USAF Pilot was Ordered to Fire at a UFO in U.K. Airspace in 1957
This matter surely had significant defence implications
Report compiled by DAVID CAYTON.
Featuring the detailed first-hand personal account by the pilot concerned.
INTRODUCTION.
One night, at the height of the Cold War in 1957, two USAF jet fighter aircraft which were on QRA stand-by (Quick Reaction Alert) at RAF Manston, were scrambled to intercept an intruder which had flown into the U.K. airspace whilst being constantly monitored by ground based radar systems. Clearly the intruder was recognised as NOT a Soviet aircraft of any description, presumably by its unusual flight manoeuvres and characteristics. In fact, at one point it was actually stationary for a long period over the Ipswich area!
Normally, one would hope and expect that our defence systems would not allow an unfriendly aircraft to penetrate that far inland before being intercepted and escorted back across and out of our territory!
I can verify that during my own past RAF experience while stationed in West Germany in the early 1960s, that at least once a month, one of my 80 Squadrons Canberra P.R.7 aircraft was stripped of all the camera fits and flew at low level and at high speed, over into the Soviet controlled, Eastern Zone of Germany. The idea was to probe and try to defeat the Soviet defence radar systems by flying low under their radar. The Soviets did exactly the same to us. Our Squadron aircrew, on returning, used to joke that they had again waved at Ivan going past in the opposite direction! This was a regular war game acknowledged by both sides. Nothing as serious as the subject of this report!
It is patently obvious that on this occasion in 1957, the intruder was clearly identified as another intrusion by an unknown (UFO) otherwise the order to fire rockets at the object would never have been authorised! Most certainly, we would have Rules of engagement procedures in place at that time; just in case the Cold War turned into a hot one! (And I expect we probably still have!).
Initially, at the moment of scramble, as our pilot was being vectored towards the target by GCI (Ground Control Intercept), he assumed it to be a conventional, unfriendly aircraft. When he was given the order to fire his weapons, he was acutely aware of the gravity of the situation! Only later into the mission did he realize that this target was not a terrestrial aerial craft! (The pilots own testimony will make this clear later on).
Nevertheless, he was shocked to be given this order to launch his Mighty Mouse rockets while flying within United Kingdom airspace. To fire, at that time, upon a Soviet aircraft could have had grave repercussions, possibly leading to the outbreak of a Third World War! ANY decision made to order aircrew to take offensive action by firing their weapons at an intruder, would not have been taken lightly! Highly placed British military officials would certainly have been involved! The U.S Air Force was NOT permitted to independently authorise these actions over British territory.
As an example, in 1980, Deputy Base Commander at RAF Bentwaters, Lt. Colonel Charles Halt and his men were required to leave all their hand weapons within their Base before they proceeded out onto our British soil, in order to carry out their investigations into the sightings of the mysterious object which was seen to land just outside their base perimeter in Rendelsham Forest!
Also, just remember, by comparison, the international furor that followed the incident of the 1960s when American pilot, Gary Powers, in his unarmed spy plane, was brought down by the Soviets when flying high over Russia!
I would like to record my thanks to friend and fellow researcher, Harry Harris for his sterling work (and good fortune!) in bringing this case to my notice, originally in 1994, and allowing me access to his files and correspondence. We are now both especially indebted to one of the two pilots directly involved in this incident, Professor Milton Torres (ex USAF Major retired) for his cooperation and willingness to publicly come forward and recount in such great detail, his alarming experiences of that night, now some 50 years on!
Milton has a Doctorate of Mechanical Engineering and lectured at The University of Florida for many years. He is now retired, is 76 years of age and resides with his wife in Miami, Florida.
CASE BACKGROUND.
I think it is worthy and necessary to explain how Harry accidentally came to meet Milton Torres in London in 1988, learned about his flying experience of 1957, and his subsequent dogged diligence in following up with written questions to the MoD and the USAF! He, as usual, received the typical stone-walling answers in return!
At some unspecified date in 1988, as a practicing Solicitor, Harry had to attend a Conveyance Refresher Course. Harry was staying at a London hotel, close to the Victory Service Club where Milton and his wife Teresa where residing. Co-incidentally, one evening they all chose to dine at a nearby Roast Beef Restaurant. While he was queuing at the Carvery, Harry realised that there were American ladies in front of him, got into conversation and learned that they were over in England with their husbands who were attending a veteran pilots event at their old air base down in Kent. This transpired to be a reunion of their old Unit, the 406th Fighter Interceptor Wing at RAF Manston, near Margate.
Harry, naturally having the opportunity to quiz a pilot (as every Ufologist should do!) asked if her husband had ever seen a UFO? Upon hearing her reply, Harry said to me later, that he then realised, as a UFO investigator, he had struck gold! Mrs Torres turned to Harry in the queue and said that not only had her husband chased a UFO, he was ordered to shoot one down! This was even more startling when he got talking a short while later, joining with Milton and Teresa at the dinner table, and he learned that this exciting event occurred while he was serving at RAF Manston no less!
Following on from this chance encounter, Harry and Susan Harris became good friends with Milton and Teresa Dorothy Torres.
A few years later, this friendship resulted in an invitation for the both of them to join the Torreses at RAF Manston for another reunion event. Milton, later in his Service career, flew some 260 missions in Vietnam, flying F-100 jet fighters. He retired from the USAF in 1977 with the rank of Major.
THE USAF PRESENCE AT MANSTON-A BRIEF EXTRACT FROM HISTORY.
I think it would be of interest to mention a few facts and the timescale of Milton's Squadron operations at Manston. (Extracted from Wikipedia).
RAF Manston was an RAF Station in the northeast of Kent, on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site is now split between a continuing military use, as FSCTE Manston, the Central Fire Fighting School, following on from a long standing training facility for RAF fire-fighters at the Manston base, and a commercial airport Kent International Airport (KIA).
USAF Use: During the Cold War of the 1950s the United States Air Force used Manston as a Strategic Air Command base for its fighter and fighter-bomber units.
In 1955, SAC shifted its rotational deployments to RAF Fairford, and Manston was turned over to the United States Air Forces in Europe.
In July 1952, the 406th Fighter-Bomber Wing was activated in place at Manston with the following Squadrons assigned: 512th, 513th, and the 514th, Milton's Unit in 1957. In April 1954, with the arrival of the new F86Ds, their mission role changed from fighter-bomber to fighter-interceptor!
Finally, in May 1958, the 406th was deactivated in place, with the three air defence squadrons being assigned to continental Europe. Milton's 514th squadron was transferred to Ramstein Air Base, West Germany under the 86th Air Division (Defence).
After the transfer of the USAFE interceptors from Manston, the base was returned to RAF control.
THE WRITTEN TESTIMONY OF MAJOR MILTON JOHN TORRES (USAF Retired.)
I have transcribed Milton's story and personal recollections, almost exactly as he typed them up for Harry Harris in 1992. I have only added, in brackets, any points of clarification where necessary. Incidentally, around that time one afternoon, I was sitting in Harry's Office in Sale, Manchester, listening on a phone speaker system to Milton giving an in depth verbal account of his experience. There's nothing like hearing it from the lips of the witness!
Milton followed up this call to Harry, with this written account. I have only slightly modified Milton's words here and there, in view of his further comments to me. These address certain small personal details he has added in emails and during recent telephone conversations.
Milton Torres' Narrative:
It was a typical English night in Kent. The 406th Fighter Wing had been designated to a particular Sector (RAF) and to have our F-86Ds (Super Sabre jet fighter) stand alert (on QRA) as an operational requirement. The date was April 27th, 1957, and our Squadrons were considered combat qualified when they committed us to the operational requirement. My recollection seems to indicate that this function was rotated about England between the various RAF and USAF units.
On this particular night, the 514th Fighter Interceptor had the Alert duty. Two F-86Ds were on a 5 minute alert at the south end of the runway at RAF Station Manston, awaiting the signal to scramble. We had a scramble shack assembled on the grass next to the birds.
The hour was late as memory serves me and the weather was IFR (Instrument Flight Rules). Looking back at the log book, a total of 30 minutes of Night Weather was logged on a 1 hour and 15 minute flight. Some details, such as exactly what hour the scramble occurred or what we were doing just prior to scramble, totally escapes me, however the Auxiliary Power Units (APU) were on and the power was transmitted to the aircraft. (Note: This is normal practice for aircraft on QRA) We were ready for an immediate call to scramble and eager for the flight time hours.
I can remember the call to scramble quite clearly and we were given a vector of 120 degrees and a flight level of Angel 32. (32,000 ft. altitude.) We were airborne well within the 5 minutes allotted us, and we rapidly climbed upwards and leveled at FL320. Our vector took us out over the North Sea, just east of East Anglia. Normally my wingman, the other member of the set of two fighters, would be the lead ship. I can only suggest that I was now leading due to an in place turn of some sort. I remember in quite specific terms, talking as lead ship to the GCI Site, whose call sign I cannot recall.
(I have now established that the GCI Unit location was No. 144 Signals Unit at RAF Bawdsey Manor on the Suffolk coast, just south of RAF Bentwaters and Woodbridge. Milton knew for sure that Bawdsey (now closed) was the GCI Site because, along with other pilots, he had previously been on an overnight pilot familiarization visit to Bawdsey) DAC.
I was advised of the situation quite clearly! The initial briefing from the ground control (on radar) had been observing for a considerable time, a blip that was orbiting the East Anglia area. (In addition to Bawdsey, the main radar Station plotting the blip would likely be RAF Neatishead Early Warning Radar Station, in Norfolk). Apparently there was very little movement, and from my conversation with the GCI, all the normal (identifying) procedures of checking with all controlling agencies, revealed that this was an unidentified flying object with very unusual flight patterns. In the initial briefing, it was suggested that the bogey was actually motionless for long intervals! (This was over the Ipswich area!)
The instructions came to go gate to expedite the intercept. Gate was the term used to use maximum power, in the case of the F-86D, that meant full afterburner, and proceed to an initial point keeping at around 32,000 feet. By this time my radar was on and I was looking prematurely for the bogey. The instruction came to report any visual observations, to which I replied, "I'm in the soup, and it is impossible to see anything!" The weather was probably high alto stratus, but between over the North Sea and in the weather, no frame of reference was available, i.e. no stars, no lights, no silhouettes, in short nothing. GCI continued the vectoring and their dialogue describing the strange antics of the UFO!
The exact turns and manoeuvres they gave me were all predicted to reach some theoretical point for a lead collision course type, to enable any rocket release. I can remember reaching the level off altitude, and requested to come out of afterburner, only to be told to stay in afterburner! It wasn't very much later that I noticed my indicated mach number was about .92. This is about as fast as the F-86D could go straight and level. Our final vector was toward the North.
I THEN RECEIVED THE ORDER TO FIRE a full salvo of rockets at the UFO! I was only a young Lieutenant at the time (Age 26), and very much aware of the gravity of the situation. To be candid, I almost shit my pants! At any rate, I had my hands full trying to fly, search for bogeys, and now selecting a hot load on the switches. I asked for authentication of the order to fire and I received it! This further complicated my difficulty, as the matrix of letters and numbers to find the correct (matching) authentication was on a piece of printed paper about 5 by 8 inches, and with the print not much bigger than normal type. It was totally black, and the lights were down for night flying. I used my flashlight, still trying to fly and watch my radar. To put it quite candidly, I felt much like a one legged man in an ass kicking contest!
The authentication/verification to fire was valid. They weren't kidding! I then selected my 24 rockets to salvo. They further told me we were in a teardrop climb, to be positioned to fire at a UFO at 32,000 feet! I wasn't paying too much attention to my wingman, but I clearly remember him giving a Roger to all the transmissions. I can only suppose he was as busy as I was! My final turn was given and instructions were given to look 30 degrees to the Port for my bogey. I did not have a hard time at all. There it was exactly where I was told it would be at 30 degrees and at 15 miles.
The blip was burning a hole in the radar scope with its incredible intensity. It was similar to a blip I had received from B-52s and seemed to be a magnet of light. These things I remember quite very clearly. I ran the range gate marker over the blip, and the jizzle band faded as the marker superimposed over the blip.
I had a lock on that had the proportions of a flying aircraft carrier! By that, I mean the return on the radar was so strong, that it could not be overlooked by the fire control system on the F-86D. I use in comparison other fighter aircraft and airliners. The airliner is easy to get a lock-on, while the fighter, not being a good return, is very difficult.
On that type of smaller aircraft, a lock-on was only possible under a ten mile range. The larger the airplane, the easier the lock-on. This blip, almost locked itself!
I cannot explain to the lay person exactly what I mean, save to say that it was the best target I could ever remember locking onto! I had locked on in just a few seconds, and I locked on at exactly 15 miles, which was the maximum range for lock-on. I then called to the GCI, Judy, which signifies that I would take all further steering information from my own radar computer.
Now back to the Intercept of the UFO.
As I said, I had an overtake of 800 knots and my radar was rock stable. The dot was centered and only the slightest corrections were necessary. This was a very fast intercept and the circle started to shrink. I called 20 seconds, and the GCI indicated he was standing by. The overtake was still indicating in the 7 or 8 o'clock position. At about 10 seconds to go, (to fire) I noticed that the overtake position was changing its position on the scope. It moved rapidly to the 6 o'clock, then 3 o'clock, then 12 o'clock and finally rested about the 11 o'clock position. This indicated a negative overtake of 200 knots (the maximum negative overtake displayed).
There was no way of knowing of what the actual speed of the UFO was, as he could be traveling at very high mach numbers and I could only see the 200 knot negative overtake. The circle, which was down to about an inch and a half in diameter, started to open up rapidly. Within seconds, it was back to 3 inches in diameter and the blip was visible in the blackened jizzle band, moving up the scope!
This meant that it was going away from me fast! I reported this to the GCI Site, and they replied by asking "Do you have a Tally Ho?" I reported that I was still in the soup, and could see nothing. By this time the UFO had broke lock and I saw him leaving my 30 mile range.
Again I reported that he was gone, only to be told that he was now off their scope as well.
With the loss of the blip off their scope, the mission was over. We were vectored back to home plate (Manston) and secured our switches. My last instructions were that they would contact me on the ground by land line.
(Additional relevant notes by David Cayton. I have read of earlier reports which often described in these situations, that the targeted UFO craft seem to know that they are about to be fired upon and exit rapido! Also cases have been recorded by pilots that their weapon systems have been temporarily disabled! Sadly, as we will see later, there have also been worse scenarios!)
Back in the alert tent, I talked to Met Sector. (In response to my FOIA request, The MoD's Air Historical Branch (RAF) confirmed this to be the RAF Sector's Operational Command center (SOC) secret cold war bunker at Kelvedon Hatch, Essex. This was responsible for the military London Metropolitan Sector area; nowadays a privately run museum.
From Manston, Milton also paid a visit there along with fellow pilots, but he could not recall the name of it or the precise location, although he does remember access to the bunker was via just a small bungalow building situated in an open field. (Note: planted trees now obscure this bungalow).
They advised me that blip had gone off the scope in two sweeps at the GCI site, and they had instructions to tell me that the mission was considered classified. They also advised me that I would be contacted by some investigator. It was the next day before anyone showed up.
I had not the foggiest idea what had actually occurred, nor would anyone explain anything to me. In the Squadron Operations area, one of the sergeants came to me and brought me into the hall way around the side of the pilots' briefing room. He approached a civilian, who appeared from nowhere. The civilian looked like a well dressed IBM salesman, with a dark blue trench coat. I cannot remember his facial features, only to say he was in his 30's or early 40's. He immediately jumped into asking questions about the previous days mission. I got the impression that he operated out of the States.
After my debriefing of the events, he advised me that this would be considered highly classified, and (I) should not discuss it with anybody, not even my Commander! He then threatened me with a national security breach, if I breathed a word of it to anyone. He disappeared without so much as a goodbye, and that was that as far as I was concerned. I was significantly impressed by the action of the cloak and dagger people and I have not spoken of this to anyone until recent years.
My impression was, that whatever the aircraft or spacecraft was, it must have been traveling in 2 digit Mach numbers, at least Mach 10, to have done what I witnessed!
My Unit had been declared combat ready about two months preceding this intercept. Therefore, we would have certainly been under control of the British GCI/Met centers for all such actions! (This would be via the RAFs ROTOR C&R System, Unit rotational control, and reporting system.)
Perhaps the cloak of secrecy can be lifted in these days of enlightenment and all of us can have all the facts? This is my account to the best of my memory. Major Milton Torres, 2007.
CONCLUDING COMMENTS.
We are indeed privileged to read of Milton's enthralling account, and he is now certain that his official debriefing report, given the following day, was to a person whom he now believes, from his credentials, to be an American Embassy based officer from the London branch of the NSA (National Security Agency). This report, I am certain, even if filed today, would never pass across the public UFO desk of Air Staff 2a at the MoD in Whitehall! I am also confident that there are many other British military encounter report episodes which have occurred in this Country and overseas, which are buried away never to be released by the MoD to the P.R.O. at Kew! I know of at least two incidents dating from 1958!
It is worth noting here that there was another RAF radar report of a large UFO being tracked by radar over the Irish Sea, also during April 1957! This report, leaked to the Press shortly after, was from RAF West Fruegh, Wigtownshire, Scotland. This incident lead to questions in the House of Commons!
Despite a short lived top level order to shoot down UFOs in the United States in 1952, it would appear that our British military brass hats were obviously willing, five years on in 1957, to play fast and loose with the lives of American aircrew in our airspace! One can imagine the Defence Chiefs in their frustration, echoing that they cannot shoot at the Soviets, so at least we will have a go at the UFOs penetrating our controlled regions!
They may further have generously decreed that this shoot to kill policy, would only be authorised to our U.S. allies while based in England? It is of course, quite possible that our Defence Chiefs had never been made aware of this short lived Presidential Order. As any who have served in the armed forces will know; the emphasis on information compartmentalization and The need to know maxim leads to the old problem of the left hand not knowing what the right is doing!
The remaining 10 seconds for Milton, to go for rocket launch
could well have been his last
before oblivion? Thankfully, we are very lucky that Milton and his wingman did not encounter any superior retaliatory fire power and fortunately safely returned from their mission and survived to tell us the tale!
Read on for further updated detailed information about this outstanding pilot encounter case.
© David Cayton. November, 2007.
If any reader has more information about this incident, or any other Air Force scrambles and UFO intercepts within the U.K. airspace, please contact me on 0161 483 4956, mob. 07899941291, or by email: davidacayton@hotmail.com
UPDATE TO ARTICLE: USAF PILOT ORDERED TO FIRE UPON A UFO IN OUR U.K. AIRSPACE.
By David Cayton.
Since I wrote the original article, more information has come my way. Basically there are three new items:
1). Pilot Milton Torres has supplied some extra detail about his cockpit weapons system, and told me about visits he made to two of our RAF Bases which are relevant to his UFO encounter and his subsequent authorization to launch his weapons by the MoD!
2). I had filed a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) Request to the MoD about this event, and now have received an informative reply.
3). Now from information and suggestions from a number of people, including the MoD's Air Historical Branch, I believe we can identify the bases involved in issuing the Order to Fire!
ITEM 1). ADDITIONAL EXPLANATORY NOTES ref. THE NORTH AMERICAN SUPER SABRE F-86Ds COCKPIT WEAPON SYSTEM
BY MAJOR MILTON TORRES.
For the aviation and technical minded reader, Milton has provided fuller explanatory notes describing how his on board computer instrumentation worked with his weapon system. These details provide extra credence to the testimony of a courageous commissioned military officer. Later in his service career, Milton flew some 260 missions in Vietnam, flying F-100 jet fighters. Additionally, he flew many extremely dangerous low level reconnaissance missions in a small Cessna aircraft, often flying at only a dozen or so feet, to obtain vital intelligence of Vietcong ground positions, thus being very vulnerable to enemy fire! He retired from the USAF in 1977.
Let me explain visually what I saw on my radar screen.
Once lock on is accomplished, two circles of light appear on the screen. One was a complete circle in the center of the radar screen, about an inch in diameter, the other about 3 inches in diameter with a half-inch segment darkened to indicate the overtake speed. If the dark segment was at 12 o'clock, it meant 0 overtake. If the segment was at 6 o'clock, then we had about 600 knots of overtake. (Note: 1 mile per hour = 1.15 N knot).
The maximum overtake was in the 9 o'clock position. The overtake I had on this particular intercept, was in the 7 or 8 o'clock position, which indicate close to an 800 knot overtake. I was really hauling coals!
To complete the description of the radar scope, there were two other significant pieces of data displayed. One is the horizontal indicator which gave a gyro stabilized reference to the horizon, enabling the pilot to avoid referring to his flight instruments. The second is a steering dot, which was nothing more than computer data, indicating which way the aircraft should fly to accomplish the intercept, i.e. if the dot was above center, the stick should be pulled back to climb, if it was to the right, then a turn to the right would center the dot. The idea was to have the dot centered in the smaller circle.
A normal intercept proceeds from the lock on phase, with the constant manoeuvring to center the dot. When the aircraft is in a position to accomplish its intercept, the dot would be centerd. The outer circle will start to shrink at 20 seconds from rocket release. The circle in the center, shrinks to about a quarter inch and keeping the dot centered, requires small rapid manoeuvres. At about the time the outer circle reaches three quarters of an inch in diameter, a small quarter inch line appears in lieu of the inner circle. This is the signal to pull the trigger for rocket release and to make only up and down corrections as the computer calculates the point of release for the azimuth. With the trigger pulled and switches set, the rockets are released by the computer.
Milton John Torres.
With only 10 seconds to go before Milton launched his full salvo of 1.75 inch Aeromite rockets (nicknamed Mighty Mouse) from the weapons crate slung beneath his aircraft, he realised that his UFO target was accelerating away from him so fast it was leaving him standing even though he was still flying flat out at mach .92 with his afterburner on! In his own words,
my impression was, that whatever the aircraft or spacecraft was, it must have been traveling in 2 digit mach numbers, at least mach 10, to have done what I witnessed!
NOTE: At mach 1, the speed of sound at sea level is approx 761 MPH. However, this figure varies, dependant upon atmospheric pressure and air temperature. At the altitude of 32,000 feet (the height they were at) the speed of sound would be approx 750 MPH. Therefore, at mach 10, as indicated by Milton's cockpit instrumentation and to avoid his impending salvo of rockets, the UFO must have instantly accelerated up to 7,500 MPH!
ITEM 2.) MY FOIA REQUEST RESPONSE.
On the 17th of October 2007, I filed a Freedom of Information Act request to the MoD, regarding this incident and any other scrambles and attempted intercepts from 27th April, up to 20th May, 1957. By reviewing his personal copy of his Form F5, his flying log, Milton has now estimated that the date of this historic mission was April 27th 1957.
I eventually received a very detailed reply from the AHB2 (RAF) at RAF Bentley Priory, Stanmore, Middlesex. Not surprisingly, I was informed that they did not have any primary information sources that related to RAF Fighter Command operations on the dates in question! Therefore, they were unable to confirm that any interceptor aircraft were vectored to unidentified targets up the East coast during that period!
However, I was helpfully given several document references for the old RAF Fighter Command H.Q. Control & Reporting System records which include entire Unit Operations Record Books, RAF Form 540s. These were, in essence, a unit diary which was usually submitted monthly from each Sector Operations Commander (SOC), to the Air Defence Operations center (ADOC), ironically at Fighter Command H.Q. Bentley Priory! Apparently these are all now deposited in The National Archives at Kew.
I do not personally believe that for such a serious issue, firing on a UFO, that a SOC would take sole responsibility, then inform the ADOC a month later in his routine report! Furthermore, I would expect that any such F540 date entry, recording such an incident, would probably be censored out before the F540s were released to the TNA/PRO at Kew! (Public Records Office).
Would weeks of plowing through all these records down at Kew reveal the actual High Command order to fire and by whom precisely? I very much doubt it! If any of these official documents did record this event, and were subsequently made available to the general public, then this would be more vital official evidence which would contradict the years of MoD/Government policy regarding their repeated stance of denial, or any serious interest in the whole UFO issue! This particular incident certainly would be even MORE of major defence significance than this declared testimony from the pilot!
It is worth noting here that there was another RAF radar report of a large UFO being tracked by radar over the Irish Sea, also during April 1957! This report, leaked to the Press shortly after, was from RAF West Fruegh, Wigtownshire, Scotland. This incident led to questions in the House of Commons!
Furthermore, just eight months earlier, on the night of 13/14th of August, 1956, again in East Anglia, RAF Neatishead radar was involved in tracking a UFO in the vicinities of two RAF Bases occupied by the USAF, Lakenheath and Bentwaters! Apparently, this again triggered aircraft intercept attempts involving the RAF but no contact was made, or so the Air Ministry claims? The former Air Ministry DDI(Tech) and Air Intelligence Offices at RAF Fighter Command at Bentley Priory would have surely been aware and involved in the Manston scramble and UFO attack incident, as I am sure they would have been with the Lakenheath/Bentwaters incident!
Is it also more than just a coincidence that these Suffolk USAF Bases are located not far from the Ipswich area where the UFO that Milton Torres was scrambled to intercept, in 1957, was tracked by radar hovering and making strange aerial motions, before it moved away eastwards and off the Suffolk coast? It would seem that there was plenty of UFO activity in this area, long before the Rendelsham Forest event of 1980!
ITEM 3.) THE RAF BASES/UNITS INVOLVED WITH ORDERING THE MANSTON SCRAMBLE AND AUTHORISING THE UFO ATTACK?
First of all, to recap a little: During telephone chats with Milton in Florida, I pressed him to recall, if possible, the RAF Units he had referred to in his mission account, with whom he was always in radio contact with? He frequently mentions GCI (Ground Control Intercept) and Met Sector? He had no problem with identifying his GCI as RAF Bawdsey Manor on the Suffolk coast, just south a short distance from the RAF Stations of Woodbridge and Bentwaters!
He knew this for sure because he, along with other pilots from Manston, had been sent there on a previous liaison and familiarization visit. I have now established that this RAF Station was No.1 44 Signals Unit (now closed). The Radar vectoring of enemy targets during the Battle of Britain and the Cold War with the subsequent radio instructions to pilots were then sent out from there, to guide them to the target. It is very probable that Bawdsey were tracking the UFO from here and also possibly the Early Warning Radar Station at RAF Neatishead in Norfolk.
Milton was not sure about the location or identity of the Met Sector, even though he and fellow pilots were also directed to visit some secret underground base, some 15 miles northeast of London. He does remember that this bunker was out in open fields with access via a small bungalow building. Alan Turnbull of www.secret-bases.co.uk, thought that this the most likely location, from two he suggested? In response to my FOIA request, the MoDs Air Historical Branch (RAF) confirmed this to be the RAF's Sector Operational Command center (SOC) secret cold war bunker at Kelvedon Hatch in Essex. This Base was responsible for controlling the military London Metropolitan Sector area at that time. (The Met Sector)
Nowadays, it is open to the public as a privately run museum. This Unit had advised Milton that the target blip (the UFO) had entirely gone off the scope in just two sweeps at the GCI site, and then instructed him that his mission was considered classified. Furthermore, he would be contacted the following day to be debriefed. This was conducted by an officer from The National Security Agency (NSA) based at the American Embassy in London!
The commanding officer at Kelvedon Hatch (The SOC) would report up to the ADOC (Air Defence Operations center) at RAF Fighter Command H.Q. at Bentley Priory, Stanmore.
I suggest that, almost certainly, the ORDER to fire would have been AUTHORISED by the ADOC at Bentley Priory, the order then would have been ISSUED by the MET Sector, Kelvedon Hatch, and then relayed to the pilots via the GCI Signals Unit at Bawdsey? I firmly believe this would have been the 'chain of command.' Milton knew for certain that his USAF 406th Fighter Wing was operating under the control of the RAF's Control and Rotor System and the USAF would most definitely NOT be allowed to independently authorise the firing of ANY weapons in the United Kingdom airspace!
IN THE 1950S, A DIFFERENT AIR FORCE ATITUDE IN THE UNITED STATES TO THE UFO SITUATION!
Historical records show, following a large rash of UFO sightings over the United States including two very public waves of UFOs being tracked by three different radar locations, as they flew over the Capitol, the Pentagon and The White House, on July 19th and July the 26th 1952! These events resulted in a major Air Force investigation. The sightings were headlined in newspapers all over the United States, and in some places replaced the Democratic National Convention on the front page!
A CIA Report by Gerald K. Haines so alarmed the White House, it lead the Truman Administration to give the order that the flying saucers be shot down! On 26th July 1952, the Air Force obeyed and the Chief of Staffs issued the order to shoot them down, if they refuse to land!
A telegram from a number of prominent scientists, including Albert Einstein, protested the order to the White House and urged that the command be rescinded, not only in the interest of future intergalactic peace, but also in the interest of self-preservation! It was also argued that extraterrestrials would look upon an attack by the primitive jet firepower, as a breach of the universal laws of hospitality!
The shoot them down order was consequently withdrawn on White House orders by five o'clock that afternoon!
That very night, the flying saucers were back! Two days later, on July 28th, at the request of President Truman, Captain Edward Ruppert, who had just taken over Project Blue Book, was called to brief Truman's air aide, Brigadier General Laundry, on the Washington sightings and the phenomena itself!
Timothy Good tells me that in his revised paperback version of his book, "Need To Know," that the U.S. Defence Dept. Statistics record, in just four years, 1952-56, the U.S. AF and Navy had lost in crashes, a total of 18,662 aircraft of which 1,773 were caused by unknown factors!
Destruction or disappearance of military aircraft during interceptions of UFOs continued apace. General Benjamin Chidlaw, former commanding general of Air defence Command, told Robert C, Gardner (ex-USAF) in 1953: "Wwe have stacks of reports of flying saucers. We take them seriously, when you consider we have lost many men and planes trying to intercept them!"
Furthermore, the former Air Force intelligence officer and UFO researcher, Leonard Stringfield, was told by a reliable source in the 1950s, that the Air Force was losing about a plane a day to UFOs!
Thankfully, Milton Torres and his wingman on that night in April 1957, did not end up just being another statistic!
© David Cayton, February 2008.
As a postscript, I would like to mention that I have been recently been given as gift from one of my daughters a new book, only published in August of last year. This contains a mountain of more solid data which corroborates the information that I have mentioned in the last part of my article!
This important new research by author Frank C. Feschino Jr. in collaboration with Stanton T. Friedman, is titled: "SHOOT THEM DOWN! The Flying Saucer Air Wars of 1952." Stunning stuff!
How can Governments go on denying the reality of UFOs with all this hard data? After all, the Commander-in-Chief (Truman) had authorised that his Air Force must shoot the flying saucers down? Just who added the ridiculous caveat, "but only if they refuse to land," we will never know! Did they really believe that their pilots could have the means of communicating with the saucer crews and even if that was achievable, did they honestly think that the superior craft would respond by dutifully complying and land under escort at their Air Force Base? This book is a must read!
With acknowledgments to Grant Cameron for his www.presidentialufos.com
Timothy Good for data from his book, "Need to Know."
Richard Chenery and John Hill (two of my ex RAF photographer friends), for their recent specially commissioned photos taken at the Kelvedon Hatch bunker and Fighter HQ. Bentley Priory, respectively.
For his kind assistance, Clive Richards of the Ministry of Defence Air Historical Branch (RAF) at Bentley Priory, Stanmore.
Finally, my special thanks for additional research and use of low level aerial photographs of the RAF Units and Bunkers provided by Pilots Eye View, courtesy of Alan Turnbull, www.secret-bases.co.uk
Biographical info about David Cayton.
David served for 10 years in the RAF where he first became aware of radar detections of UFOS TRAVELLING AT 18,000 MPH. and the fruitless subsequent jet fighter intercept attempts!
He then worked for 27 years as Head of Non-Destructive Testing in the Design Engineering Laboratories at British Aerospace, Woodford, Cheshire. Following early retirement in 1993, he became a Quest International UFO investigator reporting to Tony Dodd. He has written numerous articles and reports of UFO events and of his animal mutilation investigations which have been published in Quests UFO Magazine.
Latterly, he has supplied feature articles for Gary Heseltine's UFO Monthly magazine.com.
More recently, David has written article/reports for UFO DATA MAGAZINE, including a major lead article reporting on a astonishing case from 1957, when a U.S. fighter pilot based at RAF Manston, Kent, was ordered by our MoD/RAF to fire his full salvo of rockets at a huge UFO off the Suffolk coast! I doubt that details of this event and other military encounter cases, will be on the current list for releasing to the Public Records Office by the MoD!
David has given numerous radio interviews, and he has also made several television appearances. He has contributed to a number of TV documentaries, including one for BBC Manchester in 1999 on the animal mutilation topic, and more recently assisting Jane Goldman (Jonathon Ross' wife) for her Series, "Jane Goldman Investigates," covering his animal mutilation research. David is currently writing a book about his animal mutilation investigations, to be titled, "THE SILENT KILLERS."
SYNOPSIS FOR OUR CROP CIRCLE TALK.
Titled: "CIRCLES OF CONFUSION - Crop Circles, Real or false?"
David joined the center for Crop Circle Studies in 1993, and together with Robert Hulse, they have been together in the Wiltshire fields every year since 1999, closely examining the crop stems and lay, to determine the differences between the genuine crop formations and those mechanically laid by men with planks etc. Hence the title of our talk, "CIRCLES OF CONFUSION!"
We will illustrate our talk with stills and video, filmed by Robert, to show details in the crop circles, and how we judge some of these differences. We have also conducted some of our own physical test experiments in the fields, including oil seed rape (with the farmers permission!)
David uses a Geiger counter instrument in formations, and has recorded unusual intermittent high readings, above normal cosmic radiation bombardment. Once, while within a crop formation, he consulted directly with the National Radiation Protection Board at Didcot to describe the alarming radiation levels, up to 20 times above normal background levels! These readings have NEVER occurred in obvious man made circles!
We have little doubt that the genuine circles are produced by very advanced technology produced by extraterrestrial beings.
Biographical info about Robert Hulse.
Robert has retired early from his own carpet and furniture cleaning business and has for many years, investigated numerous UFO events in and around the Cheshire town of Macclesfield. His interest in the subject is due to direct personal experiences (still ongoing) involving himself and members of his family!
In December 1980, together with his wife and two very young sons, he stood beneath a craft hovering low off the roadside, then watched it slowly move away, allowing him to count the windows three times before it headed off north towards Stockport!
Robert has also given several radio interviews and written local press feature articles on the UFO subject. While in the Wiltshire fields, he has given several on the spot television interviews to documentary film makers from several countries about crop circles and UFO topics generally, including alien abductions. Robert is the Moderator for the crop circle topic on the web site Forum, www.ufocasebook.com. He can be identified as Hubcap9.
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