Welsh UFO Sightings 1980

 
Mrs Jennifer Davies, of Brynhyfryd, Llangennech, was seeing her husband off to work early one morning while it was still dark when she spotted a long, silver cigar-shaped object 100 yards away, hovering at a height of about three houses. She watched it for about 20 minutes from different rooms but when she opened the back door to have another look it had vanished.

Source: South Wales Evening Post, 12th January 1980.

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MOD FILES
Sunday 6th January, 20:05 - 20:20
Llantwit Major

8.05 PM. Two 14-year-old girls, Jayne Bush and friend, Carol Duff were outside at the top end of Crawshay Drive, Llantwit Major, looking in a shop window, when something caught Jayne’s eye. She immediately turned around and Carol followed suit. They saw a very bright, oval shaped object, moving swiftly across the sky, and eventually disappearing behind some nearby houses, but were much further away and higher up than the houses. Duration of this sighting: about two seconds.

At 8.15 PM they saw another object of the same shape and brightness, high above them, moving at a constant high speed, and suddenly fading and disappearing. Duration: around two seconds.

At 8.20 PM, they saw a third bright oval object, further away than the first two, and further to their right. Duration: 4-5 seconds. They wondered what the objects were and discounted shooting stars as they were too large, and too much of a coincidence to see three in such a short space of time. They phoned the local police, and the duty officer contacted Cardiff Airport and was told that no planes had been in the area at the time.

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BUFORA
Monday 7th January

Randall Jones Pugh investigated the case of a family who wished to remain anonymous, but presumably lived in the Pembrokeshire area. 

'Miss J' heard a high pitched humming noise and saw a silver egg shaped UFO with an orange red glow in the sky at about 13:50 on the Monday afternoon. As it passed overhead she felt a vibration and smelt a sulphur like smell. At about 14:30 she saw the strange glow near the back door - the light changed shape as she watched it. The smell and hum returned, and there was a strong sense of a powerful malevolent presence. The phenomena continued at least over the next week or so, experienced by multiple family members.

BUFORA V9/N3 (November 1980) published his report:       

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PRESS
Thursday 24th January, morning
Pontypool

A woman in Pontypool saw a large, bright red cigar shaped UFO hovering over Penyrheol mountain and then travelling in the direction of Griffithstown. She reported the sighting to police. The South Wales Argus (25/01/1980) spoke to ATC at Rhoose airport and RAF St Athan who both said they were unaware of any aircraft in the area, but a Rhoose spokesman said it could have been a helicopter surveying pipelines for the fuel board.

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CONTACT
Friday 21st March, daytime
Margaret Fry saw a 'large wooden bird ducking its tail up and down against the sky line as it went rapidly across the top' of a field. The mystery was never solved. (From her book, Link to the Stars.)

My daughter and her husband had bought a near derelict l5th century farmhouse which we were all helping to renovate. On the 2lst March l980 we were standing by the tiny kitchen window from where we looked out on to a sweeping, upward-sloping large open field in which sheep graze; at the top of this hill is a tree line, and to our amazement we saw a large wooden bird ducking its tail up and down against the sky line as it went rapidly across the top of this field. As spring comes late to the mountains, the trees were bare of leaves, so there was nothing to obscure our view. We looked at each other, and without a word got in the car and drove hell for leather up the lane. When we reached the brow level with this tree line, we looked all over. At the top, on all sides the land sweeps downwards, where sheep and cows were grazing peacefully. Not a farm vehicle in sight, nothing to account for this astonishing sight! My son-in-law put up various reasonable explanations, and we consulted Mr. Jones the farmer who owns the land, we never solved the mystery.

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PRESS
Saturday 29th March
Milford Haven

Many See 'UFO' Hover Over Oil Port. Investigations will begin today into a UFO sighting in West Wales which could be one of the most important since the spate of reported incidents began more than four years ago. Many people at Milford Haven are said to have seen a bright object in the sky on Saturday night.

Local UFO investigator Mr. Randall Jones Pugh, of Roch, near Haverford-west, said it appeared to be one of the best reports so far. In one street at least 10 people are reported to have watched the UFO for more than 30 minutes as it hovered in the sky. One family later drew independent sketches which proved to be similar. Schoolboy Paul Duffield, of Coombs Drive, said, "It was quite high in the sky with an orange and red light on top".

A spokesman at RAF Brawdy said a helicopter may have passed over Milford Haven but would not have been over the town for more than half an hour, and the Civil Aviation Authority's air traffic control centre at Burrington, Devon, said they had not been made aware of anything extraordinary in the district.

Source: Western Mail (31/03/1980)

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PRESS
Wednesday April 9th, 00:30 - 01:00
Across Wales and UK

Gwent Police received numerous calls about fireballs and flare like objects in the sky. The Home Office confirmed that it had been a meteorite shower.

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PRESS
June
Maindee, Newport

Three people have reported a UFO sighting over Maindee Square, Newport, this week. Mrs. Margaret Price, of Parry Drive, Alway, said she saw a "red cloud of smoke with something in the centre" hanging in the sky, while Nrs. Lynva Goom, of Lyndon Road, Maindee, reported "a big , bright pink light like a flare". Maindee police could offer no explanation for the "sighting" which another caller had also reported.

Source: South Wales Argus (20/06/1980)

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PRESS
July
Newport

Witnesses saw an object displaying red and white lights over Newport. It was star shaped and the witness reported it to police, said the South Wales Argus of July 26th.

Source: BUFORA UFO TIMES No. 15 September 1991.

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PRESS
Thursday 24th July, night
Blackwood

Witnesses saw an object displaying red and white lights in the sky over Blackwood and reported it to Gwent Police.

Source: BUFORA UFO TIMES No. 15 September 1991 - J. C. Brogan via South Wales Argus, 24/07/1980.

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Sunday 27th July
Bethesda, Gwynedd

Alan Morris was fishing with his dog near his home in the early hours of the morning, when suddenly he saw approaching from a distance a bright pulsating light coming closer and closer. The object hovered for a while over where he was fishing and then landed in a near-by field. The witness crept close to the object and saw a cylinder-shaped craft about five feet wide and six feet high, standing on a tripod. A door opened and a metal ladder fell to the ground, a grey-suited figure descended, followed by two others. They were very tall and were carrying buckets and spades and proceeded to dig nearby. However, the witnesses dog began to bark and ran towards the craft. That was the last thing the witness remembered as he seemed to have lost consciousness. When he came round it was day-light and his dog had disappeared, never to be seen again.

Awareness V11/N2 via the North Wales Chronicle. Also reported in Apro Bulletin V29/N5 (May 1981).

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CONTACT
Summer
Denbigh

Margaret Fry saw what looked like a jet overhead, but it hovered for well over an hour. (Link to the Stars)

One summer's day in l980 my son and I were on holiday again up to North Wales and were at ‘Wern’, my daughter’s house. We were sitting on the grass of the field opposite to the house, idly chatting and enjoying the sun. He had his camera with him. Occasionally aeroplanes would pass over and we watched them. One of these just stopped over the farmhouse, and stayed there for at least a half hour before I pointed it out to my son. He said "It’s a jet, it is flying away from us and that is why it looks still". I agreed that this does happen, but this had been there at least a half-hour in a clear blue sky, with not a cloud in sight. "Give it a while longer" so we did, then he reluctantly pointed his camera and took a shot. He simply does not credit UFOS exist, yet this object stayed suspended there in the sky for another hour or more, when we then got up and went indoors, leaving it still in the sky.

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PRESS
Friday 5th September, 23:00
Cross Keys

Mysterious lights spotted in the sky over Cross Keys, via the South Wales Argus. Mrs Dorothy Jones of George Street, Blackwood, and her sister-in-law, Mrs Sandra Jones, were driving home from Cross Keys. Dorothy said:

"There were two lights - a bit like car headlights, but they were suspended in the air. We hadn't been drinking and we stopped to look at the lights. They were moving slowly across the sky, but they weren't aeroplane lights and there was no noise. Then, after about ten minutes the lights came closer together and rose vertically until they disappeared from sight."



Headlight like lights were also seen over the Bristol Channel by Mr. Phillip Ward of Goldcliff, Newport. He watched them for about 15 minutes before they disappeared towards Blackwood. A couple in Coedkernew also saw the lights fly near their house just before they went to bed - too low and too quiet to be a plane, in their opinion - while two police officers saw the lights in Risca. Chief Inspector Vince Cobourne told the South Wales Argus, "It was a medium-sized aircraft flying low with its landing lights on."

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MOD FILES
Saturday 6th September, 02:30
Abergavenny

An on-duty traffic police officer on mobile patrol observed a bright light over the Llanfoist/Abergavenny areas. It was described as an overgrown light shade with a flat bottom and top. At one point he stopped and looked at it using binoculars. The officer estimated the UFO to be at an altitude of 200-500 feet and was last observed moving in a south-westerly direction.

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PRESS
16th September, 07:15 - 10:45
Twmbarlwm, Risca

63-year-old Arthur Moore, from Park Avenue, Ty-isaf, Pontymister, was taking a break of air whilst at work at the Avana factory in Rogerstone. He was on the roof of the factory and he saw, to the north, what he described as a black cloud coming over Twmbarlwm mountain. When the cloud cleared, he saw a 'massive, white, oblong object just like a double-decker bus, resting on the ground.' The object was glowing a 'vivid white' and was sited just to the right of the tump or pimple on the summit, which gives the mountain its distinctive character. According to the witness the object first 'blended into the background and then got bigger again.'

When he first told his workmates they accused him of seeing things and not surprisingly refused to believe him until they saw the object themselves. Les Brown said the object seemed to be a 'silver oval dome made of aluminium.' It finally vanished from view completely at 10.45 AM.

Source: 'Unknown Gwent' - Alan Roderich 1986 citing South Wales Argus (18/09/1980) / BUFORA UFO TIMES No. 19 September 1991 - J. C. Brogan.

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PRESS
October, c. 20:00
Parys Mountain, Amlwch

David Prytherch and Gerald Kellaher, 12-year-old schoolboys at Syr Thomas Jones School, saw a brightly lit saucer shaped object 'which looked like a crab underneath' pass directly over their heads towards Parys Mountain. It made 'a swishing noise' that frightened Gerald. It hovered there for about five minutes until a bigger object appeared in the distance, and the first object seemed to enter it.

David's father, Mr. Ken Prytherch - the postmaster at Penysarn - had the boys draw pictures and asked around for corrobrating sightings. One man said he saw something like a rocket shooting through the sky at 20:00. Some older children had seen something a few nights earlier. A RAF Valley spokesman said they had a helicopter out in the vicinity.

On the night in question some of David and Gerald's friends - Geoffrey, Malcolm and Stephen McGuire of Ty'n Ffynnon, Amlwch - also saw lights which seemed to land on the mountain. Their mother, Mrs. T. McGuire, told the North Wales Chronicle that they had all seen strange lights in the vicinity of the mountain. "Sometimes I think they're helicopters but when they start darting about it's hard to think what they might be."

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PRESS
Wednesday 29th October, 19:00
Aberbargoed

Mr. K. Hayter of Shannon Close, Ty Bryn, Pontllanfraith, saw 'a triangular mass of white light travelling slowly above the village'. It had two bright lights at the bottom corner, and a blue / green light slowly turning red at its apex. Mr. Hayter reported the sighting to Gwent Police.

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CONTACT
November, night
Denbigh

Margaret Fry saw an 'eerie blue light' one night while staying at her daughter's farmhouse in Denbigh. On another, at around 5am, she and her granddaughter saw a UFO change shape multiple times. (Link to the Stars)

"Another night in November I was asleep in an upstairs bedroom of the cross-shaped farmhouse. The field of vision out of the tiny window is limited. The house being in a rather hidden valley of the Denbigh Moors, is in pitch darkness at night, there being very little habitation around. I got up to go to the toilet and was groping around in the dark, when suddenly the wall opposite was bathed in an eerie blue light. I tried to crane my neck to see if there was anything outside, or in the sky above but it was impossible as the windows in this centuries old Farm House are very small. Naturally I thought it might be a UFO, for where else could the light have been coming from?

The whole building is really large, and there is a porch light to the front, which has a roughly concreted large courtyard.  This housed innumerable vehicles, and the three guard dog kennels, plus horse stables.  Between the 9th and l7th November l983 I was again at Wern and this time I was sleeping on a double put-you-up bed in the dining room.  Where we slept depended on how many of the family were visiting my daughter's family!  My little granddaughters loved sharing this bed with me, so that we could exchange stories and secrets. 

This particular night it was ten years old Kerry-Ellen's turn.  Towards the early hours of the morning, at 5 am, we were awoken by a bright light shining in through the small window.  This was so unusual, for there are fields all around, and a huge black barn for sheep, higher up the hill field adjoining their front yard.  Kerry-Ellen and I immediately woke up and went to the window.  There was a huge blot of bright light just on the Barn roof.  We sat wondering what it could be, then she said "Come on Gran, let's go into the courtyard, Dadwill never believe this, he will say it was the reflection of our Porch light".

We donned our dressing gowns and went and stood by the Shippon door.  It was freezing cold, winter comes early on the high ground of the Denbigh Moors.  We watched this blob elongate into an impossible shaped 'Christmas cracker', then shrink down again to a blob, then elongate again and so on, right on Mr. Jones Barn roof!

The whole performance lasted to 7.30 a.m., we had been periodically going indoors to watch through the window, as the cold became too much for us. Then we would go out into the courtyard again.  It then turned back to a blob of light and flew upwards till lost to view.  Needless to say, as anticipated my son-in-law did reason that it could have been the porch light. 'No way' we said, Kerry had taken the precaution of switching it off. As we had stood shivering in the Courtyard, just yards from the Barn, the blob of light flew away.

This granddaughter of mine has always been extra level headed and practical from the time she has been a little girl.  Jayne the eldest was furious we had not woken her.  If you do not want to believe something is happening, you just don't; so my son-in-law just dismissed the whole incredible incident. 

Throughout this the three cats and three dogs, slept peacefully about the courtyard throughout this long Sighting. Normally the two younger dogs went out of their way to bite all but our family members! My daughter was perpetually in trouble because of Bud and Tough's propensity to bite all who dared pass their country lane, including the postman. Fortunately they improved with age, and the tolerance of their kind neighbours, otherwise their lives would have indeed been cut short.  They adored and fussed over me to my dismay, until I got used to them, for I have always feared large dogs, and these were particularly huge Welsh Sheep dogs."

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UK UFO
November, c. 20:00
Malpas, Newport

Night. D. Clouson was walking home about 8 pm and noticed an orange glow in the clouds. Then in a gap in the clouds appeared an orange ball which went past above cloud-height level. It was hard to estimate the size of the ball but the witness reckoned it was about 20 metres in diameter. It was a bright orange sphere with lines spinning around it.

Source: www.uk-ufo.co.uk uploaded by witness 27th August 2016.