Confusion and Contradictions
The Cardiff UFO sightingsby Andrew Russell 
There are some other real issues with this incident. Whether this UFO was of terrestrial origin or something more exotic, a mid-air collision almost took place which could have resulted, potentially, in the loss of life, yet the MoD, the CAA or South Wales Police are un-willing to investigate the matter further. The police are quoted as saying, of the helicopter crew, "They are convinced it was a UFO. It sounds far-fetched, but they know what they saw." This statement was quoted in The Telegraph, The Sun and the South Wales Echo. Philip Mantle sent me a copy of a FOIA request he made, where the South Wales Police made the following statement "The crew is of course capable of making a distinction between a Chinese lantern and an aircraft: it was for this reason it was not so described. The reason the crew now subscribes to the theory that the 'object' was a Chinese lantern is that there appears to be no other rational and plausible explanation." The police claim they can tell what a Chinese lantern looks like, but it evidently wasn't because they are trained observers and it didn't look like a Chinese lantern because "for this reason it was not so described", but according to other previous press reports "they know what they saw". I think initially the South Wales Police rushed to tell what happened in this incident but in retrospect decided they had said too much and were trying to backtrack, in the process contradicting themselves and everyone else involved. Also South Wales Police released a radio transcript of a man misidentifying the moon as a UFO. The story made front page of the Western Mail and the conversations which were recorded by the police were also available online to listen to. This was a few days after the June 8th incident and I believe this was an attempt to discredit the whole affair through ridiculing UFOlogy in general. South Wales Police can release the recordings of this yet there are no recordings available from the helicopter crew from the June 8th incident. Cyncial? Me?!?
Through Phillip I was introduced to David Pavoni, producer of The UFO Hunters, and we arranged for an interview about the case at RAF St Athan. I arrived very early and drove around the perimeter of RAF St Athan and noticed how quiet this base was. Due to its rural location and the fact that currently RAF St Athan is in a bit of a transitional period it is a very quiet area. (RAF St Athan is due to become a multi-million pound training centre). I met Dave and the crew at the East gate (purely coincidental) and we began filming on some public land outside the perimeter. A few minutes into filming we were approached by three RAF personnel who enquired what we were doing. Filming permits were produced and an explanation was forthcoming as to the nature of our business and the RAF staff left. From then on, the formerly quiet base, started to get very noisy which disrupted our filming. Single training shots were heard regularly which meant we had to retake certain scenes. A fork lift truck came to the fence where we were filming and the driver just parked there, just idling the engine which caused some disruption. It is hard not to be conspiratorial in situations like this! Once we completed filming the RAF police joined us and requested the usual round of ID and filming permits. Despite being on public land and RAF St Athan being quite a low security base, we were still treated with a fair amount of suspicion.
A day or two after filming I was contacted by a witness who wanted for the time being to remain anonymous. He had seen an object in the early hours of June 8th and had made his own requests via the FOIA. He showed me a copy of a response from South Wales Police which stated that the two officers on board the flight were not interested in giving interviews. The pilot of the helicopter, who is a civilian, also reported the incident to his supervisor but wanted no further involvement. It is worth remembering that the helicopter in question is operated by Bond Air Services and is effectively leased by South Wales and Gwent Police and as a private company falls outside any FOIA accountability.
It surprises me that no reports have still been made by the police but cynically speaking it doesn't surprise me. If the police produce any paperwork on this incident it becomes accessible via the FOIA and we gain more information on the incident. If the MoD becomes involved the same applies. The Cardiff incident is by no means over, I have heard whispers of other witnesses in Cardiff, witnesses on the Severn and some from the base itself, where apparently rumours are rife. This is one of those incidents which yield so much in terms of how organisations like the police, MoD and CAA react (or fail to) and how quickly the media and investigators can prise open the case and reveal much of what happened. Something significant happened that night, we can piece that much together, it will take us a little while longer to discover the true extent of what exactly happened. Three very well placed witnesses hold the key. When will we get their testimony?
thetruthhides.wordpress.com
NB: Andrew Russell will be a speaker at this tears international UFO conference sponsored by UFO DATA MAGAZINE (www.ufodata.co.uk).
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