I proceeded to the Gunnery School where the
large telescope was focused on the UFO in question. The UFO was cylindrical, pewter
coloured with very little, if any, light being reflected from its surface and apparently
stationary for varying periods of time. There appeared to be on very close examination,
satellite objects of a much smaller variety, which appeared in close proximity to the
principle UFO but which were not constantly in view, either because they were mobile or
possibly because after prolonged study of the phenomenon, one's eyes tended to betray one.
When the UFO would disappear, it was with a
rapid horizontal movement to port, so rapid that it was not possible to track it with the
telescope in use. The UFO bearing was taken (it appeared to hang on the horizon in a
southerly direction the vicinity of Tacoma, Washington). From the location of our
observation point (high on a mound) the UFO was over open water of the Straights of Juan
de Fuca.
Upon questioning CPO Boomer, I learned that
this sighting was a reoccurrence of a previous identical one. In one instance, the gunnery
students were working with jet fighters from CFB Comox and a request was made that they
investigate but this was out of the question as the object appeared to be of such a
distance that it would have been in US air space. I later learned that pilots of Canadian
Forces aircraft were forbidden by SOP orders to engage UFOs. At no time, to my knowledge,
did this particular UFO appear on the radar of the naval establishment at Esquimalt but
this may be because of lack of cooperation by those in charge of that facility (the
operations officer refused to believe me when I requested his assistance even to the point
of not entering the incident in the daily log).
Believing that this episode had reached its
conclusion, I returned to my office in HM Dockyard only to be called again on the same day
with the message that the UFO had "returned" and had been found by one of the
students in the course of tracking a target on the telescope. In short, the UFO was around
for the next couple of days and I had various members of my staff observe it along with my
wife. An experiment was carried out to see if reflections were being caused from cars in a
parking lot in the vicinity of our observation mound as the bright sun did hit some
windshields giving off a dazzling light. There was no connection.
The Dominion Observatory in Saanich (near
Victoria) was contacted and asked to set their giant telescope on the bearings we had
noted. Unfortunately, their telescope could not depress at such a low angle. I might add
that it was with great reluctance and skepticism that a representative was sent to see our
UFO. He arrived, he saw and he left - without comment.
A further test to ensure that there was not
a cracked prism or a chip in the glass was done in which the chip might look like an
object but this proved negative. The lenses were unblemished.
I had been in touch with my headquarters in
Ottawa over the incident and eventually, abiding by instructions contained in Canadian
Forces Orders (CFOs) on the procedure to follow in the sighting of UFOs, a message was
sent to the National Research Council (NRC) in Ottawa giving all sighting data, times,
bearings, dates, descriptions, etc.
On my own initiative I spoke with the
departments of some of the various police forces of the Lower mainland and the Victoria
area. There was a police sergeant of the Saanich Police who had an experience to relate
witnessed by him and his wife but this had nothing to do with my own. UFO sightings were
reported over Washington by radio stations in that state during the same time-period. I
later learned from radar personnel at CFB North Bay, the UFOs had been tracked on several
occasions by CF radar at the base in the past.
I have in my possession, a copy of my
message to the NRC, along with the signed statements and sketches made by gunnery students
and instructors concerning the Esquimalt sightings. These are in storage in California.
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