MARSAR 78/1205: Light Aircraft Overdue at King Island

This document file, MARSAR 78/1205, details the search and rescue operation for a Cessna 182 aircraft, registration VH-DSJ, which went missing on 21 October 1978 during a flight from Moorabbin, Victoria, to King Island. The pilot, Frederick Valentich, reported a rough-running engine and an unidentified aerial phenomenon (UFO) shortly after departing Cape Otway. The subsequent search operation involved multiple civil and military aircraft, as well as local fishing vessels from King Island. Despite an intensive search effort covering thousands of square nautical miles, no trace of the aircraft or the pilot was found. The file contains numerous internal communications, telephone messages, and situation reports (SITREPs) documenting the coordination between the Department of Transport, the Australian Coastal Surveillance Centre, and the Tasmania Police. The search was officially terminated on 25 October 1978. The file also includes documentation regarding the reimbursement of local fishing vessels that participated in the search. A notable postscript in the narrative notes that the pilot's father believed a UFO had taken his son, and that the incident received significant media attention due to this connection.