Diamond-shaped Calvine "UFO", alleged US Navy/USAF black project

[Hansblix]

The very first thing that illustration brought to mind is this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_lantern

There was a large and acknowledged military response with chinooks. There is a lot of physical evidence from the incident. Additionally the road was torn up in the middle of the night and replaced. Much like scattering scrap parts from older military jets when an F-117 crashes.

It’s a really fascinating story that has more fact than fiction.

Do you have a trustable online link to an authoritative official report to corroborate any of these claims? I'm asking because at least one website I checked with regard to those assertions thoroughly debunked them. The only way to settle this is documented proof positive, and the onus is on the claimant, i.e. you. Per the Sagan Standard, ECREE. Otherwise, sky lanterns rule

There has been a lot of recent work to debunk this and it seems this event did not happen.

 

[archipeppe]

It reminds me an Aeron airship seen from side view.....

 

[martinbayer]

The very first thing that illustration brought to mind is this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_lantern

There was a large and acknowledged military response with chinooks. There is a lot of physical evidence from the incident. Additionally the road was torn up in the middle of the night and replaced. Much like scattering scrap parts from older military jets when an F-117 crashes.

It’s a really fascinating story that has more fact than fiction.

Do you have a trustable online link to an authoritative official report to corroborate any of these claims? I'm asking because at least one website I checked with regard to those assertions thoroughly debunked them. The only way to settle this is documented proof positive, and the onus is on the claimant, i.e. you. Per the Sagan Standard, ECREE. Otherwise, sky lanterns rule!

Prove it didn’t happen.

That's not how it works, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell's_teapot.

 

[jstar]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

 

[martinbayer]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

I agree - see my sky lantern comment above.

 

[Dynoman]

Square balloons for scientific purposes and lenticular airships have been around for a while. My first impression of the 'UFO" is that it is a tethered balloon that someone happened to get a photo of with an aircraft flying in the background.

 

[Dew]

Square balloons for scientific purposes and lenticular airships have been around for a while. My first impression of the 'UFO" is that it is a tethered balloon that someone happened to get a photo of with an aircraft flying in the background.

Eh, I tend to think if it's a genuine picture (rather large 'if' there !) then I struggle to see it being something tethered (or a balloon for that matter). If it was tethered (to what?!) then where the picture purports/appears to have been taken/made to look like it was taken (delete as applicable) then it would have been noticed by many more civilians. if it was faked then there was nothing tangible to tether to!

edit: being kind, nothing in your attachments looks like the Calvine picture, and wtf would they be doing in Perthshire?
double edit: by 'genuine' I mean 'as it is presented'. I don't particularly doubt it's (the actual photo's) provenance (i.e. could well have been sent to the Scottish paper in the 90's), but the whole thing is fishy.

 

[Hansblix]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

I agree - see my sky lantern comment above.

A sky lantern as tall as a water tower. Can I buy that on Alibaba.com? A UFO is more believable than that.

 

[martinbayer]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

I agree - see my sky lantern comment above.

A sky lantern as tall as a water tower. Can I buy that on Alibaba.com? A UFO is more believable than that.

Look at the fifth and sixth photographs from the top on the right hand side of the Wikipedia article under the link I provided.

 

[Hansblix]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

I agree - see my sky lantern comment above.

A sky lantern as tall as a water tower. Can I buy that on Alibaba.com? A UFO is more believable than that.

Look at the fifth and sixth photographs from the top on the right hand side of the Wikipedia article under the link I provided.

I’m not saying they don’t exist. You have had NASA, lawyers, the Air Force, journalists and scientists all heavily study this event as one of the most compelling cases and not 1 has ever said a massive sky lantern in the middle of Texas.

 

[martinbayer]

There's a first time for everything.

 

[Hansblix]

There's a first time for everything.

Exactly. It just didn’t happen if there wasn’t a photo taken of it

 

[CJGibson]

Exactly. It just didn’t happen if there wasn’t a photo taken of it

Such a simplistic position to take.

I might have a Leica-lensed camera in my pocket today, you might have one with a Zeiss, Sony or Hasselblad lens in your pocket, always on you. Wasn't always the case. There was a time when you had to make a positive decision to carry a camera. Not many folk carried an SLR or even an Olympus XA or a Rollei 35 on a day-to-day basis like we carry camera phones today. I didn't and I'd class myself as a keen photographer.

As I think one of the denizens of this very forum has pointed out, since the advent of the camera phone there's not been many UFO sightings.

Chris

 

[Hansblix]

Exactly. It just didn’t happen if there wasn’t a photo taken of it

Such a simplistic position to take.

I might have a Leica-lensed camera in my pocket today, you might have one with a Zeiss, Sony or Hasselblad lens in your pocket, always on you. Wasn't always the case. There was a time when you had to make a positive decision to carry a camera. Not many folk carried an SLR or even an Olympus XA or a Rollei 35 on a day-to-day basis like we carry camera phones today. I didn't and I'd class myself as a keen photographer.

As I think one of the denizens of this very forum has pointed out, since the advent of the camera phone there's not been many UFO sightings.

Chris

This entire forum is based around black projects that are so deeply classified, what has been pieced together is speculation at best. The same can be said for the numerous projects that will never have a proof positive of existence.

 

[CJGibson]

So why the 'No pic-no happen' statement?

Chris

 

[Hansblix]

My apologies. Mr. Martin Baker has been saying that to everything I have commented on in this thread. That comment was a bit cheeky and directed towards them.

 

[CJGibson]

My apologies. Mr. Martin Baker has been saying that to everything I have commented on in this thread. That comment was a bit cheeky and directed towards them.

Apology accepted.

I've been hearing it for decades and well, it gets tiresome.

Chris

 

[jstar]

" periodically over the next few minutes flames shot out of the bottom, flaring outward, creating the effect of a large cone. Every time the fire dissipated, the UFO floated a few feet downwards toward the road. But when the flames blasted out again, the object rose about the same distance."[3]" My first thought on reading this segment was : Hot air balloon as observed by two frightened individuals.

I agree - see my sky lantern comment above.

A sky lantern as tall as a water tower. Can I buy that on Alibaba.com? A UFO is more believable than that.

The average height of a hot air balloon is 60-80 feet tall. Average water tower is 130 to 150 feet.

 

[jstar]

Exactly. It just didn’t happen if there wasn’t a photo taken of it

Such a simplistic position to take.

I might have a Leica-lensed camera in my pocket today, you might have one with a Zeiss, Sony or Hasselblad lens in your pocket, always on you. Wasn't always the case. There was a time when you had to make a positive decision to carry a camera. Not many folk carried an SLR or even an Olympus XA or a Rollei 35 on a day-to-day basis like we carry camera phones today. I didn't and I'd class myself as a keen photographer.

As I think one of the denizens of this very forum has pointed out, since the advent of the camera phone there's not been many UFO sightings.

Chris

UFO's emit a type of radiation that renders the electronics in cell phones cameras temporaraly useless. Doesn't do anything to film, though. Everybody knows that.

 

[martinbayer]

Exactly. It just didn’t happen if there wasn’t a photo taken of it

This entire forum is based around black projects that are so deeply classified, what has been pieced together is speculation at best. The same can be said for the numerous projects that will never have a proof positive of existence.

So why the 'No pic-no happen' statement?

Chris

My apologies. Mr. Martin Baker has been saying that to everything I have commented on in this thread. That comment was a bit cheeky and directed towards them.

It's Bayer, not Baker, and I'm a singular person, not a collective or company, so it's him, not them.

 

[Mr London 24/7]

Elsewhere, I also know that Dr Clarke was interviewing a former high-level defence source when the latter, unprompted, turned the conversation to Calvine and said:

that the diamond was real,
that it was American,
that it had been tested over the low countries (presumably playing a part in the 1989-1991 UFO flap),
that it was used in the Gulf War,
and that its defining purpose had been to loiter over enemy territory and scan for targets to be subsequently destroyed by B-2 stealth bombers.

Almost exactly one year before the two walkers made this sighting at Calvine in Perthshire (from which they saught zero publicity - ever), Chris Gibson had his sighting (admittedly of something quite different) from the Galveston Key rig in the North Sea.

That sighting was apparently enough for General Hogle to be overheard advising someone to ask McMahan in an attempt to possibly prepare to dismiss the story.

There's the potential for a couple of vague links between some of this disparate stuff, often best posted here at this forum over so many years. The UK's DI55 certainly seemed to think something was up around the same time period.

The idea that some kind of LTA vehicle could have been a stealthy receiver or sometime emitter in some kind of last-of-the-Star-Wars-budget/end-of-the-Cold-War-era TEL-plinking/MiG-killing scenario is an interesting one.

I always like to return to this *actual video* of someone's 'Friday project' tumbling through the skies at the S-30 radar range in Nevada to remind me of just how weird things can get ;-)

 

[CJGibson]

Welcome back Mr London 24/7. Where ye been? Inside?

Chris

 

[CiTrus90]

Of possible interest.

 

[publiusr]

Another Calvine type allegedly spotted over Argentina...pix making the rounds on the interwebs

 

[RavenOne]

Another Calvine type allegedly spotted over Argentina...pix making the rounds on the interwebs

hmmm, ncant find any links on web

cheers

 

[Hydroman]

It reminds me an Aeron airship seen from side view.....

Also doubles as a USN submersible target. Kind of on the plump side, switch to gluten-free fuel to prevent bloating.

 

[Hood]

Calvine back in the press.

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[MeachamLake]

Calvine back in the press.

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Digital newsstand featuring 7000+ of the world’s most popular newspapers & magazines. Enjoy unlimited reading on up to 5 devices with 7-day free trial.

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I still think this whole thing was an unintentionally good hoax - perpetrated by two young guys looking to make a quick buck - that quickly spiralled out of control.

Get a craftily positioned Christmas star ornament, some Airfix Harriers, fishing wires and a good camera…take some UFO snaps and sell them to the press. Easy money!

Except…

- The photos inadvertently bore a stronger resemblance to genuine stealth concepts than the two lads could ever have known about (squint and it could be a cousin of the Lockheed Hopeless Diamond) which immediately raised eyebrows in military circles on both sides of the Atlantic.

- Perhaps something secret really was flying around in U.K. airspace in the late 80s - perhaps the black delta that Chris Gibson saw over the North Sea in 1989 - and those ‘in the know’ panicked when they heard that somebody had apparently photographed a vaguely similar object around the same timeframe. Maybe this explains why the story was buried by various parties at the time as a precaution?

Again, I still believe the whole thing is a load of cobblers - which may explain why the photographers have never resurfaced - but it’s undeniably more interesting than your average UFO story.

 

[dark sidius]

I don't think so.. look a real story and the possibility to build photo hoax in the 90 was difficult, it strangely look like the Navy UFO project..

 

[publiusr]

Are triangular/diamond-shaped floats used in some fishing lines?

Get a really thin wire, and you might have one slide into and out of frame.

I seem to see holes/pass throughs at some tips.

 

[publiusr]

Not fishing—towing?

Day Mark Signals Double Cone Shape (Diamond)

24", 48", black 1902 Jim-Buoy, Cal June Day Mark Signals, Shapes are manufactured from heavy duty vinyl coated nylon fabric with stainless steel or galvanized framing. Fully collapsible when stored. Simplicity of design offers rapid and rigid display when

www.landfallnavigation.com

Vessels need to show diamond shapes for towing…

I get a nautical vibe still. This—an early example of kitbashing:

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=luM869gu5-0


I can see it now—a hoaxer sees an older plastic version of this signage lying around and says to himself:

“This looks like it was from outer space…hey…”

How close to a port was this photo taken?

 

[CJGibson]

Calvine in the press again. From the Grauniad.

What really happened in Calvine? The mystery behind the best UFO picture ever seen

In August 1990, two hikers sent photos of a strange diamond-shaped aircraft to the press – but the story never appeared. Was it a prank, a hoax, an optical illusion or something else entirely?

www.theguardian.com

I'd say that's a Hunter, not a Harrier.

Chris

 

[Stargazer]

Interesting. The one element which has me puzzled here, is that if an RAF fighter was photographed circling the object, why did the two poachers believe for even a split second that the MoD was curious to investigate the whole thing? Surely, there is zero chance an operational fighter would have taken off without the flight plan and details approved by top brass before that. Providing them with the photos and expecting them to investigate was at best naive, if not downright foolish.

it strangely look like the Navy UFO project..

Totally agree. Also, there were other reports of very large and totally silent blimps in later years (a domain of expertise that seems to have been Lockheed's), and so the notion of a very silent, low observable recce platform doesn't seem far-fetched, especially two days into the Iraqi conflict. Besides, nothing here says that the mystery object flew fast at all.

Which leads me to another question: what happened right after the photos were taken? Did the witnesses see the object depart slowly? Did they see it dash away? The way it disappeared from view would no doubt hint at the type of propulsion it used. Why does their testimony stop at the would-be "Harrier" circling around it? Surely, they must have seen both the aircraft and the UFO fly away, right?

 

[Hood]

Surely, they must have seen both the aircraft and the UFO fly away, right?

A mid-air FULTON recovery by a passing Aurora on let-down to Machrihanish obviously

 

[dark sidius]

Interesting. The one element which has me puzzled here, is that if an RAF fighter was photographed circling the object, why did the two poachers believe for even a split second that the MoD was curious to investigate the whole thing? Surely, there is zero chance an operational fighter would have taken off without the flight plan and details approved by top brass before that. Providing them with the photos and expecting them to investigate was at best naive, if not downright foolish.

Totally agree. Also, there were other reports of very large and totally silent blimps in later years (a domain of expertise that seems to have been Lockheed's), and so the notion of a very silent, low observable recce platform doesn't seem far-fetched, especially two days into the Iraqi conflict. Besides, nothing here says that the mystery object flew fast at all.

Which leads me to another question: what happened right after the photos were taken? Did the witnesses see the object depart slowly? Did they see it dash away? The way it disappeared from view would no doubt hint at the type of propulsion it used. Why does their testimony stop at the would-be "Harrier" circling around it? Surely, they must have seen both the aircraft and the UFO fly away, right?

This is a strange story , but today there is a start of disclosure , it realy make me thing of the Salvatore Pais patent.https://www.twz.com/39012/the-navy-finally-speaks-up-about-its-bizarre-ufo-patent-experiments

 

[Justo Miranda]

The dark side

 

[TsrJoe]

FAKE ... theres not even any smoke with regard this one... I refer my learned colleagues to a previous post on the topic with appended note of the relevant file at Kew ! (#14)

Synopsis of the 'official' investigation ... hoax

 

[edwest4]

I can guarantee that absolutely nothing about UFOs will be confirmed in the foreseeable future. The fact that documents related to the U.S. Silver Bug project from the 1950s have been revealed has not changed anything. And the regular appearance of persons looking for "disclosure" on TV will lead to nothing. It's like a child asking about that secret thing who also promises to tell no one.

And let's look at the (non-) History Channel. Everything is aliens. Will you do your grocery shopping differently tomorrow if it actually was aliens? Anyone?

 

[CJGibson]

Mrs CJ, unprompted, reckons that it is a Hunter.

Chris

 

[Arjen]

What I've suspected for a long while. The condition <edit> unprompted, correct aircraft identification </edit> is contagious. I think my wife is a fellow sufferer.