Dark Object - Don Ledger and Chris Styles-pages

Page 13 of 82

Page 13 of 82
Dark Object - Don Ledger and Chris Styles-pages

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that before." "Do you suppose it could have been some type of military aircraft?" Ralph asked. "Maybe it was something they were testing out of Loring Air Force Base in Maine. That's not too far southeast of here." The first officer paused for a moment, then asked the question that hung in the air between them. Somebody had to bring it up. The captain glanced over his left shoulder to the now empty sky to the south. Weird, he thought. He pursed his lips, turning his attention back to his instruments while he mulled over that question. It was an important one for both of them. For a moment Ralph thought he hadn't been heard, but finally the captain answered. The first officer thought this over. What had he actually seen? Like most professional pilots he was reluctant to discuss, admit to, or report a UFO for fear of being ridiculed or, worse, having it affect his career. And there was another reason, a regulation being enforced by the Canadian government of which few civilians were aware. It was a regulation that stemmed from an agreement between Canada and the United States that restricted the divulging of UFO reports beyond the guidelines set forth in and stemming from the JANAP 146 (d) agreement of 1962. Although the guidelines were extensive, essentially they restricted the reporting of UFOs by military and airline pilots, requiring them to report their sightings to the authorities only. They were not to report them to civilian agencies, the press, or anyone else, under penalties that could result in a fine often thousand dollars and a prison term of up to ten years. Ralph voiced this concern. "My advice is just to write down what you saw. Give only the facts. I'll do the same. We can request anonymity from the company and have them pass it on." That seemed to cheer up the first officer. "Yeah, maybe that would be the best way to go." Despite his concerns First Officer Ralph wrote up a fairly comprehensive report (as did his captain) with noted times and drawings. He did this despite the fact that at the time he was in training to become a captain with Air Canada. 7:51 P.M. ADT Eastern Passage, Nova Scot/a Outskirts of Canadian Naval Air Station, Shearwater William Thibeault and his brother were set up for stargazing on William's front lawn using a surveyor's Again Captain Charbonneau had to plead ignorance. "Your guess is as good as mine, son." "Should we file a report on this?" "Yeah, I think we should, don't you - something that close?" Ralph shrugged. "You're the boss. What should I say?" "Just tell them what you saw."