Bill Chalker (The OZ Files) — Harry Turner coverage
Source: Bill Chalker (@BillOZfiles), The OZ Files blog (theozfiles.blogspot.com), posts on Harry Turner (search aggregation). Chalker is the Australian researcher who knew and interviewed Turner. URL: https://theozfiles.blogspot.com/search?q=Harry+Turner Captured: 2026-06-10 (requests+readability/bs4; blog search-results page aggregating multiple Turner-related posts). Provenance only; analysis: grusch-career-and-claims. What this is: the cited secondary in Grant Lavac’s tweet — Chalker’s reporting on Harry Turner (the JIO nuclear-intelligence scientist behind the 1971 assessment Grusch cited; see turner-1971-jio-ufo-assessment-naa).
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Harry Turner and UFOs
Harry Turner (Photo: Bill Chalker)
Harry Turner & Bill Chalker - June 2004
Ross Coulthart and Bryce Zabel discuss Harry Turner’s interest in UFOs on their excellent podcast “Need to Know” #9 The UFO Investigators 18 March 2022.
Thanks to Kenrick Leiba & Ross Coulthart for the positive endorsement on You Tube:
What Kenrick is referring to is my investigation of Vicki Klein, mentioned in a range of posts here on this “Oz Files” blog and in my book “Hair of the Alien”: https://theozfiles.blogspot.com/search?q=Klein
I had an article on Harry Turner published recently in New Dawn magazine (January-February 2022
Ross, on the “Need to Know” podcast, attributes to me the startling point that Harry Turner may have spent some 80% of his time as head of the nuclear section of DSTI in Australia’s Joint Intelligence Organisation on UFOs. Here is the background to that comment:
I recently had the following exchange with Rod Barton, author of “The Life of a Spy” and “The Weapons Detective”
Congratulations on the publication of your book “The Life of a Spy”.
Apart from a general review of your work, I would like to discuss with you, in particular, your 5 years working in the nuclear section of JIO under Harry Turner (1977 to 1982).
I had correspondence with Bob Mathams in 1982, and he backgrounded me on Harry Turner (O.H. (Oliver Harry) Turner), Harry’s interest in UFOs, JIO’s take on UFOs, and he helped me make contact with Harry. Harry and I first had discussions in 1982, and extensively after that. I met him in person a number of times, interviewing him at length, and he ultimately allowed me to access and copy his files on UFOs and related matters.
I have attached a recent article I wrote on Harry Turner, which addresses only a small part of his research in this area.
I’ve also included the Australian chapter I wrote for the 2012 book “UFOs and Government” to give a broad overview and context for Harry Turner’s role in the local controversy.
While I take from your brief accounts in your 2 books mentioning Harry Turner, you were not that impressed with his UFO obsession, the matter (under the current terminology of UAPs) has now become a strong focus for military and intelligence organisations (and some science organisations, such as GEPAN in France, and Avi Loeb’s Project Galileo at Harvard university) around the world. I have also had an extensive focus on the Asian UFO experience, focusing mainly on China, and even lectured at 2 universities (in Beijing and Kunming).
I would be grateful for the opportunity of discussing your recollections of Harry Turner in more detail.
I have written some books on the UFO subject. I have an honours science degree in physical chemistry and Pure Mathematics from UNE (Armidale) and worked mainly in quality assurance & laboratory management. During 1982 to 1984 I had direct access to the Australian Defence files on UFOs at the Russell offices in Canberra and published extensively on the results of this work.
Intriguingly, like you, I also had contact with the hill tribes in northern Thailand & southern China, but I was mainly focused on the Lahu, in areas closely related to the matters discussed above.
I would be grateful for the opportunity of discussing with you your recollections of Harry Turner.
20 January 2022:
Hi Bill,
Black Inc has passed your enquiry on to me. I have a few comments to make.
I got to know Harry pretty well even before I joined the nuclear group - we were a fairly close-knit family in DSTI. Harry as you no doubt know, was a very affable person and his nuclear knowledge well respected. He was however regarded as a bit of an eccentric although that was not unique within the branch. Mathams himself once said that some of the intelligence officers were eccentric.__
I was only engaged with the UFO aspects of Harry’s work for a short while. I read some of the files particularly those from DAFI, and never knew what to make of some of them. However, I fairly quickly came to the conclusion thatwe (DSTI) were not going to resolve any of the difficult-to-explain phenomenon by standard intelligence techniques - and anything else would be outside our remit.__
The major reason for leaving Harry on his UFO quest was my awareness that Mathams was clearly not happy with this line of work. We had more than enough to do on nuclear matters and, given that I had already upset Mathams over my decline of his Harvard proposal, I thought it wise to get stuck into looking at nuclear matters. So, as I indicate in my book, I only had a fleeting engagement with UFO investigations. I did however admire Harry’s persistence with this work against the odds even if I did not see eye-to-eye on most of it.
I am somewhat dismissive in the book of Harry’s UFO obsession and perhaps could have presented matters in a more balanced way. To some extent this was because I did not want generally to get bogged down in details that are somewhat extraneous to my story - the book could have easily have finished up being 5 times longer!
__
I have read the articles you attached and have learnt a lot more about UAPs and found the history fascinating. I do not think I could possibly add anything else.
Regards, Rod
Thank you Rod for responding to my enquiries and I am grateful for your elaborations.
I appreciate that “UFO obsessions” were outside the scope of your books, but Harry and DSTI/JIO et.al interests are well within mine, and therefore I am grateful for your responses.
… I would be negligent in my research if I didn’t seek some further clarification, given that you provided two separate takes (and your much appreciated email response) on your fleeting intersection with Harry’s “UFO obsession” - your 2006 & 2021 books. Your 2 books caused me to do a close analysis of the 2 accounts and I was hoping you may be able to address the points highlighted below, either via email or a quick phone conversation:
1. In 2006, pg. 10, you describe Harry dashing off to examine “crop circles and scorch marks in a paddock near Canberra”, and in 2021, pg. you indicate that Harry had actually asked you to join him look for “the crop circles and scorch marks rumoured to exist in a paddock near Canberra.” So, just to clear in my own mind you were indicating that you both went together to look for the “marks”, which turned out to be unsuccessful?
2. Did Harry ask you to work with him on UFOs on just this one occasion or were there other occasions? If there were other occasions could you elaborate? As I note you indicate to me your Harry mediated UFO flirtations were fleeting I am only trying to see if Harry’s UFO obsessions were a significant consuming activity with Harry on JIB/JIO time, or was it just a side interest. I know what Bob Mathams wrote to me, but I’m trying to capture what the day to day realities might have been. While qualifying, if possible a perception of the degree of “UFO obsession” on Harry’s part, I note you indicate that Harry was “well respected” for “his UFO knowledge” (Note from B.C.: Here I meant to write “his nuclear knowledge”, but Rod did not take issue with that. Earlier Rod had written, “his (Harry Turner’s) nuclear knowledge (was) well respected.”).
3. In my own examination of DAFI files at the Russell offices I came across a case dated 22 October 1978, on the Hume Highway approx. 10 km north of Goulburn, reported by a female ACT public servant, from 6.40 pm for 10 minutes, featuring 4 square lights next to each other, apparently rotating in the horizontal plane (relative width at arms length of approx. 20 mm. The intelligence officer indicated, “after the lights were sighted the instruments f the motor vehicle started to play up. The speedo oscillated from min. to max. readings and eventually broke. The generator light came on and there were extreme fluctuations in fuel and temperature gauges. She stopped the car and observed the lights for 10 min. The lights disappeared and she continued her journey. Instruments indicated normal with the exception of the speed. This has sustained permanent damage.” The Intell officer evaluation: “(witness) has no relationship with any UFO organisations, is a person of some intelligence and not prone to exaggerate such matters. I’m lead to believe this to be an accurate report and not a hoax of any kind. I have no suggestion as to the cause of this report.” I only mention this, because of its proximity to Canberra, that it was in DAFI files, which Harry was monitoring, and it was in 1978, early in your 5 year tenure in Harry’s department. Do you recollect anything coming up like a scene out of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, just down the road from Canberra? Its the type of case I would have thought would have attracted Harry’s attention - potential physical evidence effects on a vehicle? I don’t recollect coming across this in Harry’s files or in my various discussions with him. We covered a huge amount of information, so it could have easily been over looked, plus I was looking at the entirety of Harry’s exposure to UFOs and the paranormal from the 1930s to the early 2000s.
4. Did you have any exposure with people like John Farrands, George Barlow, Arthur Wills, Dr. Michael Duggin, John Symonds (from AAEC - nuclear), and Norm Gerrard (Radar & Electronic tracking group, WRE), all of whom had at least a passing interest in UFOs, where UFOs may have come up?
5. Correct me if I’m wrong, but did UFOs dominate Harry’s time while he was working on JIO time? I’m assuming that Harry must have given prominence to nuclear matters in his tenure during your exposure to him? I realise this was also an issue with Bob Mathams, but Harry didn’t seem shy about regularly bringing the matter up with JIO, DSTO, DAFI etc at a reasonably high level, albeit seemingly unsuccessfully?
I hope you can respond to this points.
Given your intelligence involvement with nuclear matters and weapons of mass destruction, you may be interested in the book by Robert Hastings - “UFOs and Nukes” or just google him and the subject matter. Right now there is considerable interest in UFO (or UAP - to use the Pentagon/DIA preferred nomenclature) events and nuclear facilities. It would be wonderful to get your take on this. Hastings book is essentially a very detailed coverage of witness events in this context - most being military witnesses.
Thanks again
Bill, in response to your questions:
1. I accompanied Harry on one occasion only (in his own private car). I do not recall exactly where we went but it was somewhere towards Queanbeyan. As I recall we never got out of the car which limited our search somewhat. I cannot remember what info Harry was basing his search on but he did not seem to have a precise site in mind.
2. I only recall going on one trip with Harry. His interest in UFOs occupied most of his time (90%?). The nuclear section was left largely to its own devices and we worked out amongst ourselves who did what. But the work got done and Mathams seemed satisfied with this.
3. I do not recall the Goulburn event and do not know whether Harry followed up. By that time, I was engrossed in Iraq and its nuclear program, as well as other nuclear matters, so I was not entirely clear what Harry was doing with his UFO investigations.
4. Although I had met Farrands and Barlow they were well above my grade and the subject of UFOs was not raised. I knew John Symonds because he would usually host us when we visited Lucas Heights and occasionally, he would come to Canberra for technical discussions with us. UFOs were never discussed when I was present and although Harry may have had some talks with him, I am not aware of this.
5. See 2 above.
Rod
Hi Rod,
Thank you again for taking the time to answer my questions.
I must say I am dismayed that Harry may have occupied his JIO time as much as 90% with UFO matters.
I suspect when Bob Mathams retired, Harry’s tenure may have reached the end of the nuclear road and tolerance for his UFO obssession faded quickly, making his continuing nuclear section head role in JIO untenable.
I suspect that because of Harry’s rather unique experience set in nuclear matters with Harwell, Maralinga etc in the 1950s, he was an obvious person for a new nuclear section with DSTI/JIO via Bob Mathams. I also suspect that Harry may have had a hand in “head hunting” the British people that seem to make up the section when you came into Harry’s section. Perhaps he knew these people because of his time at UK nuclear institutions.
Would any of the nuclear section people be worth following up with in terms of the knowledge and connections with Harry prior to your arrival?
A final question? Would you have any early pictures of Harry? The only one’s I have were for the 1940s radar school and my photos when we meet in his retirement during the early 2000s. I would have thought given his involvement at Maralinga and in the royal commission, photos of Harry during these 2 periods would have been relatively easy to find. To date, no luck.
Thanking you again for your time, information and patience with my enquiries.
Regards,
Bill
Hi Bill,
I might have been a bit harsh on the amount of time Harry spent on UFOs. Thinking back, I recall a study that he and I made on global nuclear warfare and he was totally committed to that. Even so, if not 90% it must have been close to 70-80%.
You may be right about his decision to leave JIO but he had reached the retirement age anyway.
As far as the recruitment of the Brit nuclear scientists, as I recall only one had spent any time at Harwell and I don’t think that overlapped with Harry. I am not absolutely sure how they were recruited but after they left JIO, it was my job to replace them (by this time I was at a more senior level). We did this simply by advertising in local papers near the establishment we were targeting - we always attracted several applicants.
All of the Brit recruits who knew Harry, are now deceased with the possible exception of one with whom I have lost contact. However, if he is still alive, he would be in his late 90s.
I have no photos of Harry. Of course, cameras in our environment were prohibited/discouraged even when we were out socialising.
Rod
Hi Rod,
Thank you very much for taking the time to clarify your recollections of Harry Turner.
They certainly help me in my research on the long evolution of Harry’s activities and the merits of it all.
Best wishes ,
Bill
I will be returning to further commentary on Harry Turner.
posted by Bill Chalker at9:10 AM 0 comments
Saturday, May 07, 2005
Part of the SUB ROSA picture down under - Harry Turner
Dominic MCNamara of the Disclosure Australia Project took this picture of retired Australian Defence scientist Harry Turner and I in June 2004, during the interview I organised. Harry Turner’s role is extensively described in my document UFOs SUB ROSA DOWN UNDER. The Disclosure Australia interview of Harry Turner undertaken by Dominic and I was discussed in the September 2004 Disclosure newsletter available on line at the Projects web site.
I had been in contact with Harry Turner since 1982 as part of my attempts to unravel the official picture of UFO investigations in Australia.
A hitherto hidden dimension of Harry Turner’s research will be described in my forthcoming book Hair of the Alien specifically his investigation of an Australian contact drama featuring a Canberra woman, which strikingly prefigures key aspects of the abduction drama not revealed until Budd Hopkin’s book “Intruders” emerged in 1987 - such as “hybrid baby presentations” and the idea that a genetic breeding programme was at the heart of the abduction saga. These features were documented in a private capacity by Harry Turner, a nuclear physicist and analyst with the Australian Joint Intelligence Bureau (JIB) of the Department of Defence, during 1971-1972. He made his notes available to me in 2001 and since then I undertook a detailed enquiry into the story - see my chapter “An Early Abduction Odyssey” in Hair of the Alien.
posted by Bill Chalker at7:09 AM 3 comments
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
The Joint Intelligence Organisation (JIO), the Defence Science & Technology Organisation (DSTO), the Sea Fury encounter and UFOs
In a series of reviews, Keith Basterfield describes the contents of Department of Defence file 529/1/16 Part 1 titled “DSTO records of unidentified aerial phenomena”, secured through his persistent efforts and the financial support of UFOR(NSW). The contents were especially interesting to me as they confirmed the picture I had determined in my research and interviews with some of the parties described such as Harry Turner, George Barlow and John Farrands. The DSTO file also supplements the picture described in the JIO file release which Keith also facilitated.
The files confirm that the JIO & DSTO involvement were the legacy of Harry Turner who headed up the nuclear scientist section of DSTI within the JIO. His role was pivotal in the continuing dance that DSTO & JIO had with UFOs.
Harry Turner (photo: B. Chalker)
Harry Turner and Bill Chalker in 2004
I describe the JIO role in my 2007 article “The Joint Intelligence Organisation (JIO) and UFOs - a matter of history” and a follow-up piece in 2008.
In terms of the recent interesting “cold case” of the famous “Sea Fury” encounter of 1954 (which puts forward the idea that Sabre jet aircraft were a possible explanation) I wrote in the 2007 JIO piece:
It was science and technology that drove the drift of JIB into the UFO controversy but the organisation always tried to limit its embrace with the controversy. JIO’s reluctant dance with the UFO spectre had its tentative beginnings back in 1954 with two key events – the secret Turner report on the RAAF’s Directorate of Air Force Intelligence (DAFI) flying saucer files and the striking radar visual Sea Fury encounter. It was Harry Turner who wrote the report – an early “scientific appreciation” of the DAFI “flying saucer” reports. He argued for a serious investigation as the basis of his conclusion that their “unexplained” cases might well have an extraterrestrial basis. All this in a secret 1954 Australian study! The Sea Fury account leaked out into public eye by the end of 1954, but in secret the JIB had undertaken an investigation, one which the key witness – the Sea Fury naval pilot Lieutenant James O’Farrell – did not learn of until 1973 with the visit of former USAF consultant to Project Bluebook Dr. J. Allen Hynek.
Since the Sea Fury aircraft was in 1954 one of the fastest planes in Australian skies the existence of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) that made the Sea Fury look as though it was “standing still”, it was perhaps inevitable that this unidentified technology was of serious concern. However the UFO subject was laden with problems that went far beyond the ambit of intelligence.
I conveyed this to Keith recently in light of the “Sabre” idea pointing out:
If the speed estimate - 1000 knots - put out in the Extraordinary mediated discussions with O’Farrell (the Sea Fury pilot) & Jessop (the Naval radar operator at Nowra) - were accurate then the Sea Fury UFOS/UAPs seem significantly beyond the Sabres, which O’Farrell would have been well aware of. 605 knots maximum speed for the Sabres, then a possible additional 300 knots would perhaps not be sneezed at and would I suspect trigger the “technology” “national security” flags for JIB back in the day. Hence it seems reasonable that a JIB investigation and file resulted.
I think the “SA ufologist” is overselling the suggestion that the Sabre could have readily accounted for the performances & behaviour of the UFOs/UAPs. Again if accurate 1000 knots is a significant factor. The Sea Fury 400 knots, the Sabres 605 knots, the UFOs/UAPs 1000 knots.
I would clearly like to revisit this speculation with more contemporary (1954 - 1955) intelligence & science related data from the JIB files if they are available, to see if it holds up. Bob Mathams told me JIB DSTI (his division) were always on the look out for “foreign technology”, both in comparative and superiority senses. He became JIB’s first scientific intelligence analyst in May 1955 until mid 1957. Wouldn’t surprise me if Matham’s might have been involved at some level in the compilation and analysis of the Sea Fury JIB file. He rejoined JIB in October 1958 at the first head of JIB’s scientific Intelligence branch. He didn’t volunteer anything about a 1954/55 Sea Fury file, but I didn’t know about it back in the mid 1980s.
I also highlighted the Naval News in 1984 reporting on James O’Farrell’s retirement mentioned the existence of the JIO files. In light of this I further highlighted:
It is intriguing that the Navy News in 1984 actually mentions that JIO held a file on the incident, (O’Farrell mentioned them to me in 1991) (Ken) Llewellyn got that sort of info around 1991 or earlier. His book ((“Flight into the Ages”) has a copyright date of 1991, but it did not appear until late February 1992. Llewellyn mangled a bit of it including the date which also confused “The Extraordinary” team until I corrected them. Had O’Farrell been more inclined he could have corrected the errors, but he really wanted to minimise his involvement all round on this. This is why his viewing of the JIO (JOINT) files in 1973 courtesy of Tange would have been the perfect out for O’Farrell, on the eve of his departure for his US role. Had a Sabre connection been the answer it would have been laid out in a JOINT Intelligence analyses. O’Farrell could then had easily declined to meet Hynek despite Tange insistence. Why bother if the files showed a Sabre answer.
It seems apparent and reasonable based on the facts that the Sabre was not the answer and O’Farrell was forced one more time to get into his 1954 experience, despite his clear inclination not to. Apart from the revelations for him in the file about other witnesses (ground witnesses) and the chinograph radar tracings, it seemed it was only his discussions with Farrands that kept his interest on the experience. Otherwise he would have kept it out of sight, out of mind.
I further pointed out:
I think O’Farrell’s & Jessop’s 1954 statements are classic examples of minimalist statements simply to satisfy formal requests for a report. Neither are detailed and Jessop’s statement is very limited. Hence I suspect that Jessop’s reference to O’Farrell not doing a 180 turn could be just a reference to the latter stages of the event, with the earlier part of the event not really detailed, doesn’t eliminate the possibility that O’Farrell did indeed do an orbit. The Jessop document simply doesn’t give us much detail at all. O’Farrell’s statement, while a little more detailed, still lacks analytical detail. I hope that such detail might be in the JIB files, but that remains mere conjecture until we actually sight it. O’Farrell refers to the Chinograph radar tracing. That would be useful to see as well as any further possible analytical detail that may or may not be present.
I recollect that I saw a lot of raw footage from the Extraordinary story including material and interviews with the base commander. I will have to look through my old video archives if I actually have copies of this. I was impressed with the level of research and interviewing that went on for the piece. There was more than just went to air. Finding Jessop allowed O’Farrell, Jessop et.al to try to create an agreed chronology and conversation, plus some analysis leading to the 1000 knots estimate. This eliminates the Sabre I suspect (even if they are only estimates, admittedly from a highly experienced pilot), but again it was not even considered by O’Farrell and others, simply because it didn’t fit. He and others, like most of Australia at the time were well aware of the advent of the Sabre. The timings, deployments and deliveries of the Sabres simply don’t fit as an explanation, and the idea that 2 were involved makes it even more unlikely - risking a pet Wackett/Jones project would have been occupational suicide.
Also for a Sabre not to emerge when Tange gives O’Farrell the JIB files makes the Sabre explanation very unlikely. At that juncture if in deed Sabres had been the answer all along I would not have expected Tange to insist that O’Farrell read the JIB files to refresh his knowledge. A Sabre explanation would not have been secret (certainly by 1973) I would judge. Sure, political and practically touchy at back in 1954, but by 1973 it would have simply been grounds for Tange not to bother about assisting Hynek & O’Farrell. Too many things work against a Sabre explanation, but like the analytical detail, such possibilities, surely would have been covered in a JOINT Intelligence Bureau investigation. On top of all this the 1954 report specifically rule out RAAF aircraft. If one was pedantic one could weakly argue that until they became operational at the RAAF bases, they might not technically be deemed “RAAF aircraft” - not a very compelling argument for Sabre’s as an explanation all round, but if more compelling evidence comes up happy to see it.
So essentially on current information, I don’t see the Sabre as an explanation - indeed even more unlikely with 2 objects (Sabres?) involved. The Sabre project was still in its infancy and it was aircraft pioneer Lawrence Wackett and Air Marshall George Jone’s pet project, indeed it was Wackett’s pivotal achievement - in his autobiography “Aircraft Pioneer” Lawrence Wackett wrote, “after thirty years of pioneering the aircraft industry in Australia, I had reached the climax of my ambition” - his “ambition” “to produce in Australia military aircraft which would be equal to or better than overseas contemporary aircraft.” Given this backdrop, it seems rather likely that no test pilot or RAAF pilot would risk his career doing risky “buzzing” of naval aircraft with Wackett’s “ambition” - the Sabre jet in Australia.
The Sea Fury case seems to have been an important early driver in JIO’s insertion into the secret UFO controversy. The DSTO involvement that supplemented the JIO history confirm the important role that Harry Turner had.
In Keith’s DSTO file review he highlighted:
Sydney researcher, Bill Chalker has described, in a number of references, that in 1969 there was a proposal generated by Harry Turner for a DOD rapid investigation team to investigate UAP. When interviewed by both Bill Chalker, and by the Disclosure Australia project, Turner confirmed that George Barlow was also to be involved in this project.
Thanks to the excellent, earlier work by Sydney based researcher Bill Chalker, and his interviews with Harry Turner, and others, we have long known about some of the material on this file, even though the file itself has only just been released.
However, what we have now, are public copies of official Australian government documents, which, confirm, and build upon, Bill’s earlier work.
posted by Bill Chalker at8:23 AM 0 comments
Monday, January 30, 2017
The Australian scientist who was a potent part of the UFO “Invisible College” - Dr. Michael Duggin (1937-2016) - a tribute
Dr. Michael Duggin (1937 – 2016)
Australian scientist, member of the original “invisible college” study of UFOs, a senior scientist with the US Air Force Research Labs at Kirtland Air Force Base.
(Source: USAF)
I was saddened by the passing of Dr. Michael Duggin in December, 2016. He was a scientist with a strong interest in the UFO mystery, who also worked as a senior scientist for the US Air Force Research Labs at Kirtland Air Force Base from 2001.
Michael Duggin, as a scientist, decided to look into the UFO mystery from about 1966. By 1969 he was grappling with the notorious “scientific study” – the Condon Report - that sought to bury the mystery. Intrigued by the significant number of unexplained cases therein he continued to examine the mystery focusing on physical evidence cases and working with like-minded scientists and competent civilian researchers. Mike Duggin’s trajectory through the UFO controversy curiously resonated with my own, namely my earliest interest was from 1966, 1969 was a major turning point and the 1970s saw me also focusing on physical evidence cases. Dr. Duggin’s interest was therefore always of interest to me and I followed his fascinating career.
THE BOGGABRI GROUND TRACE
I first heard of Dr. Duggin in early 1971 when I was looking into reports of a strange ground trace about 7 miles east of Boggabri found during October 1970. Media and locals were wondering if it was the result of a “flying saucer landing.” As the Soil Conservation Service of New South Wales was reportedly involved I wrote to its nearest office and received a response from Mr. A.F. Clough. In a letter dated 28 January 1971 he advised me that “an eminent scientist “ took an interest in the unusual find. Mr. Clough described the site as “extremely unusual and there was no obvious explanation for its occurrence.” He advised that the Soil Conservation Service (Gunnedah Office) was only involved in directing the scientist to the location. Mr. Clough added, “The scientist did not attempt to arrive at any conclusion, his purpose was to record details of the phenomenon, however, if one was pressed to explain the cause one could only conclude that it resulted from both a primary and secondary lightning strikes during the coinciding period of electrical storms.”
(source: Bill Chalker’s clipping collection)
I contacted Mr. Clough by phone on 4/7/71 and he confirmed that the scientist was Dr. Michael Duggin and that he was a physicist with the CSIRO – the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation – Australia’s premiere science research body.
Years later through his friend and secret UFO research associate Harry Turner I would see Michael Duggin’s detailed field investigation report of the site. In the early 1970s Turner was the head of the nuclear science section of the Joint Intelligence Organisation (JIO – the forerunner of the Defence Intelligence Organisation).
Source: Dr. Duggin’s site photo of the Boggabri site from Harry Turner’s files
During 1973 while on a university holiday with a girlfriend at her family property near Boggabri I learnt from locals that they were still puzzled by the 1971 mystery, but some thought it was the result of a lightning strike. That was also my conclusion as the most likely cause. My friend Dr. Michael Hough wrote a great paper – “Lightning strikes as the cause of some UFO ground traces” presenting it to a UFO conference in Adelaide in October 1981. The article was published in Vladimir Godic’s UFORAN newsletter in the January –February 1982 issue. Mike Hough described the Boggabri find as “clearly” fitting into the category of a lightning strike ground effect.
Source: Dr. Duggin’s site drawing of the Boggabri site from Harry Turner’s files
Dr. Duggin’s detailed report (which Dr. Hough didn’t have access to) was less certain (and Dr. Duggin had examined it on site) and concluded, “It is unlikely that any of the conventional arguments mentioned (meteorite, lightning strike, practical joke, or burrowing animals) would explain the markings … so their cause is not known a this time.” The ground trace “consisted of a ‘crater’ approximately 8 inches deep and about 6 ft in diameter. Inside the crater were several holes, disposed apparently symmetrically about a central hole which was about 4 1/2 ” in diameter.” In a covering letter dated 18 November 1970, to Harry Turner, Mike Duggin concluded, “Although the markings don’t look like a lightning strike, they may not be evidence of a landing either.”
AUSTRALIAN SCIENCE AND THE UFO
Dr. Duggin would again come to my attention with a mainstream Australian science flirtation with the UFO controversy. On 30th 0ctober, 1971, at the campus of the University of Adelaide, the South Australian division of the Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science (ANZAAS) organised a one-day symposium to consider the UFO problem.
The symposium had about 300 attendees and, because of its prestigious backing, attracted widespread publicity. Dr. Brian Horton’s introduction to the ANZAAS symposium pointed out that while the UFO question was on the fringe of our current knowledge and indeed was often ridiculed, it should still be scientifically investigated. He cautioned against forming opinions with incomplete information.
Dr, Duggin was the first speaker presenting a 10-minute “Statement of the problem.” He reviewed major UFO cases from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s as a way of giving a brief history of the UFO subject. Dr. Duggin was critical of the Condon report’s recommendation to discontinue UFO study, principally because the report contained 34% unexplained cases. He concluded, “I feel that there are many cases of reported UFOs which are not explained and feel that the implications, if even a few of these have the described characteristics of flight and maneuverability, warrant further study.”
Dr. Duggin’s main paper, “The Analysis of UFO Reports”, delivered in a 30 minute presentation, called for closer cooperation between UFO organisations and scientists, mentioning that the American organization APRO – the Aerial Phenomena Research Organisation – was “very credible as a scientific body”, stating, “I know and agree with the methods used.” Having joined APRO I soon learnt that Dr. Duggin was a new scientific consultant in physics (APRO Bulletin, November-December 1971).
Michael Duggin was at the time a senior research scientist at the Mineral Physics section of the CSIRO, Sydney. He had obtained his PhD in physics at Monash University In Australia and in 1966 was a post doctoral fellow and assistant Professor in the Department of Material Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. It was during this time he came into contact with Drs J Allen Hynek and Jacques Vallee and began his association with “the invisible college” formed by them.
Dr. Duggin had been secretly working with JIB scientist Harry Turner, sharing information and data. Indeed Harry Turner attended the symposium despite the frustrations he had experienced over the years in his secret attempts to ensure that scientific investigations were undertaken at an official level in Australia.
Because of the lack of concrete action from existing official studies, Dr. Duggin felt it was up to individual scientists to form world-wide panels. He indicated that they could expect to face ridicule from colleagues, but that the UFO phenomenon warranted attention. Dr. Duggin covered some important cases and the state of UFO research in the United States. He restated his criticism of the Condon report conclusion, but considered much of its data as valuable. He pointed out, “If we read the report of the Condon Committee closely and ignore Dr. Condon’s conclusion, there is a strong argument for continued intense research.”
When the Condon Report became available I read through it myself in detail many times over several months via the hardback copy available via the local Grafton city library. It wasn’t until January 1972 that I got my own copy and again analysed it in depth. It was the major disconnection between the significant number of unexplained cases and Dr. Condon’s contradictory recommendations that ensured my own enduring scientific interest in the UFO mystery. It was clear from Dr. Duggin’s comments at the ANZAAS UFO symposium that he had felt the same way.
The following motion was moved at the ANZAAS symposium: “The Symposium as a group feels very strongly that some action on the problem of UFO reports be taken… (and) that the possibility of setting up a subcommittee for the study of UFO reports be considered by the Executive Committee of ANZAAS (S.A. Division).”
This motion was favoured by the divisional committee of ANZAAS in November, 1971. They felt that there was sufficient evidence to demonstrate that there were sightings and evidence for phenomena that had not been adequately explained. The committee concluded there was a need to investigate unexplained sightings and they constituted “an unsolved scientific problem as there were no answers under current hypotheses.”
Dr. Duggin advised APRO that the executive of the SA division of ANZAAS had agreed to “act as referee for research proposals, in the event of funds becoming available, for properly conducted research.”
THE CANTERBURY CLOSE ENCOUNTER
Dr. Duggin’s first striking introduction to UFOs on Australian soil was a daylight disc event in the Sydney suburb of Canterbury. “Sisters hysterical at sighting. WEIRD “SAUCER” OVER CANTERBURY” the Sydney Sun-Herald of March 8th, 1967 reported: “Two sisters described this week how they stood on a veranda together and watched a flying saucer hover over a Canterbury bowling green. They said the saucer was a “strange round thing” and it made a “weird humming sound.”
“It came down to tree-top level and was less than 100 feet from where they stood. The woman who first made the sighting is Mrs. D. Manhood, of Wairoa Street, Canterbury. Her sister, Mrs. R. Coleman, joined her on the veranda seconds later and they watched the saucer’s flight for 10 minutes.”
I came across Dr. Duggin’s report on the case during my access to the RAAF files during 1982 and started to become aware of Dr. Duggin’s deeper and more secret engagement with the UFO subject particularly with the so-called “invisible college.” My friend David Reneke, while he was a member of the local Sydney group UFOIC (known as UFOR(NSW) between 1976 and 1991 – not to mistaken for the group of that name that exists today) had undertaken a retrospective investigation of the case and concluded it was a very impressive close encounter event.
Dr. Duggin’s account of the 1967 Canterbury case included the following details:
“8 March 1967.
“At approximately 10.10 am Mrs. D. Manhood went outside to fetch her small daughter from the vicinity of the bowling green adjoining their residence, as it was raining. At this time Mrs. Manhood observed the described object which came from the left and appeared to pass over the bowling green.
“There were no significant markings and the object appeared to change gradually from circular to elliptical: It was dark grey - black in colour. It was thought to be the size of a small car at tree-top height. If the estimate of size and distance was correct then its speed was less than 30 mph. Mrs. Manhoods initial supposition was that it may have been preparing to land on the bowling green.
“It emitted a noise similar to that given off by a child’s humming top. At the time when Mrs. Manhood left the house to enter the verandah, her sister, Mrs. Coleman, was telephoning Mrs. Manhood’s mother. She joined Mrs. Manhood to tell her that the telephone had gone dead and witnessed the sighting. However (this) could perhaps have been due to a technical fault (as) the PMG were working nearby at the time.
“After approximately 5 minutes, the object, travelling on a level and straight course, passed just over the railway embankment, just above the power lines (it appeared). Three witnesses saw the object pass over the embankment - Mrs. Manhood, Mrs. Coleman and Mrs. Clavis. After about 1.5 minutes, the object again appeared over the embankment and climbed at an angle of about 70 degrees to the horizontal at a fairly good speed. It was observed by the above persons plus Mr. Manhood at this stage. It appeared to become smaller and smaller as it climbed towards a break in the clouds and was finally lost to view after approximately five minutes.”
Dr. Duggin checked with the Weather Bureau, Mascot airfield and Mascot radar. No confirmatory details were found, but a balloon was ruled out. Dr. Duggin concluded, “It is highly improbable that any balloon could (1) change its aspect from circular to oval or elliptical, (2) travel at a low altitude and suddenly climb again, and (3) It is virtually certain that no balloons were in the vicinity of Canterbury at the time of the reported sighting.”
THE EMERGENCE OF AN “INVISIBLE COLLEGE” DOWN UNDER
Dr. Duggin forwarded his Canterbury UFO report to Dr. Allen Hynek. Mike Duggin had recently joined Hynek’s informal international “invisible college” of collaborating scientists. From Dr. Hynek Dr. Duggin had secured a letter of introduction dated 16 November 1966 on Dearborn Observatory, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois stationary. It stated:
“Dr.M. Duggin is collecting information on UFOs and is part of an International effort to collate information on this phenomenon from several countries. For many years I have acted as a scientific monitor on this scientifically vexing problem of UFOs, and a number of colleagues and I have agreed to act as a “clearing house” for the investigation of which Dr. Duggin is a part. Any cooperation which may be expended to Dr. Duggin would be greatly appreciated.
“Sincerely yours, J. Allen Hynek, Director, Dearborn Observatory.”
Dr. Duggin contacted Squadron Leader Baxter of the RAAF in his initial attempts to get official cooperation. In a 20 December, 1966, letter to Sqd. Ldr. Baxter he wrote,
_ “I would like to add a few details to todays telephone conversation. Dr. Vallee, an astronomer at the University of Chicago and Professor J. A Hynek, whom I saw in Chicago a few weeks ago, are very interested in the UFO phenomenon from the point of view of a scientific investigation. So am I and so are many other scientists in other countries. These gentlemen have carefully documented files on many (about 6000) sightings in many different countries. Many of these sightings are doubtful but there are a large number which it has not so far been possible to explain in terms of natural phenomena. These are the cases of interest._
_ “Dr. Vallee has at his disposal a computer program for an automatic question-answering system (which was originally developed for stellar astronomy). He has asked Dr. O. Fontes in Brazil, Professor (sic?) Michel in France, myself and several other scientists in different countries to collect data on sightings and where possible interview those who originate the report in order to determine its reliability and so weight it for future statistical analyses. This information will be coded, so that it can be punched onto an IBM card and later fed onto a magnetic library tape for use with the question-answering system._
_ “Present investigations have indicated the existence of certain patterns in this phenomenon but unfortunately much more data is required before great reliance can be placed on the results of such an investigation. Several reports from isolated observers, contiguous in time and consistent in description, would appear to suggest that perhaps some observations are made sequentially along great circle routes. Again more data is needed._
_ ““Landing” reports have been quite frequent in South America and, I believe, in the Southern hemisphere as a whole._
_ “What is needed is information, (1) as soon as it is turned in, so that the case can be correlated with other information, if possible, at Dearborne Observatory, (2) results of the follow-up._
_ “I would like to investigate cases myself where possible and would be very willing to be of any help I can._
_ “Dr. Hynek is the scientific advisor on UFOs to the U.S. Air Force. I am enclosing a letter from him to substantiate my request. I stress that this is a scientific investigation and that although my interest is extracurricular, I feel that it is very necessary to subject those unexplained phenomena to scientific investigation.”_
The Directorate of Air Force Intelligence (DAFI) reviewed Dr. Duggins request. A Department of Air Minute Paper from Wg. Cdr. N.G. Marshall, D/DAFI (Ops) to DAFI addressed the issue:
_ “You will note that one of the scientists involved in this UFO investigation is Dr. Hynek who is stated to be the scientific advisor on UFOs to the United States. Dr. Duggin, however is acting in an extracurricular capacity._
_ “You will note that these scientists are mainly interested in the unexplained UFOs, but as far as I can make out they would like information on all sightings. As you know, we already have an official arrangement with CSIRO whereby we can pass to them any report on which we would like their assistance, so it would really be only a question of stretching this arrangement slightly to pass them a copy of all reports. However, Dr. Duggin’s interest is un-official as far as CSIRO is concerned and this may cause embarrassment._
_ “These scientists, with all the documents and facilities available to them, are obviously in a position to assist us in this matter, and though I am not keen on releasing the details of the RAAF investigations or anything which may increase the interest of the general public in this field, I think we should give these scientists the information they require. However, although they would like the information as soon as possible, I recommend that we stick to our present system for UFO investigations, i.e. the nearest RAAF Base investigates the report and passes it up through Command Headquarters to Department of Air. If we change the system to allow CSIRO to get a copy of the report before it has completed the RAAF process, we may get two concurrent investigations of the same report.”_
__
(ex RAAF Files)
Annotations to this minute paper indicated, “Seen by DAFI who agrees.” Other file folios indicated that CSIRO were asked if all reports could go to Dr. Duggin and that the CSIRO agreed to Dr. Duggin acting in an unofficial capacity.
Thus Dr. Duggin’s report to Dr. Hynek on an impressive close encounter in 1967 was an extension of the process that had been put into play. The RAAF were sanctioning, albeit sometimes in a token fashion, the activities of the “invisible college” in Australia.
THE INVISIBLE COLLEGE DOWN UNDER TRIES “RAPID INTERVENTION”
Dr. Duggin continued to participate in the “secret college” activities in Australia. In May 1969, at Harry Turner’s suggestion a new RAAF UFO report form was devised which was intended to give a more scientific slant to the reports. At this time Turner was working with other scientists to set up a “rapid intervention” team to scientifically investigate cases of UFO physical evidence. A firm proposal was developed with the team to operate within the Defence Science and Technical Organisation (DSTO). The team was to consist of 4 or 5 scientists, with its mainstay to be rapid intervention into UFO “landing” events, for which an aircraft was to be on standby. Turner, in a memo dated November 8th, 1969, to the Director of JIB, indicated that he had Dr. Morton from ANU, Dr. John Symonds from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission and Dr. Mike Duggin, then of the National Standards Laboratory. George Barlow, of Defence Science and Technology (DST) had also offered the help of his group. Turner indicated that Arthur Wills, then Chief Defence Scientist “had agreed to this.” The plans for the scientific team had been almost completed and authorisation to proceed appeared imminent. However fate had already intervened.
In the middle of 1969 a major flap broke out in Western Australia, centred in Perth. One of the reports included an impressive radar visual event at Cloverdale and tracked on Kalamunda radar on May 23rd. The Director of Air Force Intelligence felt that things had gotten out of control and made an appeal for the Defence “intervention” group to assist. Unfortunately the group had not been finalised, and Harry Turner was seconded to help out. Turner found the radar case intriguing. As a physicist and analyst for the JIB, he concluded, “Neither the Kalamunda radar observation nor Mrs. C__’s sighting can be readily explained by conventional objects or phenomena.” His report also in part criticised the DAFI system for handling UFO reports, in particular referring to the lack of assistance given to the Air Force Intelligence officer “on the spot.”
Dr. Duggin conducted a detailed investigation of a controversial UFO photographic case during the same 1969 West Australian UFO wave – the Spackman photo case that occurred on 5 July – and copied Harry Turner. They were working closely together in secret and exchanged extensive correspondence on a range of cases, mainly physical traces or ground markings, such as near Bogabbri (1970) and La Perouse St. Michaels Golf Club course (June 1969). Dr. Duggin developed a detailed report on the latter case, but like the Bogabbri site there was no explicit UFO connection.
THE SPACKMAN UFO PHOTOS
The Spackman photo case was more confronting and controversial. Jacques Vallee in a 15 November 1969 letter to Mike Duggin injects a note of caution likening the photos to the notorious Paul Villa photos:
“The photographs: the blurring does seem to indicate a genuine physical object was involved, but the similarity between the scene shown here and the celebrated AFSCA hoax (printed as a colour postcard series some years ago) makes me a bit uncomfortable. As you may recall, this also showed a parked car with an open door in the foreground, and an object behind some trees. We should try to get more details on the witness and the circumstances of the event.”
Some of the Paul Villa photos including the on edge shot
(similar to the orientation captured in one of the Spackman photos)
and the open car door shot
The Australian public were introduced to part of the Villa photo series, as black and white reproductions in Richard Tambling’s 1967 Horwitz paperback “Flying Saucers – Where do they come from?” The open car door Villa photo was not included but the Villa disc on edge shot was. This seemed similar to the main Spackman photo which showed the UFO as a disc on edge with the Spackman vehicle in view with the door open.
Dr. Duggin sent his report on the Spackman photos to Harry Turner on 3 November 1969 and asked him to see if some reliable person could contact Spackman. It seems he had also sent the report and copies of the photos to Jacques Vallee, hence the comments above. Turner had concentrated on the Cloverdale radar visual case during his WA investigations.
In his report Dr. Duggin indicated:
“Mr Peter John Spackman and his wife report seeing and photographing a UFO near Roylstone, in the Darling Ranges, W.A. This suburb is about 20 miles E.S.E. of Perth.
“The sighting was made at 4.40 pm, and last 40 minutes….
“Three photographs were taken with a Polaroid camera, all of which are of rather poor quality. The first shot shows about 2/3 of the object and is quite distinct. The second photograph is of poor quality and is burned where a cigarette was dropped upon it by Mr Spackman in his haste. The third photograph is blurred but useful.
“The weather was dry with scattered cloud and the object appeared solid and sharply outlined.
“The object was in front of the clouds but did disappear into them twice during the sighting. It did stand still and then suddenly speed up and rush away …. The object emitted no sound at any time, was silver, metallic and rough on top. It was highly reflective. Part of the observations were made through binoculars, part with the naked eye and part through the viewfinder of the Polaroid camera. Mr. Spackman’s wife corroborates the sighting.”
Peter Spackman’s drawing in Dr. Duggin’s report (via Harry Turner’s file
The 3 Spackman photos (the first 2 are from low quality photocopies) (via Harry Turner’s files)
In his report in RAAF files Peter Spackman indicated he “was terribly conscious of weight and power of the craft. He stated that it appeared as if it were out of place in the sky and should not be capable of light.”
Dr Duggin in his preliminary report assessed the situation, “Mr Spackman appears to be genuine and sincere and has suffered from adverse publicity. He has little to gain from a hoax. The photographs are Polaroid shots and are therefore of real objects. It is of interest that all of the photographs show an apparent object angular diameter of 2** °** of an arc. The burned photograph gives a ring of sincereity, coupled with the fact that on the first shot, development of the part of the photograph not containing the object was incomplete. This is consistent with a man in a strange situation, overexcited and slightly uncoordinated as a result of this. A careful hoaxer would make several dozen photographs of a man-made object, select the best and use those as evidence. My feeling is that this is not a hoax.”
I had seen the “Current Affair” coverage of the story soon after the original incident. I was both intrigued and puzzled with the inadvertent (?) burn marking of the second photo, precisely where the UFO was captured, making me somewhat suspicious of the story.
The RAAF were contacted by an apparently independent witness, a Mrs. Diane Martin, who may have seen Peter Spackman and the UFO. She claims to have driven past the sighting location, almost running over a man who came out the scrub on the side of the road while she observing the UFO. She was also aware of other cars passing during the incident. She said her observations were only fleeting, losing sight of the object, as she was unable to stop. She also states she went back to the site and found black polaroid backing material – Spackman’s? Mrs. Martin described the object as “mushroom shaped but contoured underneath with a short cubic stem.” However apart from some limited follow-up on this aspect by the RAAF, researchers did not appear to have fully investigated this potentially critical aspect of sighting corroboration. RAAF Flying Officer B.J. Gardiner in his “unit evaluation” wrote, “May have been a hoax but if so was one of great size size and complexity” (referring to Mrs. Martin’s apparent confirmation). He reported that he closely examined the original Spackman polaroids and stated, “There does not appear to be any doubt that it is a genuine photograph of what the observer saw (and he saw Mrs. Martin’s sighting as) additional evidence that at the time on the date stated, an unusual aerial object was present in the Roleystone district.”
Diane Martin’s report from RAAF file
Even though I had concerns about the case I tried to follow up the case in the 1980s but was unable to locate the Spackmans or Mrs. Martin. Maybe both parties might respond to this article or others who may have investigated the case or were involved in some way could come forward to help illuminate this fascinating event (Peter Spackman would be 71, his wife’s age was unstated in the material I have seen and Diane Martin would be 81) – a potential multiple and independently witnessed and photographed close encounter?
FALLOUT
The 1969 WA UFO wave was fascinating and extraordinary. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, however at the time the DAFI “empire” was under threat. The Air Force did not take kindly to criticism, particularly when it came from what DAFI saw as an “outsider” a JIB scientist. The upshot of this was that Harry Turner’s access to the DAFI UFO files was withdrawn. This sorry turn of events occurred despite the lack of interest that the then Director of Air Force Intelligence (DAFI) Gp Capt R.S. Royston had in the subject. Royston’s attitude was described in a July 1971 memo: “Although I am directly concerned with any possible threat to Australian security, I am not particularly interested in the subject of UFOs, even though my directorate devotes valuable time to this problem. I accept the US assessments without question and consider that it would be a complete waste for we here in Australia to spend valuable time and money in further detailed investigations. However, should the Department of Supply wish to undertake such studies the records of this directorate would be freely available. It would have to be pointed out to Supply, however, that the RAAF could provide no additional assistance in the matter and Supply would have to undertake all the facets of the further investigations.”
After this time the RAAF/DOD “scientific” flourishes were very limited. Harry Turner continued worked in secret with Dr. Duggin.
On 24 August 1973 both Turner and Duggin attended a Department of Defence Directorate of Air Force Intelligence meeting with Dr. J. Allen Hynek. Dr. Hynek was visiting Australia for both astronomical and UFO reasons, and also promoted his book “The UFOs Experience – A scientific Enquiry.” The meeting was described as “an unofficial meeting…in an endeavour to expand the scientific relationship to the problem.” A DAFI file note “DAFI suggested that CSIRO or the Dept of Science (but preferably the former) seemed to be logical agencies to conduct greater in depth investigation in Australia. DAFI agreed that a selection of reports (mainly those which were unanswerable and scientific in context) could possibly be made available to CSIRO for further study and computerization.”
(ex RAAF files)
Given the history of the RAAF’s myopic dance with the UFO problem nothing seemed to come of these attempts to get a real UFO science going. Harry Turner would retire from his head of nuclear intelligence section JIO role by the mid 1970s, finally giving up on his secret war within military and scientific intelligence community to establish a credible scientific investigation of UFOs.
Mike Duggin pursued the “invisible college” agenda for some time in the United States, while working as an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Resources and Forest Engineering, Division of Engineering, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, State University of New York, Syracuse, USA, but his career and scientific focuses largely limited his UFO interests.
It was during that time (16 January 1993) I managed to interview him by phone about the secret attempts to do UFO science in Australia. He was working at State University and was focusing on computer modeling and image processing. He highlighted in his recollections the Boggabri and golf course trace cases as well as the 1978 Valentich affair. Indeed Dr. Richard Haines’ 1987 book “Melbourne Episode – Case Study of a missing pilot” acknowledges Dr. Duggin’s involvement but the nature of his contribution was not described in the book, apart from, like me, being listed as a “UFO investigator,” as were Paul Norman, Keith Basterfield, James Kibel, Alan Tasker, Paul Jackson, Rocky Wood, Roger Thornwell, D. Anderiesz and Erling Jensen. Duggin in 1978 was at the Minerals Research Laboratories of the CSIRO at North Ryde, Sydney.
Mike Duggin told me in 1993 he felt the same way as Jacques Vallee, Harry Turner and Allen Hynek. He also indicated he stayed with Allen Hynek in Chicago soon after the famous Pascagoula “alien abduction” case and listened to the Pascagoula interview tape. While Jacques Vallee’s “Forbidden Science” journal Volume 2, covering the 1970s, describes the Pascagoula milieu, he only records 2 separate visits from Mike Duggin:
18 October 1971:
“Mike Duggin, Australian scientist and UFO expert, came to see me at the Electronic Labs … I demonstrated by full-text landing catalogue to him. Duggin has just completed a tour of the U.S. during which he met with the leaders of both NICAP and APRO. The last time I saw Duggin was in Chicago (November 1966). Olavo Fontes was with us that day: so many passing faces, and hopes that led nowhere …”
12 April 1974:
“I had lunch in Menlo Park with Australian researcher Mike Duggin, who gave me a well-documented picture of the UFO phenomenon there. They have a rich history of sightings, good investigations and some troubling photographs.”
Although unstated I suspect one of the troubling photos would have been the 1969 Spackman polaroid photos. In my 1993 interview with Mike Duggin he said his approach was conservative. He mentioned he had met Peter Spackman in person. Spackman wanted his photos back. He seemed approachable, started showing interest, but with more questions he clammed up. Duggin was a little suspicious and felt the Spackman incident and photos were “inconclusive.”
Mike Duggin told me he never had any problems with his UFO interest while at the CSIRO. He couldn’t understand “why it was unfashionable to look at it. Speculation would have been unscientific.” He was cautious because of the “wild eyed” approach he encountered in some of the people attending the public 1971 ANZAAS UFO symposium. He particularly remembered “one guy who was bizarre, full of bizarre obsession and unbelievable stories.” He thought, _“logical pursuit was eclipsed by pursuit or desire.” _Dr. Duggin shrank away from this, but not from his UFO interest. Here it may have been long time UFO researcher Colin Norris he was referring to. Colin Norris had actually given a talk at the symposium describing “some reported characteristics of UFO sighting around the world.”
When I told him I had examined the RAAF UFO files in detail between 1982 and 1984 and that was how I found Harry Turner, Mike Duggin told me he had not looked at the RAAF files. So it appeared that the 1967 agreement by the RAAF/Dr. Duggin/CSIRO to share files was apparently limited and apparently short lived. He and Harry were intrigued by James McDonald’s research and Dr. Duggin had approached his widow who agreed to allow him to copy, in particular the radar files her husband had collected. Dr. Duggin preferred to focus on investigation of cases. He gave me permission to quote from his material.
From Harry Turner I secured copies of files he kept of his collaboration with Dr. Michael Duggin. They revealed a fascinating picture of two scientists trying to get to the bottom of the UFO mystery.
Upon learning of Michael Duggin’s passing I contacted Dr. Jacques Vallee. He told me he had only limited contact with him and was unaware of Dr. Duggin’s next big vocational move where he joined DARPA in 2002 serving as a senior scientist in the Space Vehicles Directorate, at the US Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, USA. Kirtland has been the focus of a number of controversial UFO affairs, particularly the bizarre and tragic Bennewitz saga, described in Greg Bishop’s 2005 book “Project Beta.” Christian Lambright’s intriguing 2011 book “X Descending” engages with Paul Bennewitz’s controversial films over Kirtland in very interesting ways including the work of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The Bennewitz saga played out in the late 1970s before Mike Duggin had joined the AFRL.
Examining some of Dr. Duggin’s work during his Kirtland career from 2002 to 2016 some intriguing connections emerge. He participated in imaging research and the titles of some of his papers he collaborated in make one wonder: “Modeling the effects of solar cell distribution on optical cross section for solar panel simulation” (2012) and “A Study of the effects of material type and configuration on optical cross section” (2011-12), which re-engaged with his enduring focus on imaging of objects in the atmosphere and space.
Amongst the condolences and tributes to Michael Duggin I noticed one from Major General W. Neil McCasland USAF, (the head of AFRL) where he stated Dr. Duggin “brought a welcome scientific depth to our AFRL team, and the results of his research contributions continue embedded in new operational capability of vital US National Security space systems. His Australian good cheer rubbed off on all to.”
Maj Gen McCasland has been reported as involved with Tom DeLonge’s “disclosure” activities. I also noted that Jacques Vallee had written a forward to a follow-up non-fiction book in DeLonge’s “Sekret Machines” series, due out in March 2017: “Gods, Man, & War - An Official Sekret Machines Investigation of the UFO phenomenon” by Tom DeLonge with Peter Levenda. Tom DeLonge seems an unlikely front man for this and the possible military involvement invites thoughts of Jacques Vallee’s perspectives in his “Revelations – Alien Contact and Human Deception” (1991). I asked Dr. Jacques Vallee whether he saw these recent developments as having more substance than the “mirages”, “missteps” and “misdirections” that litter the history of this controversy. I mentioned his own “Forbidden Journals” told a story that seemed rooted in frustration in the efforts to get a credible and enduring “scientific ufology” effort up and running in a serious way. Jacques Vallee kindly replied, “Dear Bill, my decision to write a foreword to Peter Levenda’s book was based on the fact that his analysis seems quite valuable to me, and worthy of being called to the attention of researchers. It had nothing to do with Tom Delonge’s project, which is much more ambitious as you know. I am interested in the direction “To The Stars” will take, however, and I am impressed by the energy and vision of Tom Delonge. Beyond that, I have no connection to his current plans. With warm regards, Jacques. ”
Given Peter Levenda’s writing focus it may be that his 3 part non-fiction contribution to the Sekret Machines project may be of an occult conspiracy nature (for example his 3 book series “Sinister Forces – A Gimoire of American Political Witchcraft” which feature coverage of the UFO subject, and The Dark Lord – H.P. Lovecraft, Kenneth Grant and the Typhonian Tradition in Magic.”). Occult approaches were never an apparent feature of Michael Duggin’s UFO work.
I am left wondering if in Michael Duggin’s “sub rosa” years with DARPA/AFRL he re-engaged with a mystery he sort to examine in a serious scientific way since the 1960s. Perhaps time will tell. But now here I give a sincere appreciation to a life well lived which for a long time engaged with a mystery that has also fascinated me most of my life. I thank him for both aspects of a great life and his indirect mentoring of my own engagement with the UFO mystery.
posted by Bill Chalker at7:27 AM 0 comments