My father looked at me out of the corner of his eye; and a knowing smile crossed his face: “Maybe it already has,” he
replied, his voice dropping ever so slightly.
The subject of this cryptic conversation? Steven Spielberg’s classic film, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, which
told the story of humankind’s first face-to-face meeting with an alien species, and that we had just seen at the now-
long-demolished Walsall ABC Cinema.
We climbed the stairs of the car park and headed for my father’s Ford Capri car, and my thirteen-year-old mind
mused upon his comment.
“What did you mean by that?” I asked in reference to his curious words.
“Hang on,” he replied. “Let’s get out of the car park and I’ll tell you,” he said. And as we drove home on that late
autumn evening, the startling facts surrounding my father’s involvement in the UFO subject came tumbling out.
UFOs & Me: HOW IT ALL BEGAN by Nick Redfern
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| Copyright © 2009 JFS |
Like the majority of young men in Britain in the 1950s, my father
was required to serve a three-year-term in the military under
British National Service regulations. Because of his keen interest in
aviation, he chose the Royal Air Force.
During his service with the RAF, he served at various RAF stations,
but by far the most memorable experience of his career occurred
near the East Coast of England at a place called RAF Neatishead,
Norfolk.
It was September 1952 and my father was working as a radar
mechanic.
“So what happened?” I asked as we drove home.
“Well,” he began, “I remember that we were taking part in an
exercise – Mainbrace, it was called – and I was on duty. It was
early in the morning – four or five o’clock – maybe a bit later.
Things were pretty normal until the radar picked up something on
the scopes.”
was required to serve a three-year-term in the military under
British National Service regulations. Because of his keen interest in
aviation, he chose the Royal Air Force.
During his service with the RAF, he served at various RAF stations,
but by far the most memorable experience of his career occurred
near the East Coast of England at a place called RAF Neatishead,
Norfolk.
It was September 1952 and my father was working as a radar
mechanic.
“So what happened?” I asked as we drove home.
“Well,” he began, “I remember that we were taking part in an
exercise – Mainbrace, it was called – and I was on duty. It was
early in the morning – four or five o’clock – maybe a bit later.
Things were pretty normal until the radar picked up something on
the scopes.”
“What was it?” I asked eagerly.
“At first,” he explained, “we thought it might have been an aircraft, but we knew soon enough that it was something
else. We had this object, this UFO, whatever you want to call it, on the scopes at fifty thousand feet, and flying over
the North Sea and parallel to the English coast. The speed of it meant there was no way this was a plane.”
He continued: “The report went up the chain, and aircraft were scrambled from Coltishall – which was a base nearby.
Coltishall sent up Venom and Meteor aircraft to try and get a look at the object. We were watching all this on the
screens thinking that it would turn out to be something ordinary. But when the planes closed in, the UFO suddenly
streaked away and headed towards Norway. The pilots didn’t have a chance.
“The next day,” he added, “something strange happened. A bunch of people came – a photographic team from
Coltishall – and they had some really good gear which they set up to record the radar’s Plan Position Indicator tube in
case the UFO came back.
“Well, the day following this, it did come back. We tracked it; the planes went up, but this time we had it all on film.”
“What happened then?” I wondered.
My father replied: “We never knew. The guys from Coltishall removed everything: the radar tapes, the records, all of
it. Everyone was told not to discuss it outside of the base. They never told us what the result was, and the UFO
never came back, but I won’t forget it.”
I sat back in the car seat, amazed at what I had just heard. UFOs – so often the subject of ridicule – really existed.
And, more significantly, Britain’s military knew it, too. The remainder of the journey was made in silence; me trying to
take in these remarkable facts and my father recalling his long-gone days with the Royal Air Force.
Today, more than half a century after his weird experience, my father still vividly recalls the events of September 1952
and is convinced that something truly strange did indeed occur to both him and his colleagues on those fateful nights.
I agree. And were it not for my father, I would not have set out on the journey that has seen me investigate UFOs in
the UK, pursue the truth about Roswell, seek to unravel the mystery of the Men in Black, roam Puerto Rico's El
Yunque rain-forest in search of the Chupacabras, and much, much more. Thanks, Dad.
Nick Redfern has investigated UFOs at Area 51; chased the Chupacabras across Puerto Rico; searched for the truth
about the Men in Black, and much more of a ufological nature. He is the author of many books, including A Covert
Agenda; The FBI Files; Cosmic Crashes; Strange Secrets; Three Men Seeking Monsters; Body Snatchers in the
Desert; On the Trail of the Saucer Spies; Celebrity Secrets; Memoirs of a Monster Hunter; Man-Monkey; and There's
Something in the Woods. He can be contacted at: nickredfern.com
“At first,” he explained, “we thought it might have been an aircraft, but we knew soon enough that it was something
else. We had this object, this UFO, whatever you want to call it, on the scopes at fifty thousand feet, and flying over
the North Sea and parallel to the English coast. The speed of it meant there was no way this was a plane.”
He continued: “The report went up the chain, and aircraft were scrambled from Coltishall – which was a base nearby.
Coltishall sent up Venom and Meteor aircraft to try and get a look at the object. We were watching all this on the
screens thinking that it would turn out to be something ordinary. But when the planes closed in, the UFO suddenly
streaked away and headed towards Norway. The pilots didn’t have a chance.
“The next day,” he added, “something strange happened. A bunch of people came – a photographic team from
Coltishall – and they had some really good gear which they set up to record the radar’s Plan Position Indicator tube in
case the UFO came back.
“Well, the day following this, it did come back. We tracked it; the planes went up, but this time we had it all on film.”
“What happened then?” I wondered.
My father replied: “We never knew. The guys from Coltishall removed everything: the radar tapes, the records, all of
it. Everyone was told not to discuss it outside of the base. They never told us what the result was, and the UFO
never came back, but I won’t forget it.”
I sat back in the car seat, amazed at what I had just heard. UFOs – so often the subject of ridicule – really existed.
And, more significantly, Britain’s military knew it, too. The remainder of the journey was made in silence; me trying to
take in these remarkable facts and my father recalling his long-gone days with the Royal Air Force.
Today, more than half a century after his weird experience, my father still vividly recalls the events of September 1952
and is convinced that something truly strange did indeed occur to both him and his colleagues on those fateful nights.
I agree. And were it not for my father, I would not have set out on the journey that has seen me investigate UFOs in
the UK, pursue the truth about Roswell, seek to unravel the mystery of the Men in Black, roam Puerto Rico's El
Yunque rain-forest in search of the Chupacabras, and much, much more. Thanks, Dad.
Nick Redfern has investigated UFOs at Area 51; chased the Chupacabras across Puerto Rico; searched for the truth
about the Men in Black, and much more of a ufological nature. He is the author of many books, including A Covert
Agenda; The FBI Files; Cosmic Crashes; Strange Secrets; Three Men Seeking Monsters; Body Snatchers in the
Desert; On the Trail of the Saucer Spies; Celebrity Secrets; Memoirs of a Monster Hunter; Man-Monkey; and There's
Something in the Woods. He can be contacted at: nickredfern.com
As someone who writes books on UFOs, cryptozoology,
and conspiracy theories, I am often asked: How did you
become interested and involved in investigating such
issues? I figured that with the question posed on what
is a fairly regular basis, it might be a good opportunity
to provide the answer.
It was 10.30 p.m. on a dark Wednesday evening in late
1978 as I walked with my father, Frank Redfern,
through the deserted streets of the town of Walsall,
England. A biting wind sliced through the air and I
buried my hands in my coat pockets in a vain attempt to
keep warm. We headed for a nearby car park.
“Well, what did you think?” asked my father.
“I thought it was great,” I replied, continuing: “Do you
think it could really happen?”
and conspiracy theories, I am often asked: How did you
become interested and involved in investigating such
issues? I figured that with the question posed on what
is a fairly regular basis, it might be a good opportunity
to provide the answer.
It was 10.30 p.m. on a dark Wednesday evening in late
1978 as I walked with my father, Frank Redfern,
through the deserted streets of the town of Walsall,
England. A biting wind sliced through the air and I
buried my hands in my coat pockets in a vain attempt to
keep warm. We headed for a nearby car park.
“Well, what did you think?” asked my father.
“I thought it was great,” I replied, continuing: “Do you
think it could really happen?”
| TODAY IS |
