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Selective enlargement of the McMinnville flying saucer, allegedly photographed on 11th May 1950 above the Trent’s farm in Oregon. NICAP originally, via Bill Rose Selective enlargement of the McMinnville flying saucer, allegedly photographed on 11th May 1950 above the Trent’s farm in Oregon. NICAP originally, via Bill Rose new types of long-range aircraft to probe NATO air defences and conduct reconnais- sance missions over sensitive military sites, it represented a new and very serious threat to Western security. A typical example of this concern can be found in the December 1954 (Vol 7, Number 12) issue of Air Intelligence Digest, printed by the USAF’s Directorate of Intelligence and originally classified secret. Dealing with future combat aircraft and flying discs, the publication had the following to say: ‘One of the big questions now facing the United States is this: What are the Soviets doing in UFO interest to be felt around the world. Ufol- _ study and evaluation of the flying disc. The ini- the disc-aircraft field? If the United States ogy had been given a huge shot in the arm, _ tial impetus may have come from advanced accepts the possibility of success of circular- leading to a plethora of new books, glossy _ wartime aviation projects, but some designers shaped aircraft, then it must also conclude newsstand magazines, films, conventionsand __ were clearly intrigued by UFO reports and sci- that the Soviet Union is capable of developing — the formation of hundreds of UFO societies. _ ence fiction. A particularly good example was such aircraft. If readers assume, at the Throughout the second half of the 20th Avro-Canada’s brilliant engineer John Frost extreme end of the possibility scale, that the | century reports of unidentified objects in the | who kept a personal scrapbook of UFO sight- USSR is several years ahead right now, these _ sky, combined with works of fantasy and sci- _ ings and related material. Furthermore, some questions must occur to them. If the Soviets ence fiction, have reflected mankind’s tech- _ leading aircraft designers like Alfred Loedding, now have such an aircraft in operational use, nical aspirations and perhaps our deepest who worked for the USAF, and high-profile sci- would the United States air defense system fears. While the links may appear tenuous, it _ entists like Thomas Townsend Brown became be able to detect, identify, intercept and seems reasonable to suggest that interesting seriously involved in UFO investigation. destroy a bomber or reconnaissance aircraft ideas from the world of ufology and science Today, the flying disc is still regarded as a moving at a 1,500 knot [2,780km/h] clip atan _ fiction have often influenced aircraft design- | contemporary cutting edge design, although altitude of 65,000 feet [19,812m]?’ ers, engineers and military planners. there have been circular-shaped aircraft Senior Pentagon officials had also become During the early 1950s many major US _ since the earliest days of manned flight and alarmed by the sensational UFO reports defence contractors were engaged in the one design can be traced right back to the appearing in the press and it was decided to early 18th century. So far, this introduction take further action to halt what was regarded _ fir Fol 1640 has outlined the public’s perception of the fly- as another worrying problem. In 1954, an xe aaune ve ing saucer, the ups and downs of ufology, existing military directive called JANAP-146 links to the world of science fiction and mili- (Joint Army, Navy and Air Force Publication) tary paranoia about Soviet developments. was applied to commercial pilots. JANAP-146 CANADIAN - UNITED STATES However, this book does not carry a detailed specified how military personnel should COMMUNICATIONS INSTRUCTIONS examination of these areas, because its pur- report unidentified flying objects and it was | FOR REPORTING VITAL pose is to take a closer look at the unorthodox used as a tool of national security, which aviation and aerospace craft that fall within made unauthorised disclosure a serious INTELLIGENCE SIGHTINGS the general category of Man-Made Flying offence. There were lasting protests within (CIRVIS/MERINT) Saucers; it also features related designs the airline industry, but this brought the flow JANAP 146(E) including disc-shaped space vehicles. of information from these sources to an Although the majority of flying saucer con- abrupt halt. cepts have never progressed beyond the Despite this step the public were now fully HNOW BASIS. drawing board, a small number have been conditioned to the idea that flying saucers built and flown. came from other planets and interest in UFOs THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF Unfortunately, there are significant gaps in continued throughout the 1950s, although it WASHINGTON, e., 20301 the historical detail of some projects and con- finally began to stagnate during the following MARCH 1966 siderable effort has been made to avoid filling decade and was then maintained by small these sections with unreasonable specula- groups of dedicated enthusiasts. When the FOR SE ONLY I yr (REVERSE BLANK} tion. Over a decade of research has gone into Spielberg movie Close Encounters of the Third this book and there have been numerous Kind was released in the late 1970s, some- trips up blind alleys and pointless detours thing of a UFO revival took Place, but it took \JANAP-146E. This fs a later version of the US along the way. Unquestionably, the most dif- the hugely popular 1990s TV sci-fi series The military directive forbidding unauthorised ficult part to write was the section dealing X-Files, to generate the next massive wave of _ disclosure of UFO sightings. US DoD with German wartime flying discs, which CANADIAN - UNITED STATES COMMUNICATIONS INSTRUCTIONS FOR REPORTING VITAL INTELLIGENCE SIGHTINGS (CIRVIS/MERINT) SAMAP 146(E) THIS PUBLICATION CONTAINS US MILITARY INFORMATION AND RELEASE TO OTHER THAN US MILITARY AGENCIES MILL SE ON A XEED-TO- KNOW BASIS, THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF WASHINGTON, D.C., 20301 MARCH 1966 I yr this book and there have been numerous trips up blind alleys and pointless detours along the way. Unquestionably, the most dif- ficult part to write was the section dealing with German wartime flying discs, which Secret Projects: Flying Saucer Aircraft