Representations on Behalf of Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization re Unidentified Flying Objects in Australia

This document is a collection of correspondence and internal government minutes from the Australian Department of Air, spanning 1966 to 1968. The file centers on requests made by the Commonwealth Aerial Phenomena Investigation Organization (C.A.P.I.O.), represented by its President, Mr. P.E. Norris, and supported by Member of Parliament Philip W. Stokes, for the Australian government to provide financial assistance for UFO research. The proponents of this funding argued that UFOs were an international problem and pointed to the United States government's grant of $500,000 to the University of Colorado for the 'Colorado Project' as a precedent for serious scientific investigation. The Department of Air, through various ministers including Gordon Freeth and Peter Howson, consistently rejected these requests. The government's position was that the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) was responsible for investigating sightings only insofar as they posed a potential threat to national security. The Department argued that it was not equipped or mandated to conduct scientific research into the nature of these phenomena. Internal minutes reveal that the Department of Air was concerned about the administrative burden of answering public inquiries and sought to minimize its involvement, even considering whether another department might be better suited to handle the subject. The file also includes technical summaries of sightings reported to the Department of Air, which were often attributed to astronomical phenomena, aircraft, or weather balloons. The government maintained that there was no evidence of extra-terrestrial vehicles and that the existing RAAF procedures were sufficient for national defense needs.