On August 31, 1954, Royal Australian Navy pilot Lt. Shamus O'Farrell observed two brilliant, fast-moving objects pass his Sea Fury fighter over Nowra, NSW. Radar operator Petty Officer Keith Jessop at HMAS Albatross confirmed two independent returns near the aircraft. The Directorate of Naval Intelligence called O'Farrell 'an entirely credible witness.'

O'Farrell was flying at 220 knots when the objects crossed his path and were estimated by radar calculations to be departing at over 1,000 mph. Two independent ground witnesses, one at Marulan navigation beacon and one at Sydney Airport, also reported the objects that night. The file remained classified top secret for over thirty years and was recovered from the National Archives of Australia by researcher Keith Basterfield during the Disclosure Australia Project (2003–2008).