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This Ministry of Defence file, released through The National Archives and published by The Black Vault, holds the MOD's 2002 handling of Dr David Clarke's requests for UFO documents under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. It includes the MOD's 9 December 2002 reply, which covered reports from 1976, 1980, 1993 and 1996 and charged £260. It also contains internal emails and file requisitions, plus Foreign Office and United Nations papers from 1978 on Grenada's proposal for UFO research.
“Frances”46 pages
Copies of report made by RAF Fylingdales, North Yorkshire, of unidentified objects tracked by the BMEWS on or about 13 September 1980, and reported to MOD. Also, any sightings made by MOD Police and civilian (West Yorkshire) police officers on about the same date. You also later requested a copy of a report fro of the West Yorkshire Police concerning a UFO he observed in the early hours of28 November 1980. Files D/DS8/75/2/5 Part B (UFO Reports-August to November 1980) and D/DS8/75/2/2 Part M (UFO Reports- Edited Copies-August to September 1980) were examined. The files contained no reports from RAF Fylingdales for the 13 September 1980. As you requested reports "on or about the l31h September" I have enclosed copies of all the reports received from Police Officers for the whole of September 1980. The files contained no report on 28 November 1980. 4. Copies of UFO reports made in the early hours of30/31 March 1993 by RAF and meteorological office personnel and by members of the public, from a number of locations including RAF Cosford and RAF Shawbury. In addition copies of assessment made. File D/Sec(AS)12/7 was examined and I enclose a copy ofthe reports as requested. I have also included a copy of a loose minute showing enquiries made and details of a radar replay conducted by the Aeronautical Information Service (Military). 5. Reports of unusual phenomena on radar in the early hours of 5 October 1996 reported by the SOC Neatishead and UFO reports made by Lincolnshire police and the Skegness coastguard. Copies of investigation notes and assessment made. File D/Sec(AS)64/2 Part D was examined and three documents were found. I apologise for the quality of the Facsimile message from RAF Neatishead. We have checked with RAF Neatishead as to whether they have a clearer copy on file, but unfortunately they no longer have any details of these events. With these papers I have also included a copy of a loose minute which was written following several reports in the press criticising UK air defence systems. Although this does not strictly fit your request, I have included it because it gives clear details of the sequence of events and may therefore be of interest to you. The work has taken 21 hours and 20 minutes to complete and as, indicated in my letter of 16 September, the first 4 hours are free of charge. The remaining 17 hours and 20 minutes, at £15.00 an hour, result in a cost of £260. I would be grateful if you would let me have your crossed cheque, made payable to "Accounting Officer MOD". Finally, in your letter of 11 November you asked how the Freedom oflnformation Act will effect the '30 year rule'. The Freedom oflnformation (FOI) Act 2000 gives a right of access to all information held by public authorities. Any person making a request for information to a public authority is entitled to be informed whether the public authority holds such information and, if that is the case, to have the information communicated to them unless an exemption applies. This right of access becomes effective on 1 January 2005. Both MOD and the Public Record Office (PRO) are public authorities under the terms of the Act and therefore the information in the public records they hold is within its scope. The FOI Act repeals the access provisions in section 5(1) of the Public Records Act 1958-1967 and hence from January 2005 access to public records, wherever they are and irrespective of the age of the records, will be governed by the FOI Act. The 30 year closure period as a default goes,
Document, cited by the archive. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 492 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.