Which agency produced A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy?

A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy is a primary-source record from Royal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia.

What programs and topics appear in A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy?

A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy references RAAF UFO reporting series A703 580/1/1, University of Colorado UFO Project (Condon Committee), Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization (CAPIO), Australia, UFO policy and Southern Victoria sightings.

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DISCLOSURE / FILE

A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy

Royal Australian Air Force Air Force Office policy file A703 554/1/30 Part 1, gathering early-1950s through late-1960s correspondence on UFO investigation responsibility, civilian and meteorological liaison, and the framework that became the A703 580/1/1 reporting series.

Brief

The file collects RAAF Air Force Office policy correspondence on 'Flying Saucers' / Unidentified Flying Objects, including the 1968 letter from the Chief of the Air Staff's office authorising RAAF bases to correspond directly with outside organisations during UFO investigations (folio 554/1/30(135)), and an April 1967 Bureau of Meteorology reply (folio 554/1/30(123)) agreeing that its Regional, Area, Local and Interpreter offices would co-operate on the initial investigation of UFO sightings, restricted to meteorological phenomena and balloon trajectories. It captures the Director of Air Force Intelligence congratulating Flight Lieutenant S.E. Hart on a 27 June 1967 Southern Victoria investigation, a CSIRO exchange with the Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization (CAPIO) president Peter E. Norris asking whether CSIRO would mount an Australian counterpart to the University of Colorado's Condon project, and a 25 March 1967 Canberra Times feature on the Condon study. Together the folios trace how the RAAF formalised interagency liaison with the Bureau of Meteorology, CSIRO, the Department of Civil Aviation, NASA's Melbourne office and Mount Stromlo Observatory before the A703 580/1/1 reporting series superseded it.

Metadata

Agency: Royal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia
Release: 1953-01-01
Type: PDF • .pdf
Length: 309 pages
Programs: RAAF UFO reporting series A703 580/1/1, University of Colorado UFO Project (Condon Committee), Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization (CAPIO)
Tags: RAAF, Australia, UFO policy, 1967, 1968, Southern Victoria sightings, Bureau of Meteorology liaison, CSIRO, Condon Committee, Mount Stromlo Observatory, NAA A703 554/1/30

Key points

A 1968 Air Force Office letter at folio 554/1/30(135) extends the general UFO investigation policy laid down in 'OUR 272 5/1(15) DATED 25TH MARCH 1968' and grants RAAF bases permission to correspond directly with outside organisations during investigations.p.3
The distribution list for that authorisation enumerates Bureau of Meteorology Regional, Area, Local and Interpreter offices nationwide, plus CSIRO head office, the Department of Civil Aviation in Melbourne, NASA's Melbourne office and Mount Stromlo Observatory, as standing UFO-investigation liaison points.p.4
Folio 554/1/30(134), 4 August 1967, asks the Director of Mount Stromlo Observatory for comment on an attached investigation of a 27 June 1967 series of unusual light sightings in Southern Victoria.p.7
Folio 554/1/30(133) records the Director of Air Force Intelligence telling Headquarters Support Command that Flight Lieutenant S.E. Hart 'made excellent use' of the material and 'is to be congratulated on producing a first class report' on the 27 June 1967 Southern Victoria investigation.p.8
On 19 April 1967 Peter E. Norris, president of the Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization, wrote to CSIRO from 100 Collins Street, Melbourne, asking whether CSIRO would establish an Australian counterpart to the University of Colorado Condon project, citing the U.S. Air Force's $313,000 grant.p.10
CSIRO replied on 28 April 1967 that it would not be appropriate for the organisation to embark on such an investigation in Australia at that time and referred Norris to the Commonwealth Department of Air.p.12
At folio 554/1/30(123) of 3 March 1967 the Bureau of Meteorology, signed by Acting Director J.W. Lillie on 4 April 1967, agreed its Regional, Area, Local and Interpreter offices would co-operate in the initial investigation of Unidentified Flying Objects, restricted to comment on meteorological phenomena and meteorological balloon release times and trajectories, and not extending to astronomical information.

Most interesting

The 1968 authorisation letter to Headquarters Support Command RAAF Victoria Barracks routes the policy through 'Headquarters Operational Command RAAF Penrith NSW 2750' and is signed for the Chief of the Air Staff by a Group Captain, showing UFO liaison was handled at command headquarters level.
The standing liaison distribution covers the full Bureau of Meteorology footprint from Cocos (Keeling) Island to Port Moresby and Lae in Papua New Guinea, alongside Woomera's L.R.W.E. Range meteorological office.
CSIRO's L.G. Wilson, in declining Peter Norris's request for an Australian Condon-style study, named the Commonwealth Department of Air as 'the Government Department with an interest in these matters', directing civilian UFO research back to the RAAF channel.
The Director of Air Force Intelligence, a Wing Commander, personally signed off on the 27 June 1967 Southern Victoria investigation report at folio 554/1/30(133), treating it as command-level work product rather than routine correspondence.
Norris told CSIRO that recent U.S. Congressional hearings and statements by Dr J. Allen Hynek, who had been USAF Scientific Consultant on UFOs for 18 years, had moved the subject into 'general scientific interest', framing his pitch for an Australian counterpart project.

Cross-references

PDFA703 580/1/1 Part 1, RAAF Department of Air HQ UFO Reports (1957–1959)Royal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia
PDFA703 580/1/1 Part 10, RAAF Department of Air HQ UFO ReportsRoyal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia
PDFPP959/1 5/3/AIR, RAAF North-Eastern Area (Queensland) UFO FileRoyal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia
PDFA703 580/1/1 Part 3, RAAF Department of Air HQ UFO ReportsRoyal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia
PDF

Common questions

What is A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy?: Royal Australian Air Force Air Force Office policy file A703 554/1/30 Part 1, gathering early-1950s through late-1960s correspondence on UFO investigation responsibility, civilian and meteorological liaison, and the framework that became the A703 580/1/1 reporting series.
What does A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy reveal?: A 1968 Air Force Office letter at folio 554/1/30(135) extends the general UFO investigation policy laid down in 'OUR 272 5/1(15) DATED 25TH MARCH 1968' and grants RAAF bases permission to correspond directly with outside organisations during investigations. The distribution list for that authorisation enumerates Bureau of Meteorology Regional, Area, Local…
Which agency produced A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy?: A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy is a primary-source record from Royal Australian Air Force / National Archives of Australia.
When is A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy dated?: A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy is dated 1953-01-01.
What programs and topics appear in A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy?: A703 554/1/30 Part 1, RAAF Air Force Office Flying Saucers / UFO Policy references RAAF UFO reporting series A703 580/1/1, University of Colorado UFO Project (Condon Committee), Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization (CAPIO), Australia, UFO policy and Southern Victoria sightings.

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