LONDON (AFP) - UFO enthusiasts got a boost Friday when Welsh police confirmed that one of their helicopter crews had spotted an "unusual aircraft" flying over Cardiff earlier this month.
ADVERTISEMENT
An investigation into the sighting had been launched, they said.
The police clarification came after tabloid newspaper The Sun reported a UFO had "attacked" a police helicopter, following it for several miles over the Bristol Channel.
"The pilot banked sharply to avoid being hit, then launched into a high-speed pursuit. But he was forced to give up the chase as the helicopter's fuel ran low -- and the UFO escaped," the tabloid reported.
The helicopter crew had described the object as "flying saucer-shaped and circled by flashing lights," it added.
That description was rather more dramatic than the official police version, which said: "South Wales Police can confirm its air support unit sighted an unusual aircraft.
"This was reported to the relevant authorities for their investigation," they added in a brief statement, avoiding the use of the term "UFO", or Unidentified Flying Object.
At the time of the incident, the helicopter with three men on board was waiting to land at the St Athan RAF base near Cardiff. The sighting reportedly took place at 00:40 am (23:40 GMT) on June 8.
South Wales Police denied there was a pursuit and indicated that the helicopter crew was never in any danger.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said it had heard nothing about the incident.
"But it is certainly not advisable for police helicopters to go chasing what they think are UFOs," he added.
You have to realize that most Christian "moral values" behaviour is not really about "protecting" anyone; it's about their desire to send a continual stream of messages of condemnation towards people whose existence offends them. - Darth Wong alias Mike Wong
"There is nothing wrong with being ignorant. However, there is something very wrong with not choosing to exchange ignorance for knowledge when the opportunity presents itself."
The Sun reported a UFO had "attacked" a police helicopter, following it for several miles over the Bristol Channel.
"The pilot banked sharply to avoid being hit, then launched into a high-speed pursuit. But he was forced to give up the chase as the helicopter's fuel ran low -- and the UFO escaped," the tabloid reported.
Oh wow, nothing like the ravings of a tabloid when you need some light-hearted humour to counteract stuff like the pro-life pharmacy bullshit .
It doesn't sound much more concrete than a lot of the sightings we hear about, but the fact that it warranted an official statement at least indicates that the police take it seriously.
Saying smaller engines are better is like saying you don't want huge muscles because you wouldn't fit through the door. So what? You can bench 500. Fuck doors. - MadCat360
And some UFO...it couldn't escape a fucking helicopter. Aren't they supposed to be, like, leet and speedy and space-flying and all?
JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up
It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small. - NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11
Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.
MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
And some UFO...it couldn't escape a fucking helicopter. Aren't they supposed to be, like, leet and speedy and space-flying and all?
Whatever it was it had more range than a Helicopter .
I wouldn't be surprised if the pilot went off on a little jaunt across the channel and used the UFO as an excuse.
Member of the Unremarkables Just because you're god, it doesn't mean you can treat people that way : - My girlfriend Evil Brit Conspiracy - Insignificant guy
And some UFO...it couldn't escape a fucking helicopter. Aren't they supposed to be, like, leet and speedy and space-flying and all?
C'mon, after all that interstellar travel and the technological sophistication that implies, surely they haven't encountered something as puzzling as a rotary wing aircraft...
FSTargetDrone wrote:
C'mon, after all that interstellar travel and the technological sophistication that implies, surely they haven't encountered something as puzzling as a rotary wing aircraft...
Oh, wait...
Of course. Don't you know that humans are the strongest and most innovative species in the entire universe?! (Real claim, BTW)
Anyway, I still wonder why they didn't take any pictures. A police support helicopter should have a FLIR camera. At the very least, someone in the aircraft would have a cell phone with a camera.
I mean, please. You saw a real UFO up-close and didn't take a single picture? Epic fail.
JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up
It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small. - NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11
Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.
MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
A SHAKEN soldier told last night how he saw THIRTEEN UFOs spinning in the skies above his military barracks.
Corporal Mark Proctor was among three squaddies who spotted the objects while out on night patrol.
He filmed them on his mobile phone and reported the close encounter to Army top brass.
Ministry of Defence experts were studying his report and video yesterday — after ordering Mark and his pals NOT to say anything else about the incident.
Do you believe in extra-terrestrial life? Vote below.
The sighting, at Tern Hill barracks near Market Drayton, Shrops, came two hours before helicopter police officers reported an encounter with a huge craft 80 miles away near Cardiff.
And three hours before a couple claimed they were followed by a strange light in the sky along the A5 near Shrewsbury.
Yesterday further mind-boggling evidence emerged as dog walker Bonnie Lewis, 29, told how she filmed seven UFOs at Bromsgrove, Worcs, last Friday.
To see the amazing footage of Bonnie's alien encounter click on the multimedia link for Saturday night lights, below right.
Cpl Proctor, 38, of the 1st Battalion Irish Regiment, recalled how he saw the amazing “craft” just after 11pm on Saturday, June 7.
He said: “I was on duty in the guard room when the other boys outside began shouting. I went out to see what the commotion was about and could see thirteen craft in the skies.
“They were zig-zagging, but I filmed two before they disappeared. They were like rotating cubes with multiple colours.
“I made a full report to my commanding officers and gave them my footage. The other lads were as amazed by it as I was.”
A 19-year-old private on patrol said he also saw the “fleet”.
The soldier, who asked not to be named, said: “I saw these things flying in the sky and I told my guard commander.
“There were about 30 lights passing over for a few minutes, very high but not at a great speed. They were bright red. Another soldier saw them too.”
An MoD spokesman said: “We deal with any UFO sightings to see if there was a military threat.”
The Sun told last week how helicopter cops were confronted by an object as they attempted to land at their base near Cardiff the same night.
Cabaret duo Katy Cunnion and Russell Quinn claimed they were pursued by the light in the sky for nearly an hour at 1am the following morning.
And last night Bonnie told of seeing cylinder-shaped craft.
She said: “They weren’t from this world. They made no sound and had flashing dots inside.”
Member of the Unremarkables Just because you're god, it doesn't mean you can treat people that way : - My girlfriend Evil Brit Conspiracy - Insignificant guy
I knew we shouldn't have sent that probe to Mars. They're going to kill us all!
I wonder if anybody else this "huge" object which supposedly rose from the ground as the helicopter was coming in for a landing.
After all, there were bound to be people all around the place, right? And the UFO flew away across the Channel. That means there ought to be literally hundreds of eyewitnesses.
JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up
It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small. - NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11
Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.
MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
And some UFO...it couldn't escape a fucking helicopter. Aren't they supposed to be, like, leet and speedy and space-flying and all?
Yeah, but once they get into combat, they wallow around like beached whales. They probably had to use a completely different engine to attack that chopper.
"I would say that the above post is off-topic, except that I'm not sure what the topic of this thread is, and I don't think anybody else is sure either."
- Darth Wong Free Durian - Last updated 27 Dec
"Why does it look like you are in China or something?" - havokeff
Special glow lanterns set off at a wedding could have been mistaken for a UFO by police officers in a helicopter.
The three-man crew spotted an unusual object in the sky above St Athan on 8 June in the Vale of Glamorgan.
It made headlines around the world but it was only when newlyweds Lucy and Lyn Thomas saw reports on honeymoon that they realised what could have happened. The lanterns were lit in Cowbridge and floated off towards St Athan, close to an RAF base and Cardiff airport.
"There's no doubt in my mind it was our lanterns," said Mr Thomas, 30, a salesman from Llantwit Major in the Vale of Glamorgan.
"We went on the internet on our honeymoon in Turkey and saw a report about this UFO. I thought, 'oh no, it was exactly the same time and I remember they were going straight towards St Athan way'."
You can't judge their size [in the air] because they're so bright. They just look like a big ball of light. When you light them they just go up and up and up
Lyn Thomas on the glow lanterns
The couple first saw the glow lanterns at the Glastonbury festival last year and thought they would make an ideal alternative to fireworks for their "mini festival" wedding party for 150 guests in a field near Cowbridge.
Mr Thomas bought 100 lanterns on an internet auction site and set off about 30 - with guests making wishes - from about 2300 BST on 7 June until 0200 BST on 8 June.
"I can see how they'd look like UFOs. They are about 2ft 6in (0.79m) high and are paper lanterns with a wax ball underneath.
"You light them and they inflate and float off - exactly the same principle as a hot air balloon," said Mr Thomas, who said he checked aviation regulations and made sure the lanterns were set off five miles away from Cardiff International Airport.
"You can't judge their size [in the air] because they're so bright. They just look like a big ball of light. When you light them they just go up and up and up.
"Strangely enough we saw them in Glastonbury last year and sat there for hours trying to work out what they were."
He said he could not believe the coverage the UFO sighting had had in the media.
"It's just gone mad," he added.
"But everyone we've spoken to since said there's no doubt that they [the lanterns] were what they spotted."
Wedding guest Geraint James, from Llantwit Major, said he did not think about the connection between the lanterns and the UFO sightings until his newlywed friends rang him on Tuesday after returning from their honeymoon.
"They rang me and said 'do you realise that was probably us?' It was the exact time we set them off," he said.
"A few people had said they looked like UFOs, kind of spooky as they floated off.
"I read about the UFO on the BBC website and saw it had had coverage in India and in the New York Times. It made us laugh. I suppose this sheds a bit of light."
The police helicopter crew reported seeing the UFO at about 0040 BST on 8 June but could not capture any images before the object vanished over the Bristol Channel.
South Wales Police said the helicopter did not give chase and described the crew as very experienced. The sighting has been reported for investigation.
Although this still doesn't explain the army sighting.
Member of the Unremarkables Just because you're god, it doesn't mean you can treat people that way : - My girlfriend Evil Brit Conspiracy - Insignificant guy
Zac Naloen wrote:
Although this still doesn't explain the army sighting.
Did you watch the video that soldier made?
It could've been those lanterns. The initial Sun article was probably hyped up and mangled the original event beyond recognition.
Heh, I like how "Helicopter crew spots weird lights in the sky" got mangled into "Helicopter crews spots giant UFO taking off from the ground and bravely gives chase across the English Channel" in the very first article we've seen about the event. People are such stupid assholes. We need to start shooting tabloid reporters when they sensationalize stories.
JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up
It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small. - NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11
Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.
MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
Perhaps I read it wrong, I thought the Army one was on a different day
Member of the Unremarkables Just because you're god, it doesn't mean you can treat people that way : - My girlfriend Evil Brit Conspiracy - Insignificant guy
Zac Naloen wrote:Perhaps I read it wrong, I thought the Army one was on a different day
No, it was two hours before the police helicopter reported theirs.
JULY 20TH 1969 - The day the entire world was looking up
It suddenly struck me that that tiny pea, pretty and blue, was the Earth. I put up my thumb and shut one eye, and my thumb blotted out the planet Earth. I didn't feel like a giant. I felt very, very small. - NEIL ARMSTRONG, MISSION COMMANDER, APOLLO 11
Signature dedicated to the greatest achievement of mankind.
MILDLY DERANGED PHYSICIST does not mind BREAKING the SOUND BARRIER, because it is INSURED. - Simon_Jester considering the problems of hypersonic flight for Team L.A.M.E.
If I remember correctly wasn't there a similar incident in Chicago (or somewhere else in the United States) last month where some people released glow lanterns at a party and it ended up getting on the fucking national TV news as "ZOMG TEH UFOES!!!".
Oh, Mister Darcy! <3
We're ALL Devo! GALE-Force: Guardians of Space!
"Rarr! Rargharghiss!" -Gorn
.
.
