The Ufo Sighting That Convinced A Government Minister

BY JASPER COPPING One of the most tantalising consistently accounts of an bring in encounter in a UFO - deemed so authentic it visibly exact a British member of the clergy - can be told for the first time. Late the sighting, Hughes - who was settled as Sam, after a identity bent by Stanley Holloway, the artiste and comedian - was nicknamed 'Saucer Sam' by colleagues, who decorated a cartoon of a flying saucer on his jet. Model 2 of 2After the sighting, Hughes - who was settled as Sam, after a identity bent by Stanley Holloway, the artiste and comedian - was nicknamed 'Saucer Sam' by colleagues, who decorated a cartoon of a flying saucer on his jet The RAF logbook of Draw back Sergeant Roland Hughes It is one of the most tantalising consistently nation accounts of an encounter in a UFO - deemed so authentic it categorical exact the government member of the clergy who investigated it.Now, for the first time, the sighting of a flying saucer by an RAF fighter pilot and the succeeding high mass study it impelled can be naked.The sighting occurred in 30 July 1952, while Draw back Sergeant Roland Hughes was on a rehearsal flight over West Germany in a de Havilland Tick FB9.As he was persistent to base, he reported being intercepted by a "impressive silvery, clanging disc" which flew height his aircraft formerly speeding off. The mystery object was also detected by RAF radars on the ground, which recorded it travelling at speeds far in greediness of any settled aircraft.Hughes reported the sighting to his upper officers who sent him to see Duncan Sandys, the in addition to aviation member of the clergy, to brisk him to the letter.Supervision the open space, Sandys went on to tell upper flattering servants he was exact by the airman's story.The UFO sighting is not particular one of the most painstaking by a now fanatic of the backdrop armed but also shows how seriously such reports were lovesick by the institution. British governments shut in historically downplayed the label that such sightings shut in been investigated.The existence of the sighting has emerged in papers released by the Churchill Records, at Cambridge Researcher. The centre contains the papers of Sir Winston Churchill, as well as Sandys, who married the before tidy up minister's offspring, Diana.In one document - written a few energy after the update in the 23-year-old Hughes - Sandys tells the government's major scientist, Noble Cherwell, about the open space and states that he found the airman's tired and the vital evidence from radar "brilliant".The sighting came shortly after a flow of be partial to "flying saucer" reports from US airmen and Sandys added: "I shut in no object at all that (Hughes) saw a phenomenon be partial to to that described by recurrent observers in the Related States."Noble Cherwell had dismissed the US sightings as "cluster psychology", but in his observe Sandys takes him to accountability for this shelf and makes clear his rank on the existence of UFOs.The member of the clergy, who was when promoted to Defence Secretary, went on: "Until several ably official explanation can be provided, it would be most half-baked to be aware of without contemporary question the mind-set that above ground dishware can be dismissed as 'a mild form of hysteria." Sandys also wrote that represent was "enough evidence of several unfamiliar and strange phenomenon".The documents are among thousands released by the store in recent years. Their disclosures were stripped by David Clarke, a Sheffield HallamResearcher academic, moment he was conducting research for a new supply of a book he has written on UFO sightings for the Home-based History.By chance, shortly after his discovery, Dr Clarke was contacted by the fighter pilot's son, who had entry the before supply and considered necessary to allocate information about his father's sighting.Roland Hughes had died in 2009, foggy 79, but had recounted his archetype of happenings to his son, Brian, who voted for on the tired to Dr Clarke, as well as his father's log book, in which he had noted the sighting and succeeding open space in Sandys.The incident strength of mind now property in the latest supply of the book, to be released in September, afterward the release this summer of snooty government UFO files from the Home-based History.In the airman's tired, relayed via his son, he was in one of four aircraft from No. 20 Navy, of the RAF's 2nd Tactical Air Motivation, persistent to RAF Oldenburg, in northern West Germany, flying in formation at high flatten in clear visibility.He reported seeing a incisive be with of "silvery light" in they sky high aristocratic him which gruffly descended towards him until he may perhaps see that it was a "impressive silver-metallic disc".The airman assumed its quality was shiny, "choose tin put off", and "without a single trough or line in it". He may perhaps see, in "miraculous outlining", the aircraft's "competently evocative and utterly total metallic-looking quality". He sketchy its make at 100ft with a leg on each side of - "about the wingspan of a Lancaster bomber".It flew height him for not the same seconds formerly flying off at immoderate speed.None of the other three pilots saw the object - it is study to the same extent they were all executing a "banking shuffle" at the time and would not shut in been looking in the right influence - but radar on the ground had picked it up.Six energy when, Hughes - who when worked as a profitable airline pilot - was sent to RAF Fassberg, distinct base in northern West Germany, to motion picture his tired to upper RAF officers and Sandys himself, who was visiting. The minister's first question to Hughes was how assorted beers he had had the night formerly.Late the sighting, Hughes - who was settled as Sam, after a identity bent by Stanley Holloway, the artiste and comedian - was nicknamed "Saucer Sam" by colleagues, who decorated a cartoon of a flying saucer on his jet.Brian Hughes, 45, a Ministry of Defence flattering servant based at Bovington Encampment, in Dorset, said: "We knew about the sighting in the contact while we were developing up but my begin didn't talk about it a lot. We widely read about it snooty from prompting him."He was very emotionless about what he saw, justified recitation the details. He never did any research here UFO or flying saucers and didn't shut in any exert a pull on in the numinous of science invention."If it was being other than my begin who had told this story, I would be sceptical. He bearing in mind assumed to me terrain nightmare you're mad if you say you've seen a flying saucer - I've particular consistently seen one once; I've never seen one at the same time as.'"Dr Clarke, who is sceptic on UFO issues, said: "Gift is utterly no object that no matter which was seen by Hughes. He is not conception this up. But the particular oversee rank to store is that we don't know what it was. But represent may perhaps be several kind of official explanation, formerly you start jumping to conclusions about alien set."