The Ministry of Defence has released its final batch of UFO files, ending over 50 years of cataloguing sightings and inquiries. The documents, now available at the National Archives, include reports of triangular lights over Wales, a man claiming to live with an alien in Carlisle, and a Cardiff man who said a UFO took his dog, car and tent while camping in 2007.
Despite public fascination, the MoD repeatedly stated it had no expertise in extraterrestrial matters and remained 'totally open-minded'. Reports were examined solely for potential defence significance. One 2008 letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown asked whether the British people had a right to know about alien contact; it was forwarded to RAF Air Command.
The files reveal a surge in sightings attributed to Chinese lanterns. Between 2000 and 2007, the MoD received around 150 reports annually, but by November 2009, when the UFO hotline closed, that rate had trebled. An official noted that a 2009 sighting at Tern Hill barracks likely involved lanterns released by a local hotel.
David Clarke, author of 'The UFO Files', described UFOs as a 'social phenomenon', with increased public awareness driving more reports. The MoD concluded in 2009 that no UFO report in over 50 years had revealed any threat to the UK, making further investigation an 'inappropriate use of defence resources'.
