Study of Official Australian Government Involvement in the UFO Controversy - A Progress Report

This document is a 1983 progress report by civilian researcher Bill Chalker regarding his study of official Australian government involvement in the UFO controversy. Chalker details his extensive efforts during 1982 to examine extant UFO files held by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and the Department of Aviation. He reports examining 56 RAAF files held by the Directorate of Air Force Intelligence (DAFI) and files held by the Bureau of Air Safety Investigation. The report outlines his methodology, which included discussions with a retired defence scientist, correspondence with former intelligence officials like R.H. Mathams, and inquiries with overseas government departments, including the UK Ministry of Defence and the US National Archives regarding Project Blue Book. Chalker highlights specific cases of interest, such as the Drury film affair, the Bouganville Reef event, the Valentich disappearance, and various radar-visual encounters. He discusses the challenges of accessing these files, noting that some were destroyed during the relocation of the Department of Air in the early 1960s, and that he was granted access to others only after signing a confidentiality agreement. The report also lists his various publications resulting from this research and provides an enclosure listing specific sighting reports for which he was seeking further follow-up permission. Chalker concludes that his research has transformed the understanding of official UFO involvement in Australia from a vague, clandestine picture to a detailed, evidence-based history.