By John Mikkelsen
With no clear end in view to the Middle East war, critics are probably partly right in claiming US President Donald Trump has chosen to release numerous files of UFO sightings as an attempt to divert public gaze from stalled peace talks with Iran.
Well at the outset I’ll put my hand up and declare I’m no sceptic and as usual with my contributions, I have some skin in the game. Yes, I saw a UFO on a deserted island beach in Central Queensland about 20 years ago.
My blue heeler-cross best mate Dylan and I were enjoying a walk on a long, deserted stretch of sand on Wild Cattle Island at the entrance to Gladstone Harbour, one of Queensland’s busiest shipping ports, when an object emerged from above the tree line about half a kilometer to the south. It was black and wedge-shaped and it just hovered motionless maybe 100 metres or so above the beach.
I had some binoculars in my back-pack but while I was reaching for them to get a better look, it suddenly zoomed off out to sea without a sound and disappeared over the horizon.
What the —-? I knew that the big international war games Operation Talisman Sabre were in progress at Shoalwater Bay north of Rockhampton … could it have been a stealth bomber? Could they move like that? (Doubtful). Could it have been an unknown observer from God knows where?
Seeking some answers, as soon as I got home I phoned the civil aviation authorities and reported what I had seen. They informed me there were no known civilian or military aircraft operating in that designated area at that time. So officially it was “an unidentified flying object” and I had joined the ranks of people from all walks of life including numerous military and civilian pilots who have reported seeing one. And no, I hadn’t been drinking.
Even if the timing of the latest US release of numerous UFO sightings is questionable, the concept is nothing new, as shown in an article I wrote five years ago:
“ Meanwhile the US military has gone from the days of ‘deny everything’ that was the mantra of its long running Project Blue Book dating back to the 1950’s, to an admission that UFO’s are an inexplicable reality.
“This BBC report from June 25, 2021 states: “A highly anticipated US government report on UFOs (unidentified flying objects) has just been released. Here’s what we know so far.
“The unclassified report was demanded by Congress after numerous reports from the US military of vehicles seen moving erratically in the sky.
“It also follows a cultural shift that saw the US military and US political leadership go from extra-terrestrial-sceptic to ET-curious.
“But with little conclusive evidence to confirm or deny any intergalactic visitations, it remains to be seen whether any earthling minds will change.
“Military leaders warn that the technology, if not alien, may belong to US adversaries such as Russia or China.
“The UAP task force’s unclassified report found ‘no clear indications that there is any non-terrestrial explanation’ for the aircrafts, but also did not rule it out…”
Not much has changed since then, despite the flood of new sightings. These contain more than 160 declassified files from the FBI, NASA and the Pentagon, including investigative cases, radar data, sensor videos and military mission reports. They feature incidents dating back to the 1940s, including a 1947 report of “flying discs” and transcripts from Apollo mission astronauts who reported mysterious lights and unidentified phenomena in space.
According to Science News, “The mechanism behind the flashes described by Apollo astronauts remains a mystery. Perhaps the particles, which are components of cosmic rays, emit radiation as they pass through part of the eye. Or perhaps they trick nerve cells to create the illusion of light. However the flashes happen, they are still an issue for astronauts…” https://www.sciencenews.org/article/cosmic-rays-apollo-astronauts-light-flashes
Among the new files are videos and reports from 2024, including infrared sensor footage from U.S. military platforms and a report of a “football-shaped” object near Japan.
The administration framed this as “an historic transparency effort”, but officials and experts note the files offer no conclusive evidence of alien life or confirmed alien technology, and many unresolved cases are simply due to “incomplete data.”
UFO sightings occurred during World War 2 which is where the term “Foo Fighters” originated before it was purloined by a 90s alternative rock band formed by Nirvana drummer, Dave Grohl.
On November 27 1944, a Bristol Beaufighter crew from the 415th squadron—consisting of pilot Edward Schlueter, radar operator Donald J. Meiers, and intelligence officer Fred Ringwald—was flying a night mission along the Rhine River near Strasbourg. While the Beaufighter was structurally designed for a standard crew of two, this particular night-interception mission carried an extra person to monitor tactical operations.]
The crew spotted about 10 glowing, orange fireballs moving at extreme speeds off their left wing. The objects could not be tracked on airborne radar or by ground control. When the pilot turned toward the lights, they vanished and reappeared further away. Meiers coined the term Foo Fighters from a futuristic comic strip back in the day and the term stuck. Scientists, military analysts, and postwar investigators, including the Robertson Panel, suggested that the mysterious 1944 “foo fighter” sightings could be electrostatic phenomena similar to St. Elmo’s fire, ball lightning, or light reflecting off ice crystals. However, Allied pilots strongly rejected this theory.
Well, with a limitless universe I don’t find it hard to believe that somewhere out there, maybe there could be life forms more advanced and certainly more intelligent than ours. I can imagine them shaking their heads and doing their version of a ‘Kamala cackle’ at our adherence to beliefs including limiting climate variance to within a couple of degrees over the next century by spending multiple $trillions on unreliable, expensive and short-life “green energy” while we have boundless quantities of real, reliable, cheap energy beneath our feet.
Project Blue Book in the US investigated about 13,000 cases from 1959 to 1962, with more than 700 remaining unexplained, and it formed the basis of an excellent TV series on SBS several years ago.
Prominent astronomer, Dr. J. Allen Hynek, served as the project’s scientific advisor. Originally a staunch sceptic hired to easily explain away sightings, he eventually transitioned into a firm believer in the need for serious, systematic study of UFOs. But its investigations were limited to the US and it didn’t probe Ausltralia’s largest known UFO sighting at two Melbourne schools.
The 60th anniversary of this event was recently covered by media outlets including the ABC. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-06/westall-ufo-mystery-witnesses-want-answers/106126614
On April 6, 1966, more than 200 students and staff at Westall High School and the adjacent primary school in Melbourne reported seeing multiple metallic, disc-shaped objects in broad daylight.
The incident has since become a major topic in Melbourne’s south-east, prompting ongoing searches for an official explanation. Don’t hold your breath …
Witnesses described the object as a large, circular, silvery craft that moved at incredible speeds. Some students and staff reported seeing up to three objects, and alleged that government officials intimidated them into keeping silent while they confiscated photographs.
One can only wonder why, except it seems to parallel the treatment of some sightings covered by Project Blue Book and attempts by the authorities to explain them away as natural phenomena.
Cue the X Files theme. The truth is out there, Scully and Donald!
John Mikkelsen is a former editor of three Queensland regional newspapers, columnist, freelance writer and author of the Amazon Books Memoir, Don’t Call Me Nev. (https://www.amazon.com.au/Dont-Call-Nev-John-Mikkelsen/dp/B09S244GP1/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?
