from: www.walesonline.co.uk
authors: Brendan Hughes
published: Apr 5 2011
"The truth is still out there as new details emerge of the true extent of UFO reports across Wales.
Police have released details of UFO sightings in North and West Wales over the past decade.
A total of 33 reports of strange crafts in the sky were made to North Wales and Dyfed-Powys Police services since 2002. A third of these were in 2009.
Only five of these reports were explained as human activity, such as army training exercises or night lanterns.
One man described how his car engine stopped working upon seeing a round unknown craft in the sky above Aberdyfi Estuary along the west coast.
Another witness saw a UFO illuminated by three glowing green, triangular lights hover directly above their Colwyn Bay house last year before flying off.
The sightings show Welsh households are still looking to the skies in search of new forms of life.
But sceptics say people should think twice before claiming they have seen a real-life ET.
Former RAF electrical engineer Bill Bevan said he saw an alien aircraft on a clear night two years ago while in his back garden smoking a cigarette.
The 79-year-old said: "I saw a big, white disk hovering over a tree. It was about two thirds the size of the moon. It was a bright, shining light, and it disappeared in about four or five seconds.
I thought it must have been going up at a fair rate of knots."
Mr Bevan, of Builth Wells, Powys, quickly called his wife to come and see it, but it was gone by the time she got there.
He said: "It left me a bit shaken, but it left me so intrigued that I have been standing outside night after night to try to see it again."
Bill is adamant that he saw some form of UFO.
He said: "It fully convinced me that there is life out there somewhere. I saw it, it was there and it just disappeared, and until my death I will still say I saw what I saw. I hadn't been drinking by the way, because I dont drink."
Bill also said his late father revealed to him that he and his neighbour saw a UFO over two decades ago in the Rhondda Valley.
Bill said: "He was stood with his neighbour and across the other side of the valley they say a cigar-shaped object in the sky. He had never talked about it before because he didn't think people would believe him.
There's something out there there's no two ways about it."
Phil Hoyle, of the UFO Investigation and Research Unit, has carried out numerous investigations into paranormal activity in Wales.
The 54-year-old said he has interviewed many reliable sources, such as army personnel, who have seen unidentified structured crafts landing and taking off.
He said: "I have interviewed people from the military and many reliable people, and quite a number have seen structured crafts leaving the scene. Some people have said they have touched the craft. I could tell you for days about these cases."
There must be other life forms and they could have been visiting us for quite some time.
Mr Hoyle's 12-strong team has also been investigating the new phenomena of animal mutilation through its Animal Pathology Field Unit.
The father-of-one said: "South Americans have come across cattle that have been clinically killed and dissected.
What has happened is that this has moved over towards Britain, but the majority of the incidents that take place over here are sheep.
Mr Hoyle, of Shrewsbury, has been investigating UFO sightings for the past 30 years and is in no doubt that we are not alone. He said: "What people have to remember is that they say there is no evidence. We don't pre-judge anything, and we look at information from the most incredible sources. How can you call all these professionals delusional?"
Martin Griffiths however a senior astronomy lecturer at the University of Glamorgan is a hardened UFO sceptic.
Mr Griffiths says strange objects in the sky can be explained through natural occurrences, such as ball lightning and man-made sky lanterns.
The 49-year-old said: "If people think they see a UFO, be a bit more critical about it. It's probably not somebody visiting from the planet Zog.
Don't think automatically that something in the sky is an alien craft. It is probably something else."
Joe McGonagle, who has researched UFO sightings for 12 years, is also unconvinced by the reports.
He said: "There is no tangible evidence that we have been visited by aliens. There's lots of speculation, but no evidence. For aliens to visit here, they would have to have a very good reason to do so."
Mr McGonagle said police forces in Wales were fuelling the UFO speculation by not making public when an alien encounter has been proved to be something else.
But Mr McGonagle still believes intelligent life exists somewhere in the universe.
He said: "I'm convinced that the probability is very high that there is life on other planets. Whether that life is visiting us here on Earth however, I very much doubt."
WHERE, WHEN AND WHAT WAS REPORTED
- Dyfed-Powys Police reports: (The location, the date and the sighting)
- Caersws, 2002 Bright light in the sky over the mountains towards Caersws. Did not make a sound or have flashing lights.
- Aberdyfi Estuary, 2004 Round craft of 200 to 300m in length. When seen his car engine stopped.
- Whitemill, Carmarthen, 2004 Something strange in the sky, like a streak of light.
- Beguildy, Knighton, 2004 Lights that looked like a lighthouse in the sky, and then later it was round with black spots with a ray of light.
- Penybont, 2005Something with two lights has landed in field. Later discovered to be orange flares from Army exercise.
- Llanyre, Llandrindod Wells, 2005 Oblong shaped bright yellow craft, going horizontally across, about 10 to 15ft off the ground.
- New Quay, 2006@ Spotlight from across the hill thought to be a UFO.
- Meifod, Powys, 2007 Triangular shape in sky with different coloured lights in each corner. A pulsing pink light lit up the vehicle. There was no sound to the object.
- Llanelli, 2008 Four low flying brightly lit objects.
- Newtown, 2008 Flashing balls of light though to be two UFOs.
- Llanidloes, 2009 Three orange lights thought to be UFOs. Object seized and discovered to be a night lantern.
- Beacons Reservoir, Brecon, 2009 Report of a UFO in the sky.
- Llangattock, Crickhowell, 2009 Large, vivid orange object, cylindrical in shape. Later thought to have been a night lantern.
- Ffrwdgrech, Brecon, 2009 Three lights, travelling at 20 knots.
- Glanamman, Ammanford, 2009 Report of large orange sphere in the sky, looks like a hot air balloon. Later clarified to be Chinese lanterns.
- Crickhowell, 2009 Report sighting of a red flare, possible UFO sighting.
- Brecon, 2009 Reporting sight of bright white light, then two orange lights, not high up and no sound coming from them.
- Newcastle Emlyn, Ceredigion, 2009 Three large orange lights in a triangular formation with white light around them.
- Cardigan, 2009 Two waves of UFO with red lights go past, high up in the sky.
- Llanelli, 2010 About 100 red lights in the sky. All very bright, all slow-moving, going from west to east. Moving too quick to be Chinese lanterns and too slow to be an aircraft.
NORTH WALES
- Beaumaris, 2004 Three lights in a triangular pattern, travelling East.
- Denbigh, 2005 UFO in the sky
- Penmaenmawr, 2005 Two sightings of immense white light moving quickly and silently across the sky.
- Penmaenmawr, 2005 Intense bright light moving swiftly in a South-easterly direction.
- Abergele, 2006 Caller was suspected of being drunk, claimed to have seen a UFO.
- Blaenau Ffestiniog, 2007 Bright light witnessed disappearing into the clouds.
- Llangollen, 2007 Family saw a flame shimmering in the sky.
- Pwllheli, 2008 Luminous orange light with a white circle of light around it, making no noise and hovering around the area for 10 minutes.
- Denbigh, 2009 Three large red lights about the size of the moon before flying off. Shortly afterwards a fourth craft appeared in the sky.
- Prestatyn, 2009 Red, yellow and orange lights moving backwards and forwards really quickly, with no noise.
- Wrexham, 2010 Very large, orange in colour, but changed to red, blue and green.
- Bangor, 2010 A large, black triangular shaped craft appeared. It made a noise similar to a lawnmower. It hovered in the sky for just over a minute before vanishing.
- Colwyn Bay, 2010 Glowing green triangles at the back of the craft, which eventually faded"
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