Post by uforn on May 24, 2010 22:49:56 GMT 1
1978 - Disappearance of Frederick Valentich
Summary:
In 1978, another report of a pilot-UFO encounter became a classic UFO mystery. Twenty-year-old Australian Frederick Valentich was buzzed by a UFO, and a search by boats and aircraft could find no trace of the pilot, or his plane. Valentich was on a 125 mile training flight in his single engine Cessna 182 along the coast of Bass Strait when he related to air traffic controllers in Melbourne that he was being buzzed by a UFO with 4 bright lights about 1000 feet above him.
"It's Coming for Me... ":
The pilot's final communication to the tower contained this enigmatic, haunting phrase:
"It's approaching from due east towards me. It seems to be playing some sort of game... flying at a speed I can't estimate. It's not an aircraft. It's... it is flying past. It is a long shape. I cannot identify more than that. It's coming for me right now."
Pilot's Last Words:
About a minute later this message followed:
"It seems to be stationary. I'm also orbiting and the thing is orbiting on top of me also. It has a green light and a sort of metallic light on the outside."
Valentich then radioed that his engine was running roughly. His very last words were: "It is not an aircraft."
If not an aircraft, then what could it have been?
Other UFO Reports:
Subsequent inquiries by the Air Force claimed that there were as many as eleven reports of UFOs along the same coastline that Valentich had flown over. Something unusual definitely happened on the night that Valentich went missing. The fact that the reports followed the report of Valentich's plane being lost, caused the Australian Transport Department to be extremely skeptical about the reports.
Transport Department's Statement:
A spokesman for the department said:
"It's funny all these people ringing up with UFO reports well after Valentich's disappearance. It seems people often decide after the event, they too had seen strange lights. But although we can't take them too seriously, we can never discourage such reports when investigating a plane's disappearance."
An Error in Judgement?:
As would be expected, there was speculation that Valentich had just become disoriented, and was seeing his plane's lights in the water. Although Valentich was not an older experienced pilot, it is still unlikely that he would make this type of error in judgement. He was reporting, for the most part, an object above him, not below. He would have to flown his plane upside down to see his own lights reflected in the ocean waters below.
Valentich's Father :
Valentich's father, Guio, said his son used to study UFOs "... as a hobby using information he had received from the Air Force. But, he was not the kind of person who would make up stories. Everything had to be very correct and positive for him. The fact that they have found no trace of him really verifies the fact that UFOs could have been there."
Guio said he hoped his son hadn't crashed but had been taken by a UFO.
Conclusion:
There is not enough evidence to suggest that Valentich was not aware of what was going on around him. Though young, he was known as a careful pilot, and he knew how to handle his plane. The fact that no wreckage of any kind was found indicates that there is a good possibility that Valentich was indeed taken by a UFO.
Summary:
In 1978, another report of a pilot-UFO encounter became a classic UFO mystery. Twenty-year-old Australian Frederick Valentich was buzzed by a UFO, and a search by boats and aircraft could find no trace of the pilot, or his plane. Valentich was on a 125 mile training flight in his single engine Cessna 182 along the coast of Bass Strait when he related to air traffic controllers in Melbourne that he was being buzzed by a UFO with 4 bright lights about 1000 feet above him.
"It's Coming for Me... ":
The pilot's final communication to the tower contained this enigmatic, haunting phrase:
"It's approaching from due east towards me. It seems to be playing some sort of game... flying at a speed I can't estimate. It's not an aircraft. It's... it is flying past. It is a long shape. I cannot identify more than that. It's coming for me right now."
Pilot's Last Words:
About a minute later this message followed:
"It seems to be stationary. I'm also orbiting and the thing is orbiting on top of me also. It has a green light and a sort of metallic light on the outside."
Valentich then radioed that his engine was running roughly. His very last words were: "It is not an aircraft."
If not an aircraft, then what could it have been?
Other UFO Reports:
Subsequent inquiries by the Air Force claimed that there were as many as eleven reports of UFOs along the same coastline that Valentich had flown over. Something unusual definitely happened on the night that Valentich went missing. The fact that the reports followed the report of Valentich's plane being lost, caused the Australian Transport Department to be extremely skeptical about the reports.
Transport Department's Statement:
A spokesman for the department said:
"It's funny all these people ringing up with UFO reports well after Valentich's disappearance. It seems people often decide after the event, they too had seen strange lights. But although we can't take them too seriously, we can never discourage such reports when investigating a plane's disappearance."
An Error in Judgement?:
As would be expected, there was speculation that Valentich had just become disoriented, and was seeing his plane's lights in the water. Although Valentich was not an older experienced pilot, it is still unlikely that he would make this type of error in judgement. He was reporting, for the most part, an object above him, not below. He would have to flown his plane upside down to see his own lights reflected in the ocean waters below.
Valentich's Father :
Valentich's father, Guio, said his son used to study UFOs "... as a hobby using information he had received from the Air Force. But, he was not the kind of person who would make up stories. Everything had to be very correct and positive for him. The fact that they have found no trace of him really verifies the fact that UFOs could have been there."
Guio said he hoped his son hadn't crashed but had been taken by a UFO.
Conclusion:
There is not enough evidence to suggest that Valentich was not aware of what was going on around him. Though young, he was known as a careful pilot, and he knew how to handle his plane. The fact that no wreckage of any kind was found indicates that there is a good possibility that Valentich was indeed taken by a UFO.