News of the World: 06.11.83

News of the World: 05.06.83

News of the World 2.10.83 pt 1 & 2

Essex Chronicle 10.02.89

10.02.89

HAUNTED SKIES: Update 25th April 2012

Western Mail 9th February 1977

Hi everyone.  Well Volume 5 is slowly drawing to completion and I have now more or less found the extra pieces of  the chronicler jigsaw puzzle in order to complete  it.  This volume covers the period 1972-1974; three years of incredible UFO activity, which - although agonisingly slow - shows us all that, despite what the sceptics say, there is other life on this Planet. What that life consists of,  and from where it comes, are questions we clearly cannot answer, but if we are wrong then so are all our witnesses!

Volume 5 will also contain some photos of the Queen and Prince Philip, and I’m pleased to say that a copy of Volume 4 has gone to Prince Philip’s personal secretary at the Palace.

Jon Downes, our publisher, is - like us - quite excited about going to town on year of 1977.  This volume (will it be Volume 6 or 7? I am  chancing fate, but I have a gut feeling that it will be the 7^th volume) will be the Silver Jubilee book, produced in the Golden Jubilee year....very patriotic.   

Don Ramkin rang me at the time of writing, just to update me on how his birthday went last week:  he has reached the grand old age of 50!   Unfortunately,  he won’t be able to attend the Woodbridge UFO lectures due to problems beyond his control, and he will be sorely missed.    I hear that Gordy has said that tickets for this venue will now be sold on the door! Another change of plan! I do hope that these lectures go ahead as I am looking forward to hearing the speakers talk!

Don also told me about his punk rocker friend (way back in the 1980s) who was singled out of the crowd by Prince Charles, who then congratulated him on his Union Jack haircut!!   Ah, bygone days ….. a halcyon era now gone and fading from history.

Mushroom shaped UFO photographed by Brian James

Brenda Butler rang me, and she is now much better and sends her regards to all of you readers out there. She was one of the co-authors of SKYCRASH circa 1983, and I regard her as an expert on the events that took place there. Brenda tells me that there has been an upsurge in UFO activity around the Colchester and Suffolk areas over the last few weeks, with triangular craft seen.  If anybody knows about any of this please let me Dawn and I know.

Daily Star 30.03.82

I spoke to Julia (Jools) Quinn, who lives in Cornwall.  She told me about a mysterious creature that she saw close to Davidstowe airfield late one night in September 2005.  It was very tall with a face like a wolf standing erect on its two front legs! Amazing stuff.

I am still looking for photos please of Her Majesty and Prince Philip.  Can anyone help please?

Daily Mirror 7.7.67

Daily Mirror 6.5.67.

Daily Mirror 4.8.67.

Daily Mirror 1.11.67

Daily Mail 26.10.67

Daily Mail 25.10.67

JOHN HANSON AND PRUDENCE LAUNCH THE REVAMPED VOLUME FOUR

There have been a lot of problems with Volume Four, but now it seems to be all sorted out. Ask Prudence, she knows these things!

Daily Express 7.11.67

Times (The) 31.12.66

Times (The) 26.1.66

Times (The) 24.3.66

Times (The) 23.3.66.

Times (The) 22.4.66

HAUNTED SKIES: Update 13th April 2012

Daily Star 30.3.82

There is not too much to report today, but we can say that the credits and index are now completed for Volume 5,  as indeed are the additional images to complete the work. We shall update you with the progress of this book as to its final publication date soon.

We have just heard from Gordy Goodger regarding the details of the 2012 Rendlesham UFO Conference,  which includes the following guest speakers:

Timothy Good, Gary Heseltine, Alan Godfrey, Robert Salas, Larry Warren, Peter Robbins and Jennifer Stein.

There will also be one or two additional guests.

Visit www.rendleshamufo.com  for full details. The price is £20 and the conference will run from 10am to 11.30pm on Sunday 17^th June,  2012.  No ticket can be purchased on the door,  which does seem unusual.

REQUEST TO ALL YOU BLOGGERS OUT THERE:

If anybody has any photos of the Queen/Prince Philip, we would appreciate it if you could let us have a copy.  We would like more for the volume of Haunted Skies that will cover the Silver Jubilee year of 1977.  Many thanks in advance for your help.

Don Ramkin emailed me the following:

“Here's a couple of recent photos of the kittens - well I say kittens, they're still small and into everything but are now 7 months old.  It was indeed a rare photo opportunity to get the 3 of them together and staying still long enough for me to take a picture as they're usually running around the place & rough n tumbling with each other.”

Gemma decided she liked the bin

I spoke to Don and had a chat about the Conference; he is really looking forward to spending a few nights under canvas, and soaking up all of the vibes!

BOB TIBBETS

The following is an email received from Bob Tibbitts – but not an April Fool’s day wind up – or at least I hope not:

“On April 1^st as it was a really nice, sunny day I thought I would sit outside for a little while. I had my iPhone with me as there were some interesting vapour trails in the sky. Three 'jets' flew over and I took a snap of them at around 12.35pm.

Just seconds later, my eye caught sight of a glint in the sky at around the same altitude as the jets seemed to be flying at. The aircraft were way to the south west at this moment and looking at this object in the sky I was bewildered by its behaviour. It seemed to 'roll' or 'wobble' as it moved, quite slowly, in a east to west direction. I raised my iPhone and snapped a couple of shots of it before it seemed to just disappear! I went inside and checked the screen on my iPhone but there didn't seem to be anything to see, although the three jets and their trails were obviously there on the preceding shot.

There were a few, wispy clouds around but none in the area of the sky that the silvery object appeared in. This small object was quite high up and it didn't create any trail and was gone is the time that I saw it and managed to snap the two pictures. Looking around for a while, I couldn't see it any more. I am wondering if it may have been some sort of ice formation from the passing jets or a balloon but if it was a balloon, I can't understand why it was only visible for such a short time. From the photo you can see that it may have been visible earlier but obscured by the rooftop of the flats where I was sitting outside. I thought I would pass it on to you in any case John just in the event that anyone else had reported anything similar at this time in the area.”

I’ve superimposed the object, whatever it was, onto the first photo showing the three jets.  It was very strange, but at the end of the day we don’t know what it was.

 The three jets

Thanks Bob for sharing.

Real UFO sighting 1982  from  real people…

Mr. Peter Mackerell - an HGV Driver, of Dorking, Surrey, outlined what he saw on the 17^th April 1982:

“I was driving along the A25, from Guildford to Dorking, on Saturday with my fiancée, when I saw two bright white lights in the distance, hovering above some trees. When we reached the clump of trees, (Grid reference TQ134484, 5 miles from Pitch Hill - scene of other UFO reports) - the light was powerful enough to shine around the trunks of the trees - I just continued driving, then the lights were above us.I slowed down, as we turned the corner, wondering what they were..

We soon found out, when we saw this huge shape - like a fat cigar, with red and green lights on the front, and green square lights running down the sides. I drove up the kerb in surprise, and when we got to the other end of the ‘cigar’, having driven underneath it, I saw two massive jet-like burners, glowing about a hundred feet above us.”

Mrs. Christine Mackerell corroborated what had happened.  She told of the light- hearted banter with Peter, after having first seen the two white lights, thinking they may have been headlights - an attitude that was to change drastically, when Peter shouted out:

“It’s a UFO”.

“Immediately, my legs went to jelly.  I was petrified.  I said, ‘Go back, go back’, and we went past it.  I looked back and saw these two great big orange jet burners.

I was so scared - it was eerie, horrible, unbelievable, and evil looking shape.

I wanted to go home, but Peter decided to turn around and have another look.

When he did so, whatever it was had gone.”

The couple then continued on their journey, noting, with some surprise, that cars had started to appear again on the road, “because all the time we were on the road, there hadn’t been a single car drive past, and there was this eerie stillness”.

The couple reported the matter to the police, who advised them to ring the UFO desk, at Gatwick Airport.  (No such department exists!)

(Sources: Flying Saucer Review, volume 38, no. 3, (Captain Gordon Millington, Retd. BA Hons., Consultant to FSR / Omar Fowler, ‘SIGAP’)

Times (The) 22.1.66

Times (The) 20.1.66 (Part Two)

Times (The) 20.1.66

HAUNTED SKIES PROJECT: 9th April 2012

HauntedSkies Volume 5 (Sunday) Happy Easter

Hi everybody, I have finally completed working on the index of Volume 5, which although you could say is boring and tedious, does allow the opportunity to check that we haven’t repeated ourselves. On a task such as this you have to take into consideration that you sometimes have different sources of the same information and repetition can so easily occur.

I’ve been asked to give at talk at theAMMACH (The Anomalous Mind Management Abductee and Contactee) Helpline 07951752813)) conference in Septemberthis year.

Here is a self explanatory cutting from the Sun, and I was very impressed with the attitude taken by Joanna Summerscales (head of AMMACH), who chose to turn down an offer by someone who would have probably denigrated the whole idea of what Joanna and Miles are all about.

UFOS seen over Bexley area

“In our News-shopper just the other week there was an article relating to a lady claiming tohave seen UFOs. I think it was 6 cigar-shaped objects in the skies over the Bexley area , and saying that in theblue sky they were only visible when the sun shone on them and they glinted alittle. The News shopper has asked for any other witnesses, or for anyone whohas seen anything unexplained recently in the skies over the borough of Bexleyto contact them, so as soon as there's a follow up on this I will scan you it,as any sightings are definitely of interest.”

Mike Hallowell –Email in response tofinding his original UFO report

Hi John,

Sorry about the delay in replying. My e-mail is down so I have to use webmail. I'm amazed! After over thirty years of searching I’ve found that old article and I can't thank you enough. I'm amazed, and so grateful!

With deepest thanks, Mike Hallowell

Kevin Goodman

Congratulations to Kevin - Jon Downes is reissuing his book soon, and we are looking forward to seeing it available for sale again in the near future.

Coincidently,while Kevin supped a gallon of tea and pontificated on the trials andtribulations of life and UFOs in general (before I was bitten by a dammedhorsefly), our friend Peter turned upwith members of his family.

One of them was Carl’s son who told of having sighted a triangular shaped object: “Likea durrito [sic] crossing the sky over Birmingham recently while outside”

BUFORA Poster sent to us from Matt Lyons

James Benson Irwin

James Benson Irwin(March 17, 1930 – August 8, 1991) was an American astronaut and engineer. Heserved as lunar module pilot for Apollo 15, which was the fourth human lunarlanding mission. He was, in fact, theeighth human to walk on the Moon. However, once the rendezvous procedure wascompleted between Falcon and the Endeavour CSM, it was while both Irwin andScott were busy moving items like rock samples into the CM and preparing the lunarmodule for final separation that the earliestsymptoms appeared regarding his heart condition.

Both Scott and Irwin were working with no sleep for 23hours, during which they conducted a final moonwalk, performed the ascent fromthe lunar surface, rendezvoused with Endeavour,and encountered the problems that delayed the lunar module jettison manoeuvre. The astronauts' physiological vital signs were being monitored back on Earth, and the flight surgeons noticed some irregularities in Irwin's heart rhythms. Irwin's heart had developed bigeminy (the occurrence of two beats of the pulse in rapid succession.).

Dr. Charles Berrystated to Chris Kraft, deputy director of the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) atthe time: "It's serious, [i]f hewere on Earth. I'd have him in ICU being treated for a heart attack.”

Endeavour's cabin atmosphere was 100%oxygen (when in space), so it was decided that he was in no serious danger byDr. Charles Berry.

Specifically: "Intruth, he’s in an ICU. He's getting one hundred percent oxygen, he's beingcontinuously monitored and best of all, he’s in zero g. Whatever strain his heart is under, well, we can't do betterthan zero g."

During the post-Trans Earth Injection (TEI) phase of themission there wasn't much more for Irwin to do other than provide help with AlWorden's EVA to retrieve film magazines from the CSM's SIM bay, by donning apressure suit and monitoring him. He was able to rest and apparently recoverduring the rest of the mission. The flight surgeons continued to monitor hisEKG until splashdown, but his heart rhythm was normal. This incident apparentlywas not discussed during the mission debriefing sessions, and the condition didnot appear when he returned to Earth. A few months later he suffered a heart attack.

A patch cut by Irwin from the backpack abandoned on the Moon during the Apollo 15 mission was auctioned at Christie's in 2001 for $310,500 in a consignment of material from Irwin's estate thatgarnered "a combined $500,000".

Stamp incident

After the return of Apollo 15 to Earth, it was discovered that, without authority, the crew had taken 398 commemorative first day coversto the moon, of which a hundred were then sold to a German stamp dealer. The profits of the sale were intended to be used to establish trust funds for theApollo 15 crew's children. Although their action was not in any way illegal,and despite the fact that NASA had turned a blind eye to similar activities on earlier flights, the administration decided to reassign the Apollo15 crew to non-flight positions. CreditWikipedia

Photographed at HQ recently, theginger cat Spider McGraw, who keeps Jon and Corinna sane.

Times (The) 19.8.66.

Times (The) 19.4.66

Times (The) 13.8.66.

HAUNTED SKIES: Authors' update 5th April 2012

We are pleased to say that we have a new press flyer:

And we are also delighted to report that, following a visit to see Jon Downes and his lovely wife Corinna (and long-suffering dog Prudence) Volume 5 is starting to take shape.

Prudence and Richard Freeman taking a break

The foreword is by Matt Lyons, the chairman of BUFORA, who says:  “BUFORA highly recommends the whole series of Haunted Skies.” Incredibly, this volume only covers the period 1972 to 1974 inclusive, and shows once again what UFO activity was all about during the latter part of the 20^th Century.

On the way  home from Devon     

Whilst at Jon and Corinna’s, we had the pleasure of meeting Matthew Osborne and his wife, Emma.  Emma has kindly offered to widen the parameters of the Haunted Skies Facebook website.  We thank her wholeheartedly for doing this – in an ideal world we should be taking on this task, but - unfortunately - we are bogged down with completing the final PDF for Volume 5. This book covers some incredible cases:  a close encounter sighting from the Tewkesbury area when a UFO was seen settling between the houses.  This is followed by a report from a Sussex councillor who saw a similar object, this one containing three occupants none of whom appeared to be human!  Quote:  “..... returned my gaze it would have gone, but this didn’t happen. Unbelievably, I could see three ‘figures’ standing inside the dome. Two looked like the entities now referred to as ‘Greys’, although l was unaware of such terminology then… ”

 The Haunted Skies caravan down in sunny Devon

Our visit to Gordon Creighton, Editor of FSR

Towards the end of the 20th Century, we contacted Gordon Creighton, the Editor of Flying Saucer Review, and asked if we could visit him at his home address in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire. Gordon agreed to see us, but pointed out that over the previous few years he had been contacted by many people in the media who had expressed a wish to interview him, but none of them had ever arrived!

Furthermore, he told us that since 1981, he had been prevented from airing his views on the radio and the TV, and that the authorities had effectively banned him from speaking about the UFO subject. We thought he was over-reacting!

Sample of Chapter Two – 1973:

UFOs over East Yorkshire, UFO near the M10 flyover, UFO over London; UFO Display over Bournemouth; UFOs over Warwickshire; UFO sightings, The Wessex Association for the Study of Unexplained Phenomena - Silver ‘Rods’ over Hampshire; UFO over Cheltenham; RAF Pilots sights UFO; Soldiers sight UFO;  UFO over Northumberland; UFO over Wales; UFO over Birmingham; Mystery Lights over Warminster; UFO at Cradle Hill, Warminster; UFO over North Cornwall; close encounter, Scotland;  close encounter, Northampton.

Peter Hough, who has been assisting the authors