane was flown, and this quest has led to the production of many craft that may be described as weird when compared with the conventionally accepted design as we know it. The flying wing has been a popular avenue of search and the circular aircraft is no more out of the way than the wing. There was produced at one stage a circular land vehicle, a huge wheel that operated on the gyroscope principle, so an aircraft on this principle should not be out of the question. It is probably quite recognised that aircraft of such design could be produced, but just what are the details of those which have been seen, and it hardly seems logical to doubt their existence now is no doubt causing much curiosity in many quarters. U.S. Air Force attitude to the "saucers" has been such as to lead people to conclude that U.S.A.F. knew nothing of them and doubted them very much, but this could have been a red herring to delay for a little longer revelation of just what the U.S. has achieved.

[NB: This report pre-empts modern accounts which express concern in regard to whether sightings of flying saucers are of Alien or Earth-based construction. It is likely both.]

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April

* Flying Saucer [cartoon], The Advertiser, Adelaide, South Australia, 8 April 1950.

* Flying Saucers of Perth, The Inverell Times, 19 April 1950.

'Flying Saucers' Over Perth' Perth, Wednesday: Reports that "flying saucers' had been seen in Perth skies were received in a newspaper office last night from residents in different parts of the metropolitan area. Two residents of South Perth reported having seen last night what they thought may have been "flying saucers." They described it as being "large balls of bright orange red" flying at high speed about three miles south of Perth. Two visitors from Melbourne, Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell, rang the newspaper and said they could confirm the South Perth residents story in all details. They said it was travelling faster than an aeroplane and at first they thought it was a meteor. Another man living at Nedlands gave the newspaper a similar description of the object.

[NB: This report clearly distinguishes the flying saucers from meteorites.]

* Flying Saucers Here, Daily Examiner, Grafton, 20 April 1950.

Flying Saucers Here. Perth, Wednesday. — Several people, including two visitors from Melbourne, have reported that they have seen flying saucers over Perth. They claimed that the objects they saw were faster than an aeroplane. One man said he saw an object about 20 feet in diameter and orange coloured passing over Fremantle Harbour at the height of about 1000 feet. He said it was going round and round.

[NB: It is unclear whether this last comment refers to the trajectory of the flying saucer in circling Fremantle Harbour, or the movement of the spacecraft itself whilst in motion.]

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May

* Flying Saucer, The Blackwood Times, Greenbushes, Western Australia, 5 May 1950.

"Flying Saucer" With all the intriguing statements appearing in the press recently regarding people seeing "flying saucers," Mrs. W. J. Kirke mentioned to her husband that she would very much like to see one herself. Her husband's eyes lit up and minutes later he called Mrs. Kirke out to see the mysterious "flying saucer." What she saw was her husband nonchalantly toss a piece of crockery which goes with one's teacup, into the air. It broke, and Mrs. Kirke is now one piece short in her tea set — all because of her wish to see a "flying saucer."

[NB: This story is a sign of the ridicule which was common in association with reports of flying saucers and Alien lifeforms during this period, from newspaper editors and officialdom seeking to play down the reality and significance of true sightings.]

* Golfers Saw Flying Saucer Over City, Examiner, Launceston, Tasmania, 20 May 1950.

Golfers Saw Flying Saucer Over City. A Flying Saucer or some other mysterious object was seen over Launceston last Sunday. But those who saw it did not decide until yesterday to make public statements about it. Mr. T. D. Wivell, of West Tamar, was playing golf on the Riverside course about 2.40 p.m. when he drew the attention of his companions to a large bird. While they were trying to identify the bird Mr. Wivell saw a "shiney object" very high in the sky. It was flying in circles and giving off a stream of white vapour. "I cannot say what the exact shape of the object was," said Mr. Wivell, "as it was too high to be seen clearly. I should say it was ten times as high as the customary altitudes of aeroplanes. All I could see was that it was aluminum coloured, and when it turned it flashed in the sun." With Mr. Wivell were Mr. A. E. Brown, 24 Como Crescent, and Mr. T. Wilson, of Hill St., Launceston. They both saw the object. Mr. Brown said yesterday it was travelling north when Mr. Wivell pointed it out to him. "It seemed transparent and twinkled in the sunlight. It was very high, and gave off a white vapour trail," said Mr. Brown. It was overhead when they first saw it. Mr. Wivell saw the object again later when it was flying in circles over Launceston and gradually moving southwards. From the way in which it was moving and because it left a white trail, he thought it might be a jet or rocket type of machine. People at Mowbray Heights who saw a "bright light" in the sky on Sunday afternoon thought it was the reflection of the sun on an aircraft. It was impossible to judge the height. Yesterday Civil Aviation authorities at Western Junction airport said they had no knowledge of the object. They said it could not have been a weather balloon because they did not leave vapour trails. There were no jet planes over the state on Sunday.

[NB: This report raises the possibility that the flying saucers did not appear on radar, though in an additional report it is noted that Mascot tower did see a light in the sky to support the claim.]

* Flying Saucers Coming Closer, The Murrumbidgee Irrigator, Leeton, 9 May 1950.

Flying Saucers Coming Closer. Mr. and Mrs. L. H. Anderson of Tumut, declare they saw a flying saucer five miles from town on a recent afternoon. It was shaped like a mushroom, moving at about 10 to 20 miles per hour and was silent in its movement. A flying saucer seen over Liverpool, and travelling south on a recent night, was subsequently declared to be a weather balloon by Sydney Observatory authorities, basing their calculations on the time it was released from the Observatory, the time it was reported over Liverpool, and direction and speed of wind.

* Flying Saucer Report from near Sydney, Lithgow Mercury, 26 May 1950.

Flying Saucer Report From Near Sydney. Sydney, This Afternoon. - A strange object in the sky was sighted by the crew of a DC3 air freighter about 30 miles from Sydney last night. Capt. Gordon Savage and his first officer, Frank Hastilton, both of Melbourne, said it might have been a "flying saucer." The plane was flying at 6,000 feet and Savage said a strange light was seen about 2,000 feet below their aircraft. Savage added: "Thinking the light may have been the navigation lights of a plane we contacted Mascot, but were assured there were no planes in the vicinity. There was a remote possibility it could have been a ship, so we flew out to sea and sighted some vessels but their lights were only pinpricks compared with the strong lights of the object. If it had been a star it would have stayed in a fixed position on the windscreen when we changed altitude, but when we changed it rose too. When we attempted to approach it, it seemed to vanish into a protective mist so that it appeared as a dull white glow. At this time there was no natural mist or fog about. When we switched on our navigation lights it came full view. It was a definite object. I am certain of that, although I could not distinguish its shape."

[NB: Once again, the report indicates the flying saucer was not visible on radar, and was able to mask itself in mist.]

* New Report of Flying Saucers, Saturday Evening Express, Launceston, Tasmania, 27 May 1950.

New Report Of Flying Saucers. Sydney. The latest flying saucer story, reported in New South Wales, comes from Lismore on the North Coast. Residents of nearby Swan Hill say they saw a strange object in the sky. They said it was about the size of a football and resembled a bright light which disappeared across the sky towards the north west.

* "Flying Saucer" was Planet, Maryborough Chronicle, Queensland, 27 May 1950.

"Flying Saucer" was Planet. Sydney, May 26. - Captain Gordon Savage, the pilot who reported a "flying saucer" near Canberra this morning said to-night he first thought it might be a plane, but he is convinced now that the red and white alternating lights he saw were a phenomenon caused by the planet Venus rising on the horizon. Capt. Savage and First Officer F. E. Hastilow were flying a D.C. 3 freighter from Brisbane lo Melbourne and near Canberra were turning back to Sydney, because Essendon was temporarily closed, when they saw lights to the east at 3.25 a.m.

In an official report to his company First Officer Hastilow said that a white light alternated at 15 seconds intervals to a red light. They were flying at 3000 feet and the lights were above them, 'appearing some distance away and moving in the same northerly direction at a considerably faster speed. Captain Savage climbed to 5000 feet to got a better look. The object drew away and eventually disappeared, but when the freighter's navigation lights were turned off strange lights ahead reappeared. Replying to a radio query from the freighter, Mascot control tower said that no other plane was in the vicinity. Later, Mascot tower picked up an unusual light in the east.

Tried To Chase It. Asked to-night why he had turned off his navigation lights, Captain Savage said: "At that time I was quite convinced it was some foreign object in the sky. I thought it might be some other aircraft that did not want me to see him. "I immediately thought of a Russian plane that might be having a look round our coastline. I turned towards it and tried to chase it but it disappeared." Captain Savage said he ruled out his first belief that the lights came from a planet because he could see no other stars and believed the night to be cloudless. He later learned that there was a high cirrus cloud hiding the other stars, while Venus rose from the horizon. "With the glare of light on a black background it was impossible to tell the distance. I could only compare it with an aircraft's navigation lights," he said.

Similar Sight. First Officer M. Porteous, A.N.A. pilot, said to-night that he had logged a similar phenomenon about 5 a.m. on March 15, while flying between Ceduna and Adelaide on the Perth-Adelaide run. There was a fantastic display of light green and red alternating lights until the planet rose about 15 degrees above the horizon and the lights disappeared. It had been established as the planet Venus. The navigator was star shooting at the time and the planet was plotted.

No report of to-day's mystery has been made to the Department of Civil Aviation. The Department's acting superintendent of accident studies, Mr. W. I. Milne, said: "The last time I saw a flying saucer I was on my way home from a R.A.A.F. mess."

* "Flying Saucer" could not have been Venus, The West Australian, 27 May 1950.

"Flying Saucer"' could not have been Venus. Melbourne, May 26: Officials at the Mt. Stromlo Observatory, Canberra, said today that Trans-Australia Airlines (Government) pilots could not have mistaken a light in the sky, first reported as a "flying saucer" as the planet Venus. Capt. G. Savage, a T.A.A. senior pilot, reported a "flying saucer" near Canberra early this morning, but tonight said that he had first thought it might be a Russian plane, but was convinced that the red and white alternating lights he had seen were a phenomenon caused by the planet Venus rising on the horizon. However, Mt. Stromlo officials said that at the time they had reported seeing the "phenomenon" Venus would just have risen on the eastern horizon. The weather in the area had been heavily overcast, they said, and there would have been little possibility of reflection from ground lights. There had been no other bright star in the area described apart from Jupiter, which could hardly have been mistaken for a bright flashing light.

Capt. Savage and First Officer F. E. Hastilow were flying a freighter from Brisbane to Melbourne and near Canberra were turning back to Sydney because Essendon was temporarily closed when they saw the lights to the east at 3.25 a.m. In an official report to his company First Officer Hastilow said the white light had alternated at 15-second intervals to a red light. They had been flying at 3,000 ft. and the lights had been above them, appearing some distance away and moving in the same northerly direction at a considerably faster speed. Capt. Savage climbed to 5,000 ft. to get a better look. The object drew away and eventually disappeared. But when the freighter's navigation lights were turned off the strange lights ahead reappeared. Replying to a radio query from the freighter, Mascot control tower said that no other plane was in the vicinity. Later Mascot control tower picked up an unusual light in the east.

Asked tonight why he had turned off his navigation lights, Capt. Savage said: "At that time I was quite convinced it was some foreign object in the sky. I immediately thought of a Russian plane that might be having a look around our coast line. I turned towards it and tried to chase it, but it disappeared."

The Civil Aviation Department's Acting-Superintendent of Accident Studies (Mr. W. L. Milne) commented tonight: "The last time I saw a flying saucer I was on my way home from an R.A.A.F. mess."

[NB: The comment by Milne points to the belittling and condescending attitude of officialdom to such reports, regardless of their veracity.]

* "Flying Saucer" over Canberra, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 27 May 1950.

'Flying Saucer' over Canberra. Melbourne, Friday. — Two Trans-Australia Airlines pilots said tonight that they chased a mysterious flying "object" over Canberra early this morning. They said they saw the "object" while they were flying the nightly freighter service between Brisbane and Melbourne. The first officer of the aircraft described the object as "a flying saucer because I cannot find a better description." He and the captain of the plane at first thought the object was the planet Venus, but later dismissed this theory. The Civil Aviation Department and the Air Force are investigating a report which the two men, Senior Pilot Gordon Savage, D.F.C., and First Officer Frank E. Hastilow, submitted to T.A.A. headquarters in Melbourne.

The report, written by Hastilow, said the object appeared at 3.25 a.m. and disappeared at 3.45 a.m. White, red light ..... The report said: "Flying in a northerly direction near Canberra on our way to Sydney we sighted to the eastward and above our aircraft a very powerful white light which alternated at 15-second intervals to a red light. "It appeared to be some distance away." Captain Savage climbed to 5000 feet to get a better look at the phenomenon.

"The indefinite object was drawing away from us at a high speed and eventually disappeared into a veil of atmospherics, very much as a headlight disappears into a fog. As soon as the light disappeared we put out our navigation lights. A few minutes later the light appeared again from the same quarter, while we remained in darkness. The light continued to alternate from white to red at the same 15-second intervals. Turned with them. What interested us most was the disappearance of the light in spite of the cloudless conditions. I called Mascot tower and asked if there were any other aircraft in the vicinity. He said 'No'."

In Melbourne tonight the pilots said that as they turned their aircraft towards the object it turned with them. When they rose to get above it, it also rose. "I thought the object was some sort of superjet taking a look at Sydney," Captain Savage said. "I chased it for about 60 miles and then lost it in a mist. Later I decided that the object must have been the planet Venus, but I soon dismissed that thought because I could not see any other planets."

Not Venus. The Government Astronomer (Dr. R. Woolley) said tonight: "The object could not have been Venus or Jupiter if the color were red." Officials at Stromlo Observatory, Canberra, said that at that time of the morning Venus would just have risen and could not appear to be above the plane. First Officer Hastilow, who has more than 4500 flying hours, said: "I've had plenty of experience with northern lights in Europe, shooting stars, and all that kind of thing, but I never saw anything like the Canberra object before. I've got no theory to account for it. I have referred to the object as a flying saucer in my report because I cannot find a better description." Captain Savage has nearly 6000 flying hours to his credit.

[Photographs - Senior Pilot, Captain Gordon Savage, First Officer, F. E. Hastilow.]

* Lismore 'Flying Saucer' Fake, Illawarra Mercury, 30 May 1950.

Lismore 'Flying Saucers' Fake. Lismore, Monday.— The two-weeks old 'flying saucer' mystery in the Lismore district was solved this morning when the 'saucer' was identified as an aircraft. The 'strange object' appeared in the sky at 7.46 a.m. about the same time as on previous occasions. Mr. C. Hetherington, of Bora Ridge, looked at the object through a telescope and discovered it was a morning newspaper plane coming from Casino.

* Flying Saucer, The Inverell Times, 31 May 1950.

"Flying Saucer" Adelaide, Wednesday.— Four men said yesterday that they saw a "flying saucer" a week ago but did not report this for fear of being ridiculed. They said they saw a "flying saucer" near Mt. Gambier. They added that the object was very high, made no noise, emitted no smoke or flame, and was travelling south-east.

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June

* Flying Saucers at Wagga Wagga, Border Morning Mail, 2 June 1950.

'Flying Saucers' at Wagga Wagga, Thursday: Several Wagga people today reported having seen "burning objects" flying through the air at great speed. One man told police, "I would never have believed it unless I had seen it. It was a flying saucer." A taxi driver said the same object, which he thought was a flying saucer, was like a ball of fire trailing smoke. The description was perfect, because the "phenomenon" was quickly explained. High school cadets, positioned near the school, had fired a parachute flare from a mortar. After the flare burned itself out the parachute drifted out of sight.

* "Flying Saucer" Again, The West Australian, Perth, Western Australia, 3 June 1950.

"Flying Saucer" Again. Adelaide, June 2: Two Bordertown men said today that they had seen an object in the sky that might have been a "flying saucer." Mr. J. C. Tippett and Mr. P. Grainger, painting contractors, said that while they were working on Taunton station, at Wirrega, they saw a round object which appeared to be many miles up in the sky going at high speed towards the north-east. The object was shaped like a "tadpole" and had a glowing tail similar to a jet aircraft.

* Flying Saucer Seen by Two Wagga Men, Daily Advertiser, Wagga Wagga, 17 June 1950.

Flying Saucer Seen By Two Wagga Men. An object which they described as a guided missile, which threw a greenish glow over the snow-covered landscape, was seen in the sky recently by two Wagga men at Mount Kosciusko. The two men told an 'Advertiser' representative last night that the object, when moving at a low speed, appeared to be circular in shape, and was surrounded by an aura of white light. When it achieved a high speed, as it did on several occasions during the hour in which they observed it, it assumed the appearance of a crescent with a double-tongued wake of light. Keith Campbell, 26, is an instructor in fitting at the RAAF Training College, Forest Hill. Ian Macdonald, 22, is an instructor in electrical fitting at the same college. 'Flash of Light' The two men state that they went to Mount Kosciusko for the King's Birthday holiday week end. They arrived at the chalet on Saturday night, and were told to take their car back to Hotel Kosciusko — a distance of eight miles from the chalet — as there was a good chance of the chalet being snowed-in during the night. The men drove the car to the hotel, and then walked the eight miles back to the chalet. 'While we were walking back the sky suddenly lit up, as it does with a flash of lightning. We both turned, and saw an object about 10 inches in diameter in the sky,' Mr. Macdonald said. Taking up the story, Mr. Campbell described how the object, which appeared circular when at a low speed, increased and decreased its speed as it moved through the sky. 'High Speed' 'When it moved at a high speed it had a wake of white light, or vapor,' Mr. Campbell said. Both men, whose story agreed on all points, said that the object gave them the impression that it was guided by some power or force. It increased and decreased its speed all through the hour in which they observed it, and moved through the sky in a more or less continuous upward and downward movement. Both men agreed, also, that the object was completely noiseless in its movements. They said their attention had first been drawn to it by the greenish light which lit up the whole snow-covered landscape, directly after the sudden flash which announced its presence. The object was still in the sky when they finally reached the chalet. Asked if they had told anyone in tbe chalet of their story when they returned, they stated that, as it was going on 4 o'clock in the morning by that time, every one was in bed. The incident they described occurred between 2.30 and 3.30 on Sunday morning. That night, they kept a look out for the object, but it did not appear.

* Flying Saucer?, The Townsville Daily Bulletin, 22 June 1950. [Photographs of UFO over Oregon]

* Flying Saucer Report, Examiner, Launceston, 27 June 1950.

Flying Saucer Report. Mr. Neil Campbell, a garage owner at Lilydale, believes he saw a "flying saucer" yesterday morning. He said that shortly before 9 o'clock, when he was driving a bus load of children to the Lilydale Area School he stopped at the top of Tunnel Hill to pick up some children and saw a "glaring mass" in the west. It was travelling at a terrific speed and heading in a south-westerly direction. So that he might hear any noise, he switched off his motor, but could hear no sound. Mr. Campbell then drove the bus about 400 yards down the hill, but the object had disappeared over the hill towards the Tamar River. "The object shone with such a blinding glare that I could not bear to look at it for any length of time and consequently could not determine its size or shape," added Mr. Campbell. At the time the sun was not shining and the sky was dull. All the children in the bus saw the object, said Mr. Campbell. He said he believed it might have been a "flying saucer."

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July

* Solving the Source of the Saucers, Smith's Weekly, Sydney, 1 July 1950. A full page of cartoons on Aliens and Flying Saucers, with the Alien a caricature of Russian Chairman of the Communist Party, Joseph Stalin. This reflect US and Australian government propaganda the all sightings originated from Communist Russia, the Cold War foe of the West.

* Flying Saucer?, Examiner, Launceston, 4 July 1950.

Flying Saucer? Sir,— If "Smith" writes long enough he may possibly make us believe that his meteor seen in the sky on Tuesday evening is almost as real as the pot of gold we are supposed to find where the rainbow ends. No doubt he is a very learned and honourable man, but I think that if it came to a battle of brains I would lean by a very small margin to the person who perfected the machine seen by me on Tuesday, with its perfectly prepared and controlled movements. — Agnes Jacobs, Legunia.

["Smith" replies: "Implied compliments, derogations and limitations duly acknowledged. The only thing lacking on either side, of course, is proof." — Editor, "The Examiner."]

* Flying Saucer?, The Mercury, Hobart, Tasmania, 5 July 1950.

Flying Saucer? Talking of high speed jet planes and "flying saucers," can anyone explain the object over Hobart at 1.55 a.m. one day recently. It flew at a terrific speed and at very low altitude, shooting out bright blue flames. Moonah, Witness.

* Flying Saucer, The Mercury, Hobart, Tasmania, 12 July 1950.

Flying Saucer?

Can any reader explain what this was? One afternoon recently I saw an object in the sky the size, colour, and shape of a full moon. It went towards the east slowly and at a low altitude. I was not "seeing things." A.T. New Norfolk.

I read recently of a flying saucer seen by a resident of Ringarooma and heading south. I saw what appeared to be a star, throwing off red, blue, and green sparks. It was towards the north and might have been the phenomenon seen by others. I. M. Hardstaff. Waddamana.

* Saw Seven Flying Saucers, Goulburn Evening Post, Goulburn, 18 July 1950.

Saw Seven Flying Saucers, Melbourne. A young farmer who saw seven "flying saucers" flash across the sky near Avoca on July 4, insisted that he was not dreaming. He is Alex H. Holland, 23, a former member of the Geelong Aero Club. Holland, who lives at Lamplough, about five miles from Avoca and away well from main roads, said he saw seven shining discs cross the road about 9.15 p.m. He was in bed in a sleepout when he noticed a bright light outside. Thinking it was someone coming to the farm in a car, he got up and dressed. There was no car in sight, but he could hear the distant noise of a civil aircraft on the regular Melbourne-Adelaide run. "I was going back to bed when I saw a shining disc rise from the horizon in the south, fly high overhead, and disappear over the western horizon," he said. Six more followed in quick succession. They all went in the same direction except one. It turned sharply and went back where it came from. "Each one looked a bit larger than a full moon; they were all the same size and travelled at terrific speed and at a great height." Holland's parents, Mr. and Mrs. A. C. Holland, called to the yard to see the lights, arrived too late. But they said they had seen the bright lights and also thought a car was approaching.

* Flying Saucer, The Wingham Chronicle and Manning River Observer, 25 July 1950.

Flying Saucer? A subscriber writes: One night last week, at about 8.49 pm., during a heavy rainstorm, a rumbling noise could be heard approaching from the southern end of Moon Street and travelling in a northerly direction. The sound was at ground level and gradually increased in volume as it came closer. The sound was like a Scotchman saying r.r.r.rugged or r.r.r.roar until it reached the intersection of Moon and Farquhar Streets, when the phenomena (you could not call it an apparition because it was too dark to see) suddenly turned in an easterly direction, and then suddenly started making a bumpiny or, rather, banging sound. The sound seemed to abate near the Town Hall. We do not know whether the object disappeared into the ground or into thin air, or perhaps went out to sea. But some old residents, and of course, old fashioned, said it sounded to them like a dog with a light tin dish tied to his tall.

* Flying Saucers over Crookwell?, Crookwell Gazette, 26 July 1950.

Flying Saucers Over Crookwell? Residents of Crookwell have recently observed light objects flashing across the night sky. The objects strongly resemble circles of light and sweep across the sky towards the south-east from right to left. It has been suggested that they may be some of the flying saucers which are so much in the news lately. An old resident, however, advises that the object is the reflection of the shafts of light from the Goulburn War Memorial touching underneath low clouds. The flashes are only seen on cloudy nights.

* Flying Saucer, Advocate, Burnie, Tasmania, 28 July 1950.

Flying Saucer" Several Queenstown residents claim to have seen a flying saucer, while a shooting star has been reported from the south-eastern corner of King Island and from Burnie. On Tuesday evening, Queenstown residents saw an object corresponding with the description of a flying saucer, they claim. Mr. R. Delaney said he timed its appearance at 8.03 p.m. It appeared from the direction of Strahan, and traversed the sky in parallel flight eastward at terrific speed. It was visible for about 12 seconds before being obscured by Mt. Owen. It was disc-shaped, but had two pointed tips which could have been wings. The disc emitted a bright glow, which fluctuated in intensity. Flames seemed to stream from it's tail. Jack Triptree (15) thought the object was a falling star. He said it was like a light globe swinging across the sky.

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August

* Saw "Fling Saucers", Queensland Times, Ipswich, 14 August 1950.

Saw "Flying Saucers". Melbourne, Aug. 13. -"Flying saucers" over St. Kilda, meteorites near Glen Waverley, and mystery searchlights from the sea off Seaspray were among the phenomena claimed to have been seen by Victorian residents late last night and early this morning. Three young men at the St. Kilda Station said that they saw a "flying saucer" travelling at a terrific speed at a height of about 4000ft. early to-day. A former R.AA.F. flight mechanic rang a city newspaper and said that the saucer travelled five miles in as many seconds from the city towards Gippsland. "It left a green trail, and had what looked like cabin lights ahead of the tail," he said. "It went twice as fast as a Mustang in a power dive." A Seaspray farmer saw mysterious beams of bright light several miles out to sea north east of Seaspray between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. yesterday. A storekeeper, who also saw the light, was sure it was a search light, but both the R.A.A.F. and the Navy, said that they had no units in the vicinity.

Borealis, Say Astronomers. Astronomers said to-day that all the phenomena were caused by the Aurora Australis which frequently took the form of white beams, like a searchlight. It was caused by electrical particles thrown out from sun spots being attracted to the South Pole. There had been several sunspots recently. The Aurora Australis was likely to occur at any time.

* Melbourne Letter, The Advertiser, Adelaide, 21 August 1950.

Melbourne Letter. From A Staff Representative. Melbourne, August 20. It had to happen — Melbourne has seen its first flying saucers. This week's display — reported in panic-stricken phone calls to police and city newspapers — besides giving an interesting demonstration of the power of suggestion and mass self-delusion, has reissured Victorians that they are not missing anything. Since 1946, wnen the saucers were first reported — they anticipated the New Look by two years — Melbourne people have felt a little piqued at being left out of the show, but evidently the Korean hostilities provided the necessary stimulus. One newspaper said this week that flying saucer reports had the RAAF worried. It did not send any planes over the city to provide an aerial salute for the VP Day anniversary, because it feared a flood of phone calls from jittery citizens. People who throughout the week reported searchlights from 'hostile naval craft' on the 90 mile beach, overlooked the fact that we are in the most intense sunspot cycle for 200 years. Meanwhile, if the worst comes to the worst, a Heidelberg resident is keeping Melbourne's most elaborate air-raid shelter in good order and condition. Every morning he sweeps out the shelter, inspects 870 containers of preserved food stocked on its shelves, and checks the light and central heating.

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September

* Flying Saucers over Corowa!, Border Morning Mail, Albury, 7 September 1950.

Flying Saucers Over Corowa! A number of Corowa boys claim to have seen six "flying saucers" over the wheat silos yesterday morning. They claim that they were white objects resembling saucers and were quite noiseless.

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October

[Numerous stories are published based on the supportive comments of Professor Newton in the US, and the opposing comments by the British Royal Astronomer, with headlines such as Doesn't Believe in Flying Saucers! and his assertions of mass hysteria.]

* Meteor seen in northern sky, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 27 October 1950.

Meteor seen in northern sky. A meteor late last night lit up the northern sky and left a trail glowing for about 20 seconds. People living in widely scattered suburbs including North Sydney, Chatswood, Belmore, and Parramatta reported seeding the meteor. The meteor, which travelled from east to west, was seen shortly before 10.30 p.m. Mr. D. Ritchie, of Burwood Road, Belmore, said that it looked like a white aeroplane streaking across the sky. Another Belmore resident said that he thought it was a flying saucer. Mrs. H. Bennett, of Thomas Street, Parramatta, said that it emitted sparks from its tail as it flashed across the sky in a blaze of light.

* Flying Saucers Might No Stay, The Herald, Melbourne, 31 October 1950.

"Flying Saucers" Might Not Stay. There is no cause for alarm in the predicted imminent landing on Earth of the little men in flying saucers. From whatever planet they originate, the very fact that they have mastered the difficulties of space-travel presupposes that they are intelligent beings. That being so, their first concern after landing will be to return whence they came, as speedily as possible, for their position here would be analogous to that of Einstein in a madhouse. Should they alight in my vicinity, I shall endeavor to thumb a ride with them. — Edgar Wallace, Carre Street, Elsternwick.

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November

* "Flying Saucer" at Lucinda?, The Northern Miner, Charters Towers, Queensland, 8 November 1950.

"Flying Saucer" at Lucinda? Waterside workers at Lucinda, in the Ingham district, recently sighted what they believe may have been a "flying saucer." The strange object, semi-circular in shape, was seen at a great height by men working in the hold of a vessel loading sugar. It glistened brilliantly in the sun, giving the impression of a highly polished metal finish, and discounting the possibility that it may have been a bird. As the watersiders watched, the object began to wobble, then moved out to sea at a tremendous speed, soon to be lost to sight. "It seemed to travel faster than a bullet," said the watersider who first spotted the object.

Many controversial explanations have been offered for the "flying saucers" reported to have been sighted in various parts of the world in recent years. One school of thought is that the strange objects are new top-secret experimental American aircraft. However, Dr. Silas Newton Denver (U.S.) University geophysicist, asserted recently that the saucers were inter-planetary space ships, operated along the lines of magnetic force. He added that flying saucers piloted by little men from another planet would land on the earth soon. Four flying saucers had landed on the American continent, and were being studied by the United States Government, he declared. A fifth had crashed in Africa. Newton added that the bodies of 34 men, ranging in height from 38 to 42 inches, had been taken from the wrecks.

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December

* Flying Saucer was seen by Highfield resident, The Kyogle Examiner, 1 December 1950.

Flying Saucer" Seen By Highfield Resident. An object, believed, at the tune to possibly be a "flying saucer," observed by a woman at Tumbulgum, near Murwillumbah, early on Wednesday night, was seen by a staff member of the "Examiner." Mr. J. Bodero, linotype operator, who lives at Highfield, noticed what appeared to be a blue ball travelling at great speed sweep across the eastern horizon about 7 p.m. The object appeared low over the range of hills between Kyogle and Larnook and travelled on a straight course parallel with the earth. It disappeared in a south-westerly direction in about three seconds. Mr. Bodero said that the object appeared to be a blue ball in the early evening light. The stars had a bluish tint at the time. He did not notice the tail reported by Mrs. Holmes, of Tumbulgum. It was impossible to give an estimate of the size of the object or the distance it would be from Kyogle. He thought it may even be out to sea. Further reports of having seen the object about the same time were made by persons living as far south as Kempsey. It was reported last night that the body had been identified by a meteorologist as a meteor traveling unusually close to the earth's surface.

* Wide Area Covered by Flying Saucer, Northern Star, Lismore, 1 December 1950.

Wide Area Covered by Flying Saucer. "Flying saucers" have made the news again, with reports that a bright object was seen "streaking across the sky" on Wednesday night above North Coast centres. Residents in Murwillumbah, Lismore, Kyogle, Mailanganee and Kempsey reported having seen the object at 7 o'clock on Wednesday. A meteorologist in Sydney, how ever, has stated that the phenomenon was a comet closer than usual to the earth. Opinions in Lismore differ as to the type of the object. Two guests of the Winsome Hotel say that it appeared to be lights of an aeroplane, although it was bright and moved fairly fast. Mr. Monty South, on the other hand, is quite definite that what he saw from the corner of Keen and Conway Streets was different from anything he had seen before. He said it tallied with the report of the object seen by residents of North Tumbulgum, Murwillumbah. Mrs. Noel Holmes, from that centre, said the object seen by her and her husband and Mr. A. Smith was round and had a tail. It was moving in an east-west direction. When Mr. South saw the object, it was moving at a fairly fast rate above the ambulance station south towards the Lismore gasworks. The report from Kyogle was made by Mr. J. Bodero, of Highfield, who noticed a round blue object streaking across the sky east of Kyogle towards the south-west. It appeared to be at a comparatively low altitude over the range of hills between Kyogle and Larnook and continued on a course parallel with the ground. Mr. Bodero said that he did not notice any tail to the object, as described by Mrs. Holmes, of Tumbulgum. At Mailanganee the object was seen by a group of five people as they stood on the roadway. They were Mr. and Mrs. C. Alvos, Mrs. H. Cox, Miss P. Glynn and Mrs. C. Alford. It appeared in the north-east and was described by those who saw it as a bright meteor with a long tail. The last seen of the object was when it disappeared over hills to the south of Mailanganee. Mrs. Alford said no noise was heard, but this may have been due to the great height at which the phenomenon was travelling. The object appeared to fall as it disappeared over the hills. There were no reports today of anything falling to the ground. Mrs. Roy Patterson, of Gladstone, 12 miles from Kempsey, said she, with her husband, two children and two neighbours, saw what looked like a brilliant electric light pass straight along the sky in a southerly direction at -a terrific rate. "My thoughts instantly turned to 'flying saucers'," said Mrs. Patterson.

* Flying Saucer Again?, Daily Mercury, Mackay, Queensland, 1 December 1950.

Flying Saucer Again? Brisbane, Thursday — Several people, including two airline pilots, say they saw an object emitting a bright light streak horizontally across south Queensland and northern N.S.W. skies last night. Reports came from as far apart as Kempsey and Nambour. In each case the object was observed for from three to five seconds between 7 p.m. and 7.10 pm. A Queensland Airlines pilot (Captain J. Herman) said to-night he and co-pilot D. Quinn had seen the object two minutes after flying over Nambour. Captain Herman said it was a greenish, bluish light and flew horizontally across the windscreen before the light went out suddenly. He thought it was moving at about 600 miles an hour. It had a short tail, which could have been sparks from some sort of exhaust. It looked very much as he should imagine a jet plane would appear at night. Captain Herman has reported the incident to the Civil Aviation Department, which will consider the report to-morrow.

* Flying Saucer, Goulburn Evening Post, 1 December 1950.

"Flying Saucer" Sydney: The flying saucer which many people saw in southern Queensland and northern N.S.W. on Wednesday night has been identified as a meteor. The Government Astronomer, Mr. Harley Wood, said it was about 80 miles up in the air and was travelling at about 25 miles a second.

* 15 sight "Flying Saucer", Daily Telegraph, 1 December 1950.

At least 15 people claim they saw a flying saucer on Wednesday night. The 15 sightings were in New South Wales and Queensland. Two of the sighters are air line pilots. They are Captain J. Herman and his co-pilot, First Officer D. Quinn, who were flying a Queensland Airlines plane. They say they saw the object at 7.10 p.m., two minutes after flying over Nambour (near Brisbane). Captain Herman said in Brisbane last night:

"It gave off a greenish-bluish light... I had never seen anything like it before. We were about eight miles from the coast, flying south to Brisbane. I first saw the object off our port Wing tip. I called out to Quinn, and he saw it too. A shooting star would have disappeared before Quinn's eyes had time to focus on the object. The object travelled horizontally across the windscreen for from three to five seconds and - then the brilliant light went out suddenly. What impressed us most was that it travelled a horizontal course in contrast to the curved descent of a star. I would say it was five to 10 miles away from us and that it travelled at about 600 miles' an hour. It appeared to have a short tail which could have been sparks from some sort of an I exhaust. As a matter of fact, it looked very much as I should imagine a jet plane would appear at night. It was coming from the north-east and moving down to the south-west."

Captain Herman has reported the incident to the Civil Aviation Department. Others who saw the "saucer":

- Jack Triggs, of Alderley (Brisbane) said he and his wife saw a "flattened ball of greenish fluorescent light in the eastern sky from Grange Height. He said: "It was going at a high speed, and was visible for from two to three seconds.

- Mr. L. Richards of Oxley (Brisbane) said he saw an oval object with a conical sheet of flame behind it travelling south on the air-line route.

- Two Glen Innes (N.S.W.) men said they saw an object with two large green lights in front travelling at a high speed towards the coast. The men, A. Pennington and L. Carters were fishing on the Beardy River four miles from Glen Innes. Carter, who watched the object for about 10 seconds, said it was travelling at "a very high speed" in a straight line towards the coast. Pennington, who saw the "saucer" only as it was disappearing, said it was travelling "many times faster than a jet fighter."

- At Gladstone, 20 miles south-east of Glen Innes, Mrs. Joy Patterson, her husband, their two children, and two neighbors saw "what looked like a brilliant electric light" travelling south at "a terrific speed.'' Mrs Patterson said last night: "My thoughts immediately turned to flying saucers."

- Mr. and Mrs. Noel Holmes of North Pumblegum, northern N.S.W., also said they saw the object.

* "Flying Saucer" over Queensland, Queensland Times, Ipswich, 7 December 1950.

"Flying Saucer" Over Queensland. Maryborough, Dec. 6.— Maryborough residents tonight watched a flying saucer make a wide sweep over the district. About 8 o'clock a bright blue object was seen travelling at a great speed to the north and returned at a low level. Approaching River Heads direction the phenomenon moved almost perpendicularly to an estimated 8000ft. Maryborough R.S.L. Sub-branch President (Mr. S. Bryant-Smith) said he estimated its speed at 400-500 m.p.h.

* Flying Saucer, Barrier Miner, Broken Hill, New South Wales, 8 December 1950.

Flying Saucer. Brisbane. — Another "flying saucer" has been reported from Maryborough, about 200 miles north of Brisbane. Residents reported it was "bright blue and made a wide sweep over the district." It was first seen about 8 p.m., travelling fast to the north. It returned at a low level. Approaching the river mouth, it moved almost vertically to an estimated height of 8,000 feet. Mr. S. Bryant-Smith, Maryborough R.S.L. sub-branch president, estimated its speed at 400 to 500 miles an hour.

* "Flying Saucer" Report, The Gosford Times and Wyong District Advocate, 12 December 1950.

"Flying Saucer" Reported. Miss Shirley Smith, of Avoca Beach, believes that she saw a flying saucer at Avoca last Thursday. "I was going home about 6.30 pm when I saw something spinning round and round," she told "The Gosford Times." "It was out to sea a little, and at first I thought it was a helicopter. I watched it for a while and then it disappeared. I'm sure it must have been a flying saucer." (Mrs H. Mackey, of Lisarow, reported last week that she had seen a flying saucer moving slowly in the sky.)

* Wilson Cooper, Flying Saucers, The Dubbo Liberal, 13 December 1950. Cartoon.

* Saw Flying Saucer?, Daily Mercury, Mackay, Queensland, 14 December 1950.

Saw Flying Saucers? Sydney, Wed. — Mr. Fred Soult (59), of Concord, thinks he saw a "flying saucer" to-night. Mr. Soult said he saw "a brilliant, disc-like object" flash across the sky and disappear in a northerly direction. "It was bright blue and had no tail," said Mr. Soult, who added: "I have seen plenty of falling stars and meteors, but this was something I had never seen before. I watched it for three or four seconds before it disappeared "It looked like a flying saucer because it had a disc-like shape." Neither the Civil Aviation control authorities at Mascot, the Sydney Weather Bureau nor the Riverview College observatory had any inquiries about "flying saucers" or meteors to-night.

* Flying Saucer Not Figment of Imagination, Lithgow Mercury, 15 December 1950.

Flying Saucer Not Figment of Imagination. Five additional reports from various parts of the city, that an unidentified object was seen in the sky above Lithgow early on Wednesday night, followed a report of the phenomenon contained in yesterday's Mercury. All reports were vouched for by reliable witnesses, and a striking feature of the additional eye-witness account was the fact that the time and description of the object coincided with preliminary reports. First reports that an unidentified object had been seen m the sky over Lithgow was given by two members of the "Mercury" cricket team who ha: been practising on the Glanmire sports ground and who were packing their kit shortly before 7 p.m. No report suggested that the object was a "flying saucer," but so far the unfamiliar object has not been identified. Residents of Littleton, Mort's Estate and the Vale of Clwydd who were out-of-doors at dusk on Wednesday verified reports that a greenish colored ball had shot over the city, heading towards Sydney at terrific speed. So fast was the object travelling that it appeared in the sky for only several seconds, but this was long enough for eye-witnesses in each case to call the attention of others to the occurrence. Typical of the additional reports received was the account given by Mrs. Bert Ryan of the Great Western Highway, who was probably in the best position of all to watch the moving object. Mr. and Mrs. Ryan, together with a neighbor, were standing outside her home talking when Mrs. Ryan's attention was attracted to an object moving across the sky. "Look, look, look," said Mrs. Ryan, excitedly pointing to the sky above Lithgow. Her husband and neighbor turned to look but by that time the object was gone. Asked to describe it, Mrs Ryan said the object was green in color and joined her fingers and thumbs in the form of a circle to transform its size. The object moved from west to east and disappeared towards Sydney. Both Mrs. Ryan's husband and neighbor said the object probably was due to the sun glinting on her glasses. However, she vigorously denied this and again described what she had seen. Nothing more was said of the phenomenon until Mrs. Ryan received her copy of the "Mercury" yesterday afternoon. She then pointed to the account in the paper as proof of what she had seen. Other reports were similar in principle. All agreed that the time shortly before 7 p.m. and that the object travelled towards Sydney and was green in color. Enquiries at the Marrangaroo R.A.A.F station revealed that no Verey pistols nor signalling rockets had been fired on Wednesday, while no reports of meteors or falling stars were received.

* More "Flying Saucers, Reported," Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 18 December 1950.

More "Flying Saucers" Reported. Three more Australians report having seen "flying saucers." In Sydney, Mr. L. R. Hokin, of Jacques-avenue, Bondi, who said on Saturday night that he saw a "flying saucer" was still convinced yesterday that he had seen it. He was unshaken by Mr. W. Gell, meteorologist at Mascot airport, who said he saw the object and was just as sure it was a meteorite. He said it was visible for about two seconds. Mr. Hokin, a soil laboratory technician, said that, about midnight, he saw an egg-shaped object streaking south-east. It was "a bright whitish light surmounted by a green light." He said he had seen plenty of meteors when he worked as a pathologist in Kure hospital in Japan, and he was sure this was not a meteor or a falling star.

"Went North" From Victoria. Two Red Cliffs men, Dr. T. L. Barker and Mr. J. H. Cumper, have reported what looked like a "flying saucer" from a point on the Murray between Nangiloc and Colignan, upstream from Mildura. They said it appeared about 2.15 p.m. yesterday, and they watched it for about a minute. They described it as a "small, whitish object travelling swiftly north." Dr. Barker declared that the object was definitely not an aeroplane. It made no noise and left no trail.

* Flying Saucers? Farmer's Problem, The Albany Advertiser, Western Australia, 21 December 1970.

Flying Saucers? Farmer's Problem. While Mr. F. P. Pfeiffer paused in his work of cropping hay on a property on the Warriups Road, seven miles north of Mt. Many Peaks, last Friday, he was attracted by a whistling noise and sighted a phenomenon in the sky that has set him puzzling since. Mr. Pfeiffer stopped to take a drink of water (with nothing else in it!) and looked at his watch to note that it was 11 a.m. His attention was attracted by a whistling noise similar to that made by a high explosive shell hurtling through the air. He looked up into a blue sky, with a small bank of clouds over to the south south west, and sighted an object like "two saucers put together" hurtling towards the clouds. The object was about 2,000 feet up and Mr. Pfeiffer watched it for about a minute and a half until it disappeared into the lone bank of clouds. Mr. Pfeiffer reported the incident to the Albany Road Board secretary but so far no solution has been provided to explain this mysterious object.

* Saw Flying Saucer, The Inverell Times, 27 December 1950.

Saw Flying Saucer. Hobart, Wednesday. — Three members of the Wynyard Aero Club report that they saw a "flying saucer' circling over Mount Hicks at high speed on Sunday. The men - R. Dobson. P. Morris and K. Winter - said the saucer made no sound and left no trails. They watched it for about three minutes.

* Flying Saucers, Examiner, Launceston, Tasmania, 28 December 1950.

Flying Saucers. Sir,- Having read in "The Examiner" of a "flying saucer" being seen by members of the Wynyard Aero Club on Sunday, I would like to mention that while sitting on my verandah and looking towards Mt. Barrow about 4 p.m. on Christmas Day I saw two very bright objects in the sky. They looked like shining balls of fire. They followed one another and disappeared in a few seconds. They were very like rockets going up and were very bright. My wife thought they may have been weather balloons. I do not know whether anyone else saw these objects.- Arthur C. Murray, Horne Ct., Invermay.

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Summary

The following is a summary of the 31 flying saucer sightings in Australia during 1950 that have been noted above:

10 January, 11-12pm - a flying saucer is observed flying over Mount Wellington, Hobart, Tasmania, high in the sky and heading towards Bellerive.
15 March - a flying saucer is seen somewhere between Perth and Adelaide by A.N.A. pilot M. Porteous.
18 April - four people observe flying saucers three miles south of Perth. The crafts were large balls of bright orange red and flying at high speed. Another man described a craft about 20 feet in diameter, orange, and 1000 feet above the ground when seen over Fremantle Harbour.
14 May, Sunday - a flying saucer is seen over Launceston, Tasmania by Mr T.D. Wivell and Mr A.E. Brown around 2.40pm. It was a shiney object, aluminium coloured, transparent, high in the sky, flying in circles and giving off a stream of white vapour. It was initially travelling north, then southward and flying circles over Launceston.
9 May (before) - a mushroom shaped craft is seen five miles from Tumut during the afternoon, moving 10-20 miles per hour and silent.
9 May (before) - a flying saucer is seen at night over Liverpool, near Sydney, travelling south.
25 May - a flying saucer is seen by pilots Captain Gordon Savage and First Officer Frank Hastilton, near Canberra and 30 miles south of Sydney, during the night at 3.25 a.m. and at 4,000 or 5,000 feet. It emitted a strange, bright light and disappeared into a protective mist when approached and lights shone on it. It also followed the aircraft. Mascot control later saw unusual light in the east.
27 May (before) - flying saucer seen at Lismore and nearby Swan Hill, football in size and shape, and heading north west.
30 May (before) - four men see a flying saucer near Mount Gambier, South Australia. It was very high, made no noise, did not emit any smoke or flames and was travelling south-east.
2 June - people see a flying saucers at Wagga Wagga. They are like a ball of fire and trailing smoke.
3 June (before) - two men Mr J.C. Tippett and Mr P. Grainger see a flying saucer at Wirrega, South Australia. It was high in the sky, a tadpole shape with a glowing tail and moving at high speed towards the north east.
17 June (before) - Keith Campbell and Ian Macdonald see a flying saucer at Mount Kosciusko at night, between 2.30-3.30 am. It threw a greenish glow over the snow covered landscape and a flash of light when it first appeared. At slow speed it was circular in shape and surround by an aura of white light. It was observed for an hour. When going fast it appeared crescent shaped with a double tongued wake of light. It was noiseless.
26 June - Neil Campbell of Lilydale sees a flying saucer in the morning, travelling very fast, with no sound, in a south-westerly direction. It shone with a blinding glare.
4 July - seven shining disc flying saucers seen by a young farmer Alex Holland near Avoca, Victoria, around 9.19p.m and heading west. All were like a full moon, with bright lights, travelled fast and at a great height.
4 July (before) - flying saucer seen at Launceston, Tasmania.
4 July (before) - flying saucer seen over Hobart at 1.55a.m. It travelled at a terrific speed, at low altitude and shooting out bright blue flames.
12 July (before) - two accounts of flying saucers seen near New Norfolk and Ringarooma, Tasmania. They were described as the shape of a full moon, going slowly east at low altitude; also one going south, like a star but throwing off red, blue and green sparks.
25 July (before) - a flying saucer is seen near Wingham, Manning River area, heading in a northerly direction. It made a sound then headed easterly and disappeared.
28 July (before) - a flying saucer is seen near Queenstown, King Island and Burnie, Tasmania around 8p.m. It was going easterly at a terrific speed and visible for about 12 seconds. It was disc shaped with two pointed tips, emitted a bright glow which fluctuated and flames seemed to stream from its tail.
14 August - flying saucers seen over St. Kilda, Victoria and in the sea off Seaspray emitting search lights at night and in the morning following, travelling at terrific speed, at 4,000 ft, with a green tail, and cabin lights ahead of the tail. Melbourne's first flying saucer reports.
6 September - six flying saucers are seen over Corowa in the morning, white and noiseless.
26 October - a flying saucer is seen to the north and west of Sydney, travelling in a westerly direction. It was like a white aeroplane and emitted sparks from its tail and presented a blaze of light.
8 November (before) - flying saucer seen at Lucinda, Queensland. It was semi-circular in shape, at a great height, glistened brilliantly in the sun, with a highly polished metal like finish. It travelled very fast, had a wobble, then moved easterly.
28 November - a flying saucer is seen at at Highfield and Tumbulgum near Murwillumbah in the evening around 7 p.m. It was a flattened blue ball with a tail, noiseless, with two greenish-blue bright lights, travelling at great speed, low across the eastern horizon, low over the hills between Kyogle and Larnook. It disappeared in a south westerly direction in 3 seconds. It was also seen south near Kempsey. It was seen by pilots and reported to the Civil Aviation Department.
7 December - a flying saucer is seen at Avoca, New South Wales, around 6.30 p.m. It was out at sea, spinning round.
13 December - a flying saucer is seen at Concord, Sydney and west near Lithgow in the evening around 7 p.m.. It was a brilliant, greenish coloured, disc like object, travelling fast in a northerly or easterly direction, bright blue with no tail and was observed for 3 seconds.
15 December - a flying saucer is seen seven miles north of Mount Many Peaks, Western Australia around 2 p.m. It had a whistling noise, looked like two saucers put together, was at about 2000 feet, and observed for about 90 seconds.
16 December - a flying saucer is seen at 2.15 p.m. in Mildura, Victoria, travelling north.
16 December - a flying saucer is seen near Sydney on Saturday night. I was a bright white light surrounded by a green light, was noiseless and no tail.
24 December - a flying saucer was seen over Mount Hicks near Inverell. It made no sound and had no trail and was observed for three minutes.
25 December - two flying saucers are seen near Mount Barrow, Invermay, Tasmania, around 4 p.m. They looked like shining balls of fire, were following each other and disappeared in a few second.

The following can be noted from these reports:

Many observers are quite sure that what they saw was not simply a meteor, weather balloon, aeroplane or other normal object.
The objects are usually noiseless
The objects can travel at high or low speeds and can hover.
The objects were seen at both low and high altitudes.
The objects were either singular or in associated groups.
The objects were usually very bright with a white light and in some instances a greenish rim or extra lights
The objects could have no tail, or no sign of exhaust, or could have a tail with signs of exhaust.
The reports by pilots are quite precise as they are able to get close to the objects.
The term flying saucer appears useful to observers in distinguishing what they saw from other normal aerial objects.
The objects were usually circular in shape, often appearing like a ball.
The objects could appear and disappear in an instant.

There were no close encounters reported. As the reports were by members of the public, it is unknown what was seen by military and government personal in regard to flying saucers in Australia during 1950, and whether they were observed near military establishments. At the time there does not appear to have been any significant sites of interest. The British had a nuclear weapons testing program at Maralinga, South Australia between 1956-63, and from the early 1960s US bases at Pine Gap in the Northern Territory and Exmouth Gulf in Western Australia likely drew the attention of flying saucers or, as they became known, UFOs. On 15 July 1960 there was a UFO encounter at the Wewak / Woomera rocket range near Maralinga in South Australia. The National Archives of Australia has released a number of official documents relating to UFOs during this period. At the local level, the State Library of Western Australia, for example, and the State Record Office, hold archival records of Police Department reports of UFOs dating back to 1951. In addition, the 1983 report by Bill Chalker of official federal government and military archives dealing with the UFO phenomena is significant and notes the creation of an official policy on UFOs in 1950 and involvement of the Directorate of Defence Intelligence (DAFI) since that date. The truth is out there..... it just needs to be stated and officially recognised in 2023 and beyond.

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References

Hollege, James, Flying Saucers Over Australia, Horwitz Publications, 1965, 130p.

Moffatt, Brett, Sightings in Australia 1862-2016 [webpage], Australian UFO Archives, Apple Podcasts, accessed 22 November 2023.

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Last updated: 29 January 2024

Michael Organ, Australia

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