| ID | #1632307099 |
| Added | Wed, 22/09/2021 |
| Author | July N. |
| Sources | The Globe and Mail
|
| Phenomena | |
| Status | Research
|
Initial data
Toronto, Ontario, GLOBE AND MAIL, February 3, 1996, pages A1 and A14
After a year-long official investigation, British aviation experts admit that they are confused by the close encounter of a passenger plane and an unidentified flying object on the approach to Manchester airport.
The Civil Aviation Authority said yesterday that it could not find a logical explanation for a UFO that apparently hit a British Airways Boeing 737 plane with 60 people on board in January last year at an altitude of 4,000 feet above the level of its descent on a flight from Milan.
35-year-old captain Roger Wills said that a wedge-shaped UFO decorated with small white lights came so close to his plane that co-pilot Mark Stewart ducked.
The object was also seen from the ground, but did not appear on the radar screens. He made no attempt to deviate and flew very quickly on the right side of the plane. It didn't make a sound and didn't create wind turbulence.
The incident occurred at 18: 48 on January 6, 1995, when the plane was just above the clouds, and visibility was at least 16 kilometers.
Air traffic controllers had the following conversation with flight 5061:
B737: "We just had something fall on the right side, right above us, very fast."
Manchester ATC: "Well, nothing is visible on the radar. Was it a plane?"
B737: "Well, it had headlights, it went down the starboard side very quickly."
Both the captain and the co-pilot were convinced that this was not a balloon, a model airplane, a kite, or even an invisible plane. Captain Wills said he had seen Stealth before and thought he would have recognized it.
Suggestions that the object could be a reflection of a cloud or even a secret American spy ship were also refuted.
In a joint report released yesterday, the CAA Joint Airmiss Working Group said it could not explain the incident, confirming that there was nothing else on the radar screens other than the plane at that location at the time. He concluded that "it is impossible to specify either the cause or the risk" of the incident.
"The object that was reported is not being tracked."
The report praises the film crew for telling their story, despite possible ridicule from colleagues.
"It's all a bit of a mystery," said a representative of the Civil Aviation Authority. "About three years ago, there was a similar case with Alitalia, and it was also impossible to explain it."
On the ground, Mark Lloyd was near the airport and says that he also saw the object.
"There was something like a reflection in the sky, and when I looked, I could see this triangular-shaped object hovering quite high, and there was depth in it," he said. "It was rounded off at the end and looked like there were some kind of taillights." He described a black line on the sides and a triangular-shaped window.
When Mr. Lloyd told his girlfriend about what he had seen, she said that he was " talking crazy."
Later, he called the airport, and he was contacted by the control room.
Yesterday, Lloyd said he was relieved that the official report confirms his version of the words of the crew.
Although this incident puzzled aviation experts, it pleased UFO enthusiasts. According to them, the words of the pilots can give some credibility to their favorite subject.
"Now that the CAA has actually issued a statement that it is unidentified, we will go back to them and try to get them to say more," said Eric Morrison, one of the leading British representatives of UFOs and aliens.
One of the most reliable UFO sightings was made by the crew of one of the Apollo space missions, when the object tracked the spacecraft for several minutes before flying away at high speed. The astronauts told Houston that they were being watched, adding:
"We assume it's friendly."
Original news
Toronto, Ontario, GLOBE AND MAIL, 3 February 1996, pages A1 & A14
Close encounter of the weird kind baffles British aviation authority
Year-long inquiry finds no explanation of UFO that buzzed airliner
BY DAVID WALLEN
Special to The Globe and Mail
LONDON - After a year-long formal inquiry, British aviation experts admit they are baffled by a close encounter between a passenger jet and an unidentified flying object on an approach to Manchester Airport.
The Civil Aviation Authority said yesterday it can find no logical explanation for the UFO, which apparently buzzed the British Airways Boeing 737 with 60 people on board last January at the 4,000-foot level of its descent on a flight from Milan.
Captain Roger Wills, 35, said a wedge-shaped UFO, emblazoned with small white lights, came so close to his jet that co-pilot Mark Stuart ducked.
The object also was spotted from the ground, yet never appeared on radar screens. It made no attempt to deviate and passed very quickly down the right side of the aircraft. It made no sound and created no wind turbulence.
The incident happened at 6:48 p.m. on Jan. 6, 1995, with the aircraft just above the clouds and visibility at least 16 kilometres.
Air traffic controllers had the following conversation with Flight 5061:
B737: "We just had something go down the right-hand side, just above us, very fast."
Manchester ATC: "Well there's nothing seen on radar. Was it an aircraft?"
B737: "Well it had lights, it went down the starboard side very quick."
Both the captain and co-pilot were convinced the object was not a balloon, model aircraft, kite or even a stealth aircraft. Captain Wills said he had seen a stealth before and thought he would have recognized it.
Suggestions that the object might have been a reflection from a cloud or even a secret U.S. spy craft also have been discounted.
The CAA's Joint Airmiss Working Group said in its report, published yesterday, that it cannot explain the incident, confirming there was nothing else on the radar screens apart from the jet in that position at that time. It concluded that it was "not possible to suggest either the cause or the risk" of the incident. "The reported object remains untraced."
The report praised the crew for telling their story in the face of possible derision from colleagues.
"It's all a bit of a mystery," a Civil Aviation Authority spokesman said. "There was a similar case about three years ago involving Alitalia and it was not possible to explain that one, either."
On the ground, Mark Lloyd was near the airport and says he saw the object, too.
"There was like a glint in the sky and, as I looked, I could see this triangular-shaped object hovering quite high up and it had depth to it," he said. "It was rounded off at the back end and appeared to have something like back burners." He described a black line down the side and a triangular-shaped window.
When Mr. Lloyd told his girlfriend what he had seen, she said he was "talking a load of codswallop."
Later, he telephoned the airport and was put through to the control tower.
Mr. Lloyd said yesterday he was relieved that the official report backed his version with the words of the air crew.
While the incident has baffled aviation experts, it has delighted UFO enthusiasts. The word of pilots, they said, might give some credibility to their favourite subject.
"Now that the CAA have actually come out with a statement saying it was unidentified, we shall go straight back to them and try and get them to say more," said Eric Morrison, one of Britain's leading exponents of UFOs and extraterrestrials.
One of the best authenticated UFO sightings was made by the crew of one of the Apollo space missions, when an object tracked the spacecraft for some minutes before moving off at high speed. The astronauts told Houston they were being tailed, adding: We'll assume it's friendly."
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