Rendlesham Forest Incident
From The Book of THoTH (Leaves of Wisdom)
The Rendlesham Forest Incident is the name given to a series of reported sightings of unexplained lights and objects in the sky and the alleged landing of an extraterrestrial spacecraft, which all took place in December 1980, in the vicinity of Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk, England. Along with the Berwyn Mountain Incident, it is perhaps the most famous UFO event to have happened in Britain, ranking amongst the best-known UFO events worldwide. It has been compared to the Roswell UFO incident in the United States and is commonly referred to as "Britain's Roswell" or the "English Roswell".
Like the Roswell incident, it occurred in the proximity of two military bases, RAF Woodbridge and RAF Bentwaters (now abandoned), which were being used by the United States Air Force (USAF), eight miles outside Ipswich, Suffolk. At the time these USAF/RAF NATO bases were under the command of Major General Gordon E. Williams (ret.) and under the Deputy Base Commander Colonel Charles I Halt.
The Rendlesham Forest Incident occurred over a three-day span, which is now accepted to be from 26 December to 28 December in 1980. Some of the evidence contradicts these dates, which has led to some confusion, as explained below.
The incident involved the reported sighting, by a number of people, of mysterious moving lights and a conical metal craft which apparently landed in the forest. As well as the accounts of the object itself, unusual levels of radiation were measured at the supposed landing site. Some believe that alien beings were seen by witnesses.
Sceptics dismiss the more extreme claims and offer rational explanations of the observed phenomena: for instance they claim that the observed lights were caused by the beam from a nearby lighthouse. Believers do not accept that the sceptics can adequately refute eyewitness, documentary and radiological evidence.
Following the event, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) denied that it posed any threat to national security and that it was thus never investigated as a security matter. However, later evidence indicated that there was a substantial MoD file on the subject and this has led to claims of a cover-up. Some have interpreted this as part of a larger pattern of suppression of information in regard to UFO/Alien existence/knowledge by both the US and UK Governments (see the UFO conspiracy theory).
The Rendlesham Forest Incident has been the subject of a number of books and documentaries.
Location
Image:Rafmap.jpg Rendlesham Forest is owned by the Forestry Commission and consists of approximately 1500 hectares (3700 acres) of coniferous plantations, interspersed with broadleaved belts, heathland and wetland areas. It is located in the county of Suffolk, about eight miles to the east of the town of Ipswich. The two airforce bases in the area (both being used by the USAF, at the time) were RAF Bentwaters, which is situated just to the north of the forest, and RAF Woodbridge which extends into the forest from the west.
The main events of the incident, including the supposed "landing", took place in the forest, about a third of a mile to the east of the main east gate of RAF Woodbridge.
Orford Ness lighthouse is about four miles to the south east of this location.
All these locations are shown on the adjacent map.
Dating of the incident
It is now accepted that the event took place between the 26 December and 28 December 1980. One of the key pieces of primary evidence—the "Halt memo", described below—suggests that the first sightings were on the 27th, rather than 26th. However, the memo was written almost two weeks after the event and its author later agreed that he had probably made a mistake in his recollection of the dates. This discrepancy in dates has not only confused subsequent researchers but also led to confusion, at the time, in the MoD's investigation, for example, in analysing contemporary radar records.
Main events of the Rendlesham Forest Incident
On the evening of 26 December 1980, a resident of Sudbourne, a village approximately 6 miles to the North East of Rendlesham Forest, reported a mysterious shape (like an upturned mushroom) in the sky above his garden. An Unidentified Flying Object was also reported at the nearby USAF Woodbridge air base, where servicemen initially thought it was a downed aeroplane but, upon entering the forest to investigate, they saw many strange lights moving through the trees, as well as a blinding light from an unidentified object.
Some of the airmen claim to have seen a conical metallic object suspended in a yellow mist hovering over a clearing in the trees, with a pulsating blue and red circle of light above. One eyewitness claims to have seen triangular landing gear on the object. The servicemen claimed that the object seemed clearly aware of their presence and moved away from them, forcing them to give chase. Later the servicemen were said to have been found in a dazed state, and some reports claim that local farmyard and domestic animals had been behaving in a possessed state of fear and panic.
The airmen were allegedly debriefed, threatened and ordered to sign documents that vowed silence: one even claimed to have been forced to sign a document claiming the UFO was a lighthouse. Some reports suggest that they were reportedly ordered to stay quiet, with the warning "bullets are cheap".
It has been rumored that small beings with domed heads left the craft, and that twin base commander Gordon Williams claimed to have made sign language communication with the aliens. It must be stated that these rumours have no evidence to back them up and come from unconfirmed reports.
The next morning, servicemen returned to the small clearing where the conical object had been seen and found three small impressions in a triangular pattern, as well as burn marks and broken branches on nearby trees. They returned again on the evening of 28 December with radiation detectors and measured unusually high levels of radiation in the impressions. That night, the lights returned and the servicemen, as well as nearby civilians, witnessed the bright red light moving in the forest. There are claims that the incident was videoed by the USAF but the resulting tape has not been made public.
Primary and secondary sources
The first public report of the incident was published in the tabloid newspaper News of the World, on 2 October 1983, beneath the sensational headline UFO lands in Suffolk – and that's official. The story was based on an account by a former US airman, using the pseudonym Art Wallace (supposedly to protect himself against retribution from the USAF), although his real name was Larry Warren.
The Halt memo
Image:Haltmemo.jpg The first piece of primary evidence to be made available to the public was a memorandum written by the deputy base commander, Lt. Col. Charles I. Halt, to the Ministry of Defence (MOD). Known as the "Halt memo", this was made available publicly in the United States under the US Freedom of Information Act. The memorandum, dated "13 Jan 81" and headed "Unexplained Lights" states:
- 1. Early in the morning of 27 Dec 80 [Note: this was actually 26 Dec] (approximately 0300L) two USAF security police patrolmen saw unusual lights outside the back gate at RAF Woodbridge. Thinking an aircraft might have crashed or been forced down, they called for permission to go outside the gate to investigate. The on-duty flight chief responded and allowed three patrolmen to proceed on foot. The individuals reported seeing a strange glowing object in the forest. The object was described as being metallic in appearance and triangular in shape, approximately two to three meters across the base and approximately two meters high. It illuminated the entire forest with a white light. The object itself had a pulsing red light on top and a bank(s) of blue lights underneath. The object was hovering or on legs. As the patrolmen approached the object, it maneuvered through the trees and disappeared. At this time the animals on a nearby farm went into a frenzy. The object was briefly sighted approximately an hour later near the back gate.
- 2. The next day, three depressions 1.5 inches deep and 7 inches in diameter were found where the object had been sighted on the ground. The following night (29 Dec 80) [Note: actually 28 Dec] the area was checked for radiation. Beta/gamma readings of 0.1 milliroentgens were recorded with peak readings in the three depressions and near the center of the triangle formed by the depressions. A nearby tree had moderate (0.05–0.07) readings on the side of the tree toward the depressions.
- 3. Later in the night a red sun-like light was seen through the trees. It moved about and pulsed. At one point it appeared to throw off glowing particles and then broke into five separate white objects and then disappeared. Immediately thereafter, three star-like objects were noticed in the sky, two objects to the north and one to the south, all of which were about 10 degrees off the horizon. The objects moved rapidly in sharp, angular movements and displayed red, green and blue lights. The objects to the north appeared to be elliptical through an 8-12 power lens. They then turned to full circles. The objects to the north remained in the sky for an hour or more. The object to the south was visible for two or three hours and beamed down a stream of light from time to time. Numerous individuals, including the undersigned, witnessed the activities in paragraphs 2 and 3.
- (Signed)
- Charles I. Halt, Lt Col, USAF
- Deputy Base Commander
Statements from the eyewitnesses on 26 December
The Scottish reseacher James Easton succeeded in obtaining the original witness statements made for Col. Halt by Fred A. Buran, 81st Security Police Squadron, Airman First Class John Burroughs, 81st Security Police Squadron, Airman Edward N. Cabansag, 81st Security Police Squadron, Master-Sergeant J. D. Chandler, 81st Security Police Squadron and Staff-Sergeant Jim Penniston, 81st Security Police Squadron. These documents are now in the public domain and scans of them are available on Ian Ridpath's website.
These documents describe the sightings of strange lights. Penniston, for instance, states that a "large yellow glowing light was emitting above the trees. In the center of the lighted area directly in the center ground level, there was a red light blinking on and off 5 to 10 sec intervals. And a blue light that was being for the most part steady."
There were some strange noises, too. Burroughs reported a noise "like a woman was screaming" and also that "you could hear the farm animals making a lot of noises". Burroughs' statement also states that "We could see a beacon going around so we went towards it. We followed it for about two miles before we could [see] it was coming from a light house."
Penniston's statement is the only one that positively identifies a mechanical object as the source of the lights. He states that he was within 50 metres of the object and "it was defidently mechlanical in nature" [sic].
The witnesses were unnerved by their experience and believed that they had witnessed something, as Buran expresses it, "out of the realm of explanation".
The Halt Tape
Also, in 1984, a copy of what became known as the "Halt Tape" fell into the hands of researchers. Unfortunately, because of static and the fact that the tape had been dubbed on an old machine, much of its background conversations could not be discerned. The US Sci Fi Channel has now acquired the original recording, which documents Lt. Colonel Halt (USAF) and his patrol investigating a UFO sighting in Rendlesham Forest in December 1980. This tape not only reveals much more of the background conversations but features names that could not be heard on the poor-quality 1984 dub. The tape has also also been transcribed by researcher Ian Ridpath[2], who includes a link to an audio download.
Suffolk Police log
Suffolk Constabulary have a record, dated 26 December 1980, of a report from the law Enforcement Desk of RAF Woodbridge, stating that "We have a sighting of some unusual lights in the sky, we have sent some unarmed troops to investigate, we are terming it as a U.F.O. at present". The police investigated this report and the result is recorded as follows: "Air Traffic Control West Drayton checked. No knowledge of aircraft. Reports received of aerial phenomena over southern England during the night. Only lights visible this area was from Orford light house. Search made of area - negative." A scan of the report is available at Suffolk Constabulary's website.
Other Military Installation Involvement
Some researchers have claimed that personnel from Porton Down [3] visited Rendlesham in 1980 after the Rendlesham Forest Incident. However, no evidence has been presented and there seems to be confusion with other alleged UFO incidents.
Lord Hill-Norton (himself a reviewer of Bruni's book on the incident, mentioned below) asked Her Majesty's Government: "Whether they are aware of any involvement by Special Branch in the investigation of the 1980 Rendlesham Forest Incident [HL303]". Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean gave the reply that "Special Branch officers may have been aware of the incident but would not have shown any interest unless there was evidence of a potential threat to national security. No such interest appears to have been shown." (Quoted in Georgina Bruni's book You Can't Tell the People)
The British Government has released its files to researchers (with the exception of a small number of documents) [4], [5], [6], but the United States continues to remain silent despite the SciFi Channel-sponsored investigation entitled "UFO Invasion at Rendlesham", the History Channel's "UFO Files - Britain's Roswell" and Coalition for Freedom of Information inquiries.
Other Possible Explanations
The Guardian reporter Ian Ridpath investigated the incident, initially for BBC TV's Breakfast Time, and on 2 January 1985 wrote an article for The Guardian [7] that did much to discredit the accounts of the UFO sightings at Rendlesham. Ridpath asked local residents about the lights, and most of them indicated that the light originated from a nearby lighthouse. The coastline is at a slightly lower elevation than the surrounding area, and it can create the impression of a light hovering slightly above the ground, especially in weather conditions where there are patches of freezing mist amongst the trees. Also, if a UFO was present, the airmen should have reported a second source of light (the lighthouse). In the Halt tape (mentioned above), one can hear an unidentified airman call out "There it is again...there it is." with the same frequency at which the Orford Ness lighthouse flashes. Further analsis of the case can be found on Ridpath's website [8].
Locals in the area also believed the alleged "landing marks" simply to be "rabbit diggings." Moreover, the supposed burn marks in the trees were actually axe cuts that indicated the trees were ready to be felled. To give further pause to accepting the alleged UFO sighting, a meteor "almost as bright as the full Moon" was spotted over southern England at exactly the time of the initial reports of a bright object "landing" in the forest, according to the Guardian's own investigation of the matter, quoting Dr John Mason, who collects reports of meteor sightings for the British Astronomical Association. [9] [10]
Crucial amongst the evidence is the recording of high levels of radiation in the area (clearly heard on the "Halt tape"). Ridpath points out that the equipment used for this measurement was not intended to measure background radiation and therefore the records rely on slight differences at the low end of the measurement scale.
Another theory is that the incident was a hoax. The BBC reported that a former US security policeman, Kevin Conde, claimed responsibility for creating strange lights in the forest by driving around in a police vehicle whose lights he had modified. [11] [12] [13] [14] However, he is "unsure exactly when the prank took place, and therefore is not sure if he was inadvertently responsible for the so-called UFO incident." [15], [16], [17], [18] Kevin Conde now states (2005) that he was not responsible for the incident. He said this long before he was famously interviewed by the BBC 'Inside Out' or the Daily Mail Newspaper. "This incident [hoax] occurred right after Christmas. For reasons that are hard to explain it is my impression that I pulled my stunt during an exercise. We would not have had an exercise during the Christmas holiday. That is a strong indication that my stunt is not the source of this specific incident". [19]
Other explanations for the incident have included a downed Soviet spy device or a nuclear incident.
Researchers and commentators
Some of the first people to examine the event in detail were the British Ufologists Brenda Butler, in her book "Sky Crash", and Nick Redfern in his books "Cosmic Crashes" and "A Covert Agenda".
Georgina Bruni has researched the subject and presents evidence against the lighthouse theory [Question 6] [20]. A friend of Georgina Bruni, Lord Hill-Norton, (Admiral of the Fleet and former Chief of the Defence Staff of the UK) also believes that a UFO landed at Rendlesham and has fought to get answers from the Government [21].
Larry Warren who was the source of the original News of the World article has written extensively on the subject and is a firm believer in an extra-terrestrial explanation. Warren was certainly a USAF airman at the Woodbridge base, but his own claims that he was a witness to the incident are disputed by others.
Bruni and Warren do not, however, agree on the details and although their books are regarded as amongst the best sources, they have clashed publicly over the supposed inaccuracies of the accounts: see Bruni-Warren Confrontation.
Prominent amongst the sceptics is Ian Ridpath (mentioned above). Much of his research is available on his website, which also includes much of the raw evidence, including the original eyewitness statements.
Jenny Randles wrote an extensive article in her book with Andy J. Roberts, (The UFOs That Never Were) entitled "Rendle Shame Forest" where she came to the conclusion that "While some puzzles remain, we can probably say that no unearthly craft were seen in Rendlesham Forest."
One if the most prominent 'Sceptical Believers' is Nick Pope who worked for the MoD, researching and investigating UFO phenomena between 1991 and 1994. He discussed the Rendlesham Forest Incident in his various books and in his articles "Selected Documents" [22] which relates to the MOD documents on the Rendlesham Forest incident exposed by Georgina Bruni, Rendlesham - The Unresolved Mystery, The Rendlesham Files Reviewed - A detailed commentary and analysis of the MOD documents and Rendlesham Forest UFO Incident. He has gone on record as saying that "the Rendlesham Forest Incident is bigger than Roswell" (Sci Fi Channel - see TV documentaries below.)
Additionally, Lieutenant Colonel (later Colonel) Charles I Halt, the former Deputy Base Commander of USAF Bentwaters and Woodbridge, who was a major witness to these events, is also a firm believer and contributor to books and documentaries.
Rendlesham Forest today
Image:Rendlesham1.jpeg Today, the forest looks quite different: the hurricane of 1987 caused extensive destruction of trees, and the Forestry Commission undertook a massive replanting programme in its aftermath. However, some of the locations associated with the supposed incident are still identifiable and the Forestry Commission have marked a trail (the UFO Trail) for walkers, which includes the principal locations such as the small clearing where the object allegedly landed. [23], [24]
At the start of the UFO trail, there is a large triangular shaped metal information board. It features a map of the forest, clearly marking the UFO trail and gives a basic account of what happened in 1980:
"In December 1980 several sightings of UFOs were reported in Rendlesham Forest. Many think these mysterious events are the most significant UFO incident to have occurred in the UK.
During the evening of 26th December a resident of Sudbourne, a village approximately 6 miles to the North East of Rendlesham Forest, reported a mysterious shape (like an upturned mushroom) in the sky above his garden. Later that night two USAF patrolmen at the East Gate of RAF Woodbridge spotted unusual lights in the forest, and were given permission to investigate. What they reported was very strange.
This was the time of the 'Cold War' and because of the sensitive military situation at the time, the incident was officially reported to the Military Authorities by the Deputy Base Commander Lt. Colonel Charles Halt, USAF.
There is, of course, no tangible evidence of a UFO on the ground - no debris was found apart apart from some broken tree top branches. We can, however, piece together, from transcripts and recordings which were taken at the time, an intriguing picture."
Image:UFO trail rendlesham.JPG
Official Government Sources
- MOD Documents covering the UFO incident at Rendlesham Forest in 1980 - Georgina Bruni was the first to break the story concerning the release of MOD documents on the Rendlesham Forest incident. [25], [26], [27]. Nick Pope also covers selected documents of those released by the MOD.
- The Halt Memo [28]
References
- You Can't Tell the People: The Definitive Account of the Rendlesham Forest UFO Mystery by Georgina Bruni - ISBN 033039021X (Reviewed)
- Sky Crash by Brenda Butler - ISBN 0586066780
- Open Skies, Closed Minds by Nick Pope - ISBN 0440234891
- Cosmic Crashes by Nick Redfern - ISBN 0671033069
- A Covert Agenda: The British Government's UFO Top Secrets Exposed] by Nick Redfern - ISBN 1931044708
- The UFOs That Never Were by Jenny Randles, Andy J. Roberts and David Clarke - ISBN 1902809351 Reviewed
- UFO: Crash Landing? Friend or Foe? - True Story of the Rendlesham Forest Close Encounter BY Jenny Randles - ISBM: 0713726555
- Left At East Gate: A First-Hand Account of the Rendlesham Forest UFO Incident, Its Cover-up, and Investigation by Larry Warren - ISBN 159605753X
TV Documentaries
- Sci Fi Channels "UFO Invasion at Rendlesham". - available to watch here - First broadcast December 1, 2005
- History Channels "UFO Files - Britain's Roswell - available to watch here - First broadcast December 17 2005 - Reviewed
- "Bentwaters UFO" featured on 'Unexplained Mysteries'. - available to watch here (in ZIP format) - First broadcast 1994.
Articles in date order
- News of the World Newspaper article - "UFO lands in Suffolk – and that's official" October 1983
- The Guardian Newspaper - A Flashlight in the Forest - January 5, 1985 the actual Gurdian article
- Article attempting to debunk the incident December 30 2000
- BBC: Nov 28 2002, Ministers lift lid on UFO secrets - November 28, 2002
- BBC: Dec 3 2002, UFO case blocked by MoD - December 3, 2002
- BBC Investigation into the incident - June 30, 2003
- BBC on Rendelsham Forest Incident - June 30, 2003
- Another BBC investigation into the incident - June 30, 2003
- More debunking, after reviews of the Halt tape - August 21 2003
- SciFi Channel article - article about Halt tape transcript - December 4, 2003
- Halt tape transcript - December 4, 2003
- Daily Express Article on Rendlesham, Saturday November 19, 2005 by Nick Pope - On November 19 the Daily Express ran a double page article on the Rendlesham Forest UFO incident. They commissioned the article from Nick Pope in the run-up to the 25th anniversary [29] of the UFO sightings. It's not available online, but the newspaper only made very minor editorial amendments, such as changing "light-alls" into "lamps", so what follows under the headline below is his original submission.
- Rendlesham XXV Update - Open Mind: The Nick Pope Interview dECEMBER 7, 2005
- History Channel article/TV documentary - January 26, 2006
- Weird World Article by Nick Pope - February 2006.
- Nick Pope on the MOD documents relating - Georgina Bruni was the first to break the story concerning the release of MOD documents on the Rendlesham Forest incident. [30], [31], [32]
- Rendlesham - The Unresolved Mystery by Nick Pope
- The Rendlesham Files Reviewed by Nick Pope - A detailed commentary and analysis of these documents.
- Rendlesham Forest UFO Incident by Nick Pope
- The Woodbridge/Rendlesham incidents, 1980
- In March 2006 Nick Pope sought and obtained a commission from the Ministry of Defence's magazine Focus, to write a feature on UFOs. The article ran in the March issue of Focus with only very minor editorial changes. The article can be found here.
External links
- The Rendlesham Forest incident Website - An in-depth look into the Rendlesham Forest incident, with new photos and updated information. The Internet's largest website about the Rendlesham Forest Incident.
- Georgina Bruni's Rendlesham Forest Incident website - Georgina Bruni's website which advertises her book, "You can't tell the people". Bruni has stated that "There is no way that I would allow my material to be used on a debunking website. www.rendleshamincident.co.uk will be launched in November and will feature all the evidence for the case." [33]
- Photos and detailed maps of area with discussion
- Larry Warren's Rendlesham website
- The infamous Georgina Bruni and Larry Warren Confrontation
- 2005 Nick Pope Interview at 28:25 minutes and 32:15 minutes he talks about Rendlesham.
- Fortean Times visit the forest - December 2005
- Rendlesham at UFO Evidence
- Official UFO Data website
- Leading UK UFO Forum
- Another leading UK UFO Forum
- Official UFO Monthly Magazines website
- Ian Ridpath's analysis of the incident
See also
--Angel 17:07, 13 June 2006 (CDT)
