Defence drops 10-page UFO dossier

The Department of Defence has released 10 pages of documents about UFOs, in response to a freedom of information request.

The dossier includes 17 Defence communications about UFOs and unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs) created between July and October 2023.

The key message is Defence has no particular interest in the subject. One document clarified defence stopped actively monitoring for UFOs/UAPs in 1996.

“There was no scientific or other compelling reason to continue to devote resources to the recording and investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena,” it said.

“Defence does not have a policy on the reporting of unidentified aerial phenomena by either members of the public or defence members.

“Defence safety of flight incidents, including those potentially posed by UAPs are handled by the Defence Aviation Authority, with civilian flight incidents the purview of the Civil Aviation Authority.”

Interest in UFOs has seen a surge in legitimacy since the United States Congress made annual national intelligence reports on UAPs mandatory. In the January 2023 report, they said sightings had increased significantly, noting this could be a deliberate campaign to destigmatise the subject.

In its 2021 preliminary report, a spokesperson for the US director of national security wrote while UAPs represented a possible national security threat, there was no compelling evidence to suggest they were extra-terrestrial spacecraft.

However, they noted there were reasons airforce personnel may not report UAPs.

“In a limited number of incidents, UAP reportedly appeared to exhibit unusual flight characteristics. These observations could be the result of sensor errors, spoofing, or observer misperception and require additional rigorous analysis,” they said.

“Narratives from aviators in the operational community and analysts from the military and IC describe disparagement associated with observing UAP, reporting it, or attempting to discuss it with colleagues.

“Although the effects of these stigmas have lessened as senior members of the scientific, policy, military, and intelligence communities engage on the topic seriously in public, reputational risk may keep many observers silent, complicating scientific pursuit of the topic.”

Federal parliament’s leading UFO enthusiast appears to be Peter Whish-Wilson, who has asked defence questions on the subject on five separate occasions since 2021.

A known enthusiast for the subject, he has been the subject of mockery from Labor senators for taking the subject seriously. In the time since Whish-Wilson’s questions were answered by Defence, one key statement has been found to be a lie.

After repeatedly telling the Greens senator they had not spoken to their United States counterparts about UAPs, Defence admitted it had sent an attache to discuss the matter.

It has categorically refused to discuss the matter further.

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