In 1980 two air bases owned by the RAF, namely RAF/U.S.A.F Bentwaters and RAF/U.S.A.F Woodbridge were leased to the U.S. Air Force and reputedly held the largest stockpile of tactical nuclear weapons in non-communist Europe. Woodbridge was also the home of the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron – a unit that reported directly to the U.S. Department of Defense in Washington.
At approximately 2-00a.m. on the 27th December 1980,an unidentified object was picked up by radar at RAF Watton in Norfolk (UK). The object went off the screen in the area of Rendlesham Forest in Suffolk. RAF/U.S.A.F Bentwaters also tracked the unidentified object – Bentwaters being in the direct vicinity of Rendlesham Forest.
At approximately 3-00a.m. two U.S.A.F security guards observed unusual lights outside the back gate of RAF Woodbridge and three patrolmen were sent to investigate. These three men reported seeing a strange , glowing object seemingly of metallic appearance and of a triangular shape. They reported it being approximately two to three meters across the base and two meters tall, giving off a bright white light which illuminated the entire forest. Also it had a pulsing red light on top and a bank of blue lights underneath – it was hovering but apparently had legs. When the men approached the object it maneuvered through the forest and out of view, to be briefly seen again an hour or so later near the back gate.
According to Staff Seargent Jim Penistone, " The air was filled with electricity .You could feel it on your skin as we approached the object. On the upper left side of the craft was an inscription. It measured six inches high, of symbols. They looked familiar, but I couldn’t ascertain why".
Examination of the area the next day revealed that the object had left three depressions on the ground and a radiation check showed readings ten times that normally expected – especially where the object had landed. Later that night a bright pulsing red light was seen maneuvering in the forest, eventually breaking into five white objects which disappeared. Several objects were then seen in the sky , moving rapidly and showing red, green and blue lights – some of the objects were visible for an hour or more.
Airman John Burroughs was with Staff Sergeant Jim Penistone at the time of the incident. Burroughs later described the lights that he saw as: "Like the lights in a Christmas display – it felt like you were moving in slow motion!"
Indeed it was later reported by some that the base commander, Colonel Gordon Williams communicated directly with the occupants of the unidentified craft.
Lt. Charles Colonel Halt, Deputy Base Commander at Woodbridge, had insisted that the first night’s events be entered in the security police log but the second night’s event tore him away from his dinner.
Armed with a tape recorder, Lt. Colonel Halt and a number of other servicemen witnessed the events as they unfolded – a detailed tape recording being made.
A full report dated 13th January 1981 was sent to the British Ministry of Defense by Lt. Colonel Halt. The M.O.D.’s ultimate response was: "The department satisfied itself at the time that there was no reason to consider that the alleged sighting had any defense significance."
Various theories have been put forward to explain the Rendlesham Forest events including the idea that the lights were caused by a lighthouse on the coast – this theory is unfounded when the geography and topography of the area is examined. Another convoluted theory put forward by a skeptic (Channel 4 Television 10th April 2002), endeavoring to link the events to a craft (of some description) being carried by helicopters in the U.S. at about the same time, only illustrates the depths that "so-called educated skeptics" will sink to in order to enforce their opinions. One fact is certain – whatever happened it was witnessed by military personnel and it was later revealed that civilians living in the area also were witnesses , at least to some extent.
One of the military witnesses , Larry Warren (then 19), a USAF Security Specialist, later became regarded as the "whistle blower" as far as the incidents at Rendlesham are concerned. His chilling first hand account of what happened on the night of December 28th 1980 and how the Government covered up these incidents is presented in the book "Left at East Gate", which he wrote in conjunction with eminent Ufologist/Researcher/Author Peter Robbins.
All facts in the book are supported by government documents, witness accounts and physical evidence and stands as one of the best chronicles of UFO cover-ups.
In Larry’s own words: "As my mind tried to register what I was looking at, the ball of light exploded in a blinding flash. Shards of light and particles fell onto the fog. Several cops ran into the woods. I couldn’t move; I tried to cover my eyes, but it was too late. Why I didn’t run, I don’t know. But now, right in front of me was a machine occupying the spot where the fog had been."
Larry Warren was a member of the US Air Force Security Police stationed at an American base on British soil. He was taken from his guard post to investigate strange lights in a forest clearing near the base. Here he and other enlisted men and officers confronted an alien craft on the ground. Even the base deputy commander has come forward to verify some of the details in this case, making it one of the most talked about UFO cases of all time–a real British Roswell.
Admiral Lord Hill-Norton , former chief of the British Defense Staff stated:" I have no doubt that something landed at this U.S. Air Force base and I have no doubt that it has got the people concerned in to a considerable state. The Ministry of Defense has doggedly stuck to it’s normal line, that nothing of defense interest took place. Either large numbers of people , including the commanding general at Bentwaters, were hallucinating, and for an American Air Force nuclear base , this is extremely dangerous – or what they say did happen.
In either of these circumstances, there can be only one answer – that it was of extreme defense interest to the U.K."
Various UFO documents are now available on the Ministry of Defence website. These comprise a brief policy statement on the issue, a 1951 report from the so-called Flying Saucer Working Party, and papers from the file on the Rendlesham Forest incident (a.k.a. the Bentwaters incident).
The material can be found at the following links:
http://www.mod.uk/linked_files/publications/foi/ufo/ufos.pdf
http://www.mod.uk/linked_files/publications/foi/ufo/ufowpr7.pdf
http://www.mod.uk/linked_files/publications/foi/ufo/ufofilepart1.pdf
Alternatively, go to the MOD website at: http://www.mod.uk/ and click on "Freedom of Information Act 2000". Then click on "Search for Information", and enter the phrase "UFO".
Source: BBC News Online 3 December 2002 UFO CASE ‘BLOCKED’ BY MOD
Details of one of Britain’s most famous UFO scares was among information repeatedly suppressed by government defence chiefs, according to a Westminster watchdog. Parliamentary Ombudsman Ann Abraham said the Ministry of Defence (M.O.D) broke open government rules three times in recent months over cases including the Rendlesham Forest UFO scare.
Complaints about the MoD’s refusal to list countries prioritised for arms sales or reveal details of an armed services survey were also up-held.
Former defence minister Peter Kilfoyle said the examples outlined in the report on the Ombudsman’s work between May and October were symptomatic of a "culture of secrecy" in the M.O.D.
"It is one of those departments that have always opposed freedom of information and are not very attuned to what is required in a modern, open and accountable government," he said. "Other departments and Whitehall as a whole have a problem with openness but the M.O.D is on of the more incorrigible cases of government by secrecy," he said. Details of the alleged sighting at a Norfolk RAF base more than 20 years ago were released last week after the Ombudsman ruled the M.O.D were wrongly suppressing them.
The "Rendlesham File" concerns a sighting of a "glowing" triangular object by US Air Force police in Rendlesham Forest, near RAF Woodbridge in Suffolk.
The documents have only previously been made available to around 20 people who used the American Freedom of Information Act to gain access to them.
In the early hours of 27 December, 1980, a number of US Air Force men witnessed the object hover in the darkness, transmitting blue pulsating lights and sending nearby farm animals into a "frenzy".
While the actual documents had not been released, the details were widely known, the Ombudsman said in her report. "Given their age and the fact that these documents contained no information not already in the public domain, the Ombudsman saw no reason why they could not be disclosed," the report said.
The Ombudsman also partially upheld complaints against the Cabinet Office, DVLA, Driving Standards Agency and the Department for Work and Pensions, the report revealed.
Restrictions on the M.O.D "Rendlesham File" were dropped as part of an opening-up of the inner workings of Whitehall.
Ministers are attempting to lift the official veil of secrecy by repealing or amending a raft of legislation banning access to information.
Government departments will now be required to release information on the internal workings of Whitehall, including minutes of meetings of top civil servants. Ministers say they will repeal or amend up to 100 items of legislation which are currently prohibited from disclosure.
The above information is from: http://www.thewhyfiles.co.uk/rendlesham.htm
For additional information see "Articles of Note" at this site.