Calvine Photograph Analysis Material — DEFE 24/2048 (later MoD correspondence, August 2011 release)

Brief

DEFE 24/2048 is an August 2011 MoD release whose core material (pages 27-29) consists of a Loose Minute dated 14 September 1990 briefing the Under Secretary of State (Air Force) on six photographic negatives received from the Scottish Daily Record. The negatives purportedly show a large, stationary, diamond-shaped object near the A9 road at Calvine on the evening of 4 August 1990, with a Harrier — and possibly a second Harrier — flying past it. MoD analysts reached no definitive conclusion on the large object while simultaneously confirming there was no operational record of Harriers in the area at that time. The file also contains a separate 1994 Craigluscar Reservoir sighting and Freedom of Information Act correspondence from 2005 in which the Calvine event was first publicly summarized.

Metadata

Agency

UK Ministry of Defence

Release

2011-08-11

Type

PDF • .pdf

Length

165 pages

Classification

UNCLASSIFIED on release

Tags

diamond-shaped, stationary hover, vertical high-speed ascent, photographic negatives, Scotland, Calvine, Pitlochry, A9 road, 1990, Harrier anomaly, ministerial briefing

Key points

• Six photographic negatives of the Calvine UFO were provided to MoD by the Scottish Daily Record and received on 10 September 1990, roughly five weeks after the 4 August incident.p.28
• The object in the photographs is described as 'a large stationary, diamond-shaped object' past which, it appears, a small jet aircraft is flying.p.28
• MoD staff identified the jet as a Harrier and spotted 'a barely visible second aircraft, again probably a Harrier,' but reached no definite conclusion on the large object.p.28
• MoD confirmed there was no record of Harriers operating in the area at the time the photographs were allegedly taken — leaving the aircraft presence in the negatives unexplained.p.28
• Approved defensive press lines instructed MoD spokespeople to confirm the Harrier identification while explicitly deflecting on the main object: 'no definite conclusions reached regarding large diamond-shaped object.'p.29
• A 2005 FOI response to the Independent on Sunday states the Calvine witnesses saw 'a large diamond shape UFO hovering for about 10 minutes before ascending vertically upwards at high speed,' details absent from the 1990 ministerial brief.p.12
• The case was elevated to ministerial awareness specifically because MoD had been directly asked for comment by the Scottish Daily Record — the Loose Minute notes such stories are 'not normally drawn to the attention of Ministers.'p.28
• The Calvine negatives were returned to the Scottish Daily Record after examination and were not retained by MoD.p.28
• A separate 1994 Craigluscar Reservoir incident is included: a MoD officer assessed that case as 'either a hoax, or something very interesting indeed.'p.21
• The Craigluscar witness reported over 15 minutes of apparent temporal dissociation and described a phenomenal acceleration on departure, calling the object 'definitely metallic' and stating it was 'no conventional aircraft.'p.22

Verbatim

• They show a large stationary, diamond-shaped object past which, it appears, a small jet aircraft is flying.

  p.28

• the relevant staffs who have established that the jet aircraft is a Harrier (and also identified a barely visible second aircraft, again probably a Harrier) but have reached no definite conclusion regarding the large object.

  p.28

• It has also been confirmed that there is no record of Harriers operating in the area at the time at which the photographs are alleged to have been taken.

  p.28

• Have looked at photographs, no definite conclusions reached regarding large diamond-shaped object.

  p.29

• It seems to me that this case is either a hoax, or something very interesting indeed.

  p.21

• two members of the public contacted The Scottish Daily Record to report a large diamond shape UFO hovering for about 10 minutes before ascending vertically upwards at high speed.

  p.12

• No definite conclusions were reached regarding large diamond-shaped object.

  p.12

Most interesting

• The Calvine photographs reached MoD through a newspaper, not a military chain of command — the Scottish Daily Record submitted the negatives and requested comment, making this one of the few cases where press-originated photographic evidence triggered a formal ministerial briefing.
• MoD staff identified two Harrier jets in the photographs yet simultaneously confirmed no Harrier flight records existed for that location and evening — a factual contradiction the file does not attempt to resolve.
• The negatives were returned to the Scottish Daily Record after examination and were never retained by MoD; their subsequent disappearance has been a point of contention in UAP research, and this file confirms MoD relinquished custody.
• The Calvine ministerial briefing departed from standard MoD procedure: the Loose Minute explicitly notes that UFO stories are 'not normally drawn to the attention of Ministers,' signaling the photographic evidence was considered unusual enough to warrant an exception.
• The Craigluscar Reservoir witness (1994) described a 15-minute period during which he felt unable to raise his camera — 'I did not THINK of taking a shot' — only managing two photographs after the paralysis lifted as the object departed.
• Defensive press lines on page 29 were prepared in advance of any published story, reflecting MoD's expectation that the Calvine photographs would generate public controversy requiring coordinated messaging.
• The file spans from the August 1990 incident through at least 2007 FOI correspondence, showing the Calvine case continued to generate public inquiries for nearly two decades without MoD ever revising its 'no definite conclusion' position.