APRIL 1998
APRIL 1998 GRAFTON, NSW (NL)
(Source: Barry Taylor, 28.05.98)
Mr. M reported a white light and small single objects at high altitude travelling at very fast speed going form the South to the North, and sometimes North to South at various times during April 1998.
APRIL 1998 GRAFTON, NSW 0445hrs (NL)
(Source: Barry Taylor, 28.05.98. Response from Flap Newspaper article. Saturday 09.04.98)
Mr. Frank B of Grafton rang about a strange sighting that he had witnessed one morning (4.45am) early in April. He was casually observing the clear starry early morning sky, when he noticed a very bright white stationery light, at low altitude over the top of his house. He was amazed to see it suddenly shoot off at great speed, leaving a faint orange trail. This trail "dissipated as if erased with a rubber"
APRIL 1998 BRISBANE (DECEPTION BAY), QLD ca.MIDNIGHT (NL)
(Source: Personal Investigation by Robert Frola)
In April 1998, Allan had gone to the bathroom around midnight when he noticed moving stars from his window. The stars were yellow/red in the northwestern sky, positioned three above and two below, low on the horizon. He called his wife, who also saw them.
02.04.98 ADELAIDE, SA 2300hrs (NL)
(Source: April 1998 National Geographic magazine)
Two UFO sightings were reported near Adelaide on 2 April 1998. At 11.00 pm, residents of Mallala, reported sighting a flashing light in the northern sky. The illumination flashed each time for about 21 seconds, and it was about 70-degrees above the horizon.
04.04.98 DURREM, SA 0400hrs (NL)
(Source: April 1998 National Geographic magazine)
On 4 April 1998, witnesses near Durrem, reported seeing a large white illumination in a holding pattern hovering above a paddock at 4.00 am. While the UFO hovered, small red lights came out of the ground and rose up into the larger illumination.
04.04.98 MELBOURNE (HEALESVILLE), VIC 2230hrs (NL)
Residents of Healesville, spotted a fluorescent green illumination crossing the northern sky. The UFO flew very quickly and travelled from the east to the north, taking about five seconds to pass. There was no sound, no tail and no trail. The witnesses described it as ‘a green fireball’. It appeared to be the size of a half-moon. John Hayes
06.04.98 GRAFTON, NSW 2000hrs (NL)
On 6 April 1998, ufologist Barry Taylor reported, “While skywatching I observed a group of eight star-like objects moving in formation. All eight objects would drop back, move across and then forward within the formation, weaving around each other”. The UFO formation was seen just west of Grafton at 8.00 pm, and the objects were heading south at an estimated altitude of 4,000 to 5,000 feet. Barry Taylor
08.04.98 SYDNEY (SUTHERLAND), NSW 2223hrs (NL)
(Source: ISUR)
On 8 April 1998 Kaan Kivilcim observed a UFO while at the Sutherland cricket grounds in Sydney, at 10.23 pm. The UFO was weird like a fireball coming through the atmosphere then it went from a red colour to a blue colour and zipped off the coast. Kaan Kivilcim
10.04.98 COUTTS CROSSING, NSW 0400hrs (NL)
(Source: Barry Taylor, 28.05.98)
Mr. M of Coutts Crossing noticed a large bright yellowish/orange light to the East towards the coast. He sighted to light against a verandah post and said it appeared to move very slowly. It went down 50mm (2in) compared to a point on the post, went back up than returned to its original position. Observation time 10 minutes.
17.04.98 LEICHHARDT, QLD 1415hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
A man observed a silvery chrome disk shaped object moving west, skipping through clouds. The object was seen for 2 to 3 seconds, moving fast, and seeming to dart from cloud cover. Its apparent size was that of a thumb nail at arm's length, and there was a lot of cloud in the sky. The object seemed to be inside the air space of Amberley Air Base.
17.04.98 Pittsworth, QLD 2040 hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
Three witnesses, one a pilot observed an object emitting white flashes and moving in an erratic path to the northwest. It was observed for about 10 minutes at an estimated altitude of 30,000 feet. No noise was heard, and the object appeared round and banana shaped at various times.
18.04.98 GRAFTON, NSW 1910hrs (NL)
On 18 April 1998, at 7.10 pm, Taylor spotted another formation, “same size group... at about 1,000 feet or less”, heading south. The object travelled at one kilometre per second, or 3,600 kilometres per hour. Barry Taylor
19.04.98 GRAFTON, NSW 1835hrs (NL)
On 19 April 1998, at 6.35 pm, Taylor reported, “I decided to begin skywatching early and I am glad that I did. Directly overhead at an altitude of about 4,000 feet, a large V formation of about 30 objects was moving south. Each object was holding its position... but ‘buffeting’ a little in perpendicular. Their colour was a moderately bright yellowish-white. The formation’s size was about 15 centimetres at arm’s length. I took five photos during the 10-second sighting”. Barry Taylor
19.04.98 nr. GRAFTON, NSW 1900hrs (NL)
(Source: Barry Taylor, 28.05.98)
On 19 April 1998 Mrs W., her daughter and a neighbour watched as two or three round illuminated white objects were quietly manoeuvring at low altitude in the western sky at 7:30 pm. The UFOs were heading into the Grafton area. As they watched, the objects appeared to be heading in one direction, and then suddenly appeared to be going in the opposite direction, as if they were circling. The three witnesses watched the objects for about 15 minutes.
19.04.98 MORNINGSIDE, QLD 1900hrs - 2000 hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
On a Saturday night two witnesses saw an object to the south with a red light on its bottom. It did not seem to be very far away, and moved very slowly. The object had what looked like windows and was observed for about an hour.
20.04.98 GRAFTON, NSW 1850hrs (NL)
On 20 April 1998, at 6.50 pm, Taylor was ready for another photo shoot. Pictures of the big formation taken with 400 ASA Fuji film hadn’t come out, so he switched to 800 ASA for his Canon 55mm camera with its f2 lens. That night, he spied a group of seven or eight UFOs. They came from the north, turned west just before the Grafton city limits and headed north again. They were moving very fast, and the formation shifted from horizontal to vertical. He took about a dozen photos of the first pass, and the shutter speed was 1/15 second to 1/8 second. Barry Taylor
21.04.98 GRAFTON, NSW 2120hrs (NL)
On 21 April 1998, Taylor spied a group of UFOs at 9.20 pm at approximately 6,000 to 8,000 feet, heading south in V formation. The speed was about 5,000 kilometres per hour and a second group passed by twenty seconds later. Plotting their course on a map, Taylor calculated that an unchanged course would take the UFOs to Sydney or Katoomba. Barry Taylor
22.04.98 SUNSHINE COAST (BEERWAH), QLD 1840hrs (NL)
(Source: Glennys Mackay, QUFON)
The witness was a retired air force captain, who had worked on radar for many years.
On 22 April 1998, at 6.40 pm, the witness, from Beerwah, was walking his dog, accompanied by his grandson, when a huge light appeared in the north flying at a phenomenal speed. When it passed overhead he claimed the light from underneath lit up the surrounding area and would have been about twenty feet across. It crossed the path of an airliner coming into the Maroochydore Airport. As it passed over the Glass House Mountains it became a ball of light emitting red, green and blue lights. It seemed to have left a long white trail behind it. He reported that it was a clear night with no clouds in the sky. Glennys Mackay QUFON
22.04.98 BRIBIE ISLAND, QLD 1840hrs (NL)
(Source: Glennys Mackay, QUFON)
In Bribie Island the same description was given by other witnesses. Glennys Mackay QUFON
22.04.98 HERVEY BAY, QLD 1840hrs (NL)
(Source: Glennys Mackay, QUFON)
At the same time, in Hervey Bay, five people witnessed a huge light travelling at an amazing speed, and it seemed to change direction. Glennys Mackay QUFON
22.04.98 SCARBOROUGH, QLD 1826hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
The son of a committee member observed a white object, looking like a pea, move east to west, for about 2 seconds. As he watched, the object seemed to break up into a number of coloured lights. Other witnesses reported similar sightings at that time.
22.04.98 EAST IPSWICH, QLD 1830hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
A committee member of our Ipswich Division was alerted by a flash of light and saw a green/blue object with a bright yellow tail to the North at an elevation of about 45 degrees. It was seen for about 1.5 seconds and had a distinctly downward curving trajectory. It moved across about 6 degrees of sky while under observation, and its tail subtended about 5 degrees, becoming a series of dots as it ended. The general path of the object was along a steep incline. [Reporter's Note: If this were a meteorite seen at a distance of some tens of km, moving at a speed of say 5 km/s, the effect of gravity could not produce a noticeable curvature of its trajectory. Its effect is at least hundred times smaller than what was observed.]
23.04.98 MELBOURNE, VIC 1900hrs (NL)
(Source: Filers Files)
On 23 April 1998, at 7.00 pm, Bob Waterman was at his home in the northern suburbs of Melbourne when he spotted a UFO. “I was looking... southeast when I saw what I thought were planes. In particular, two were in a longitudinal position and were about a foot apart, one at the 3 o’clock (position), the other at 9 o’clock. While in the sky, the light at the 3 o’clock position moved in a clockwise circle and stopped at 9 o’clock, and the one at 9 o’clock moved and stopped at 3 o’clock, both in parallel time. They stayed there for about two minutes. And then the one at 3 o’clock moved in a straight line to the right and the one at 9 o’clock moved in a straight line to the left. Having thought back on it, the lights were too perfect and too round to be stars, so I am at a complete loss to explain what they are.” John Hayes
24.04.98 NORTHERN TERRITORY OUTBACK, NT 0600hrs (NL)
(Source: The Australian UFO Bulletin, June 1998 Edition)
A bright light larger than the morning star was observed travelling at approximately 5000 feet from the southern horizon to the northern horizon. As it passed overhead, the light appeared to shine downward. There was a bright tail attached, similar to a vapour trail which did not alter appearance. The interesting point is the tail, which was in front of the light travelling in the same direction as the light. The time span from its appearance was about 60 seconds and was travelling in a zigzag motion.
A large group of Australian aboriginal people observed the light while it was hovering for a time, then left at high speed to the north. VUFORS
22.04.98 WYVENHOE DAM, QLD 1740hrs (NL)
(Source: UFORQ Inc)
A man saw a silver object towards the northwest for about a minute. As he watched it took on the appearance of a plane on fire, and seemed to crash near the dam wall. No noise was heard.
26.04.98 LAUNCESTON, TAS 1930hrs (NL)
(Source: Keith Roberts & Paul Jackson, Tasmanian UFO Investigation Centre)
Three-yellow/white lights seen stationary for 20 seconds, then shot off up and away to north. (U/I)
29.04.98 CENTRAL COAST (nr. GRAFTON), NSW 1830hrs (NL)
(Source: Mike Farrell, 11.05.98)
On Wednesday 29 April 1998, at approximately 1830 hrs a NSW Central Coast family reported seeing a unusual object moving quickly across the sky from South to North. It was large, spherical and orange-coloured. When viewed through binoculars they could not make out any other shapes or surface features. After passing directly overhead it slowed down to hover motionless, then moved off towards the West.
At that point the family noticed two military-type planes (jets), in the northern sky, probably from Williamtown AFB, quickly travelling southwards, towards the object. The UFO shot off southwards and disappeared over the southern horizon.
Soon afterwards, at least two helicopters, probably from Singleton AFB, were seen heading from the North in the same southerly direction. Later that same evening, family members noticed a bluish-white light in the western sky, zigzagging North to South.
The same night, a Terrigal (Central Coast) resident reported seeing the same large orange object to a local radio station.
Family members contacted Williamtown AFB who referred them to UFOR(NSW)'s Central Coast representative, Peter Turner. Peter is now asking Williamtown AFB if they can confirm any of these details, and reports that around 2300 hrs the Central Coast family also heard an unusual rumbling noise pass overhead, without an apparent source. Friends from Tumbi Umbi (Central Coast) who later visited the witnesses, had heard something similar in their area about the same time.
Peter telephoned Moira McGhee of INUFOR in Sydney on Friday 1st May to see if her networks had reported anything similar.
29.04.98 SINGLETON, NSW 1930hrs (NL)
(Source: Moira McGhee INUFOR)
Moira reports that around 1930 hrs that same evening, two families in the Singleton area reported seeing a strange orange-yellow light object travelling quickly across the sky in a southeasterly direction. The light was quite large, made no noise and was travelling at quite a low altitude. One of the Singleton witnesses is an amateur astronomer, so space junk and pranks seem unlikely.
29.04.98 TUMBI UMBI, NSW 2330hrs (NOISE)
(Source: Mike Farrell, 11.05.98)
At 11.30 pm, residents of Tumbi Umbi, near Grafton, heard a weird rumbling noise pass overhead.