Ministry of Defence Response to Freedom of Information Request FOI 2015/03810 regarding Rendlesham Forest Incident and UFO Files

Summary

This document is a formal response from the UK Ministry of Defence to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding the 1980 Rendlesham Forest Incident and declassified UFO records. The response directs the requester to publicly available records at The National Archives and provides a comprehensive table listing 18 remaining UFO and UAP policy files scheduled for future release.

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Ministry of Defence

Air D Res Sec 4b2a Air Command Secretariat Spitfire Block Headquarters Air Command Royal Air Force High Wycombe Buckinghamshire HP14 4UE

Our Ref: FOI 2015/03810

11 May 2015

Dear [Redacted]

Thank you for your letter of 8 April requesting the following information on the Rendlesham Forest Incident in 1980:

I am treating your correspondence as a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. We have completed a search of our records and I can confirm that the MOD holds information within the scope of your request.

Section 1 of the FOIA 2000 gives an applicant the right to access recorded information held by public authorities at the time the request is made and does not require public authorities to answer questions, provide explanations or give opinions, unless this is recorded information held. With this in mind I will address each of your questions in turn.

1. Copies of the declassified info and data concerning the whole recorded activity [The encounter in Rendlesham Forest in 1980].

Some of the information you have requested is already available in the public domain and is therefore exempt under Section 21(1) and Section 21(2)a of the FOIA - “information available to the applicant by other means” or “information may be reasonably accessible the applicant even though it is accessible only on payment”.

Section 16(1) of the FOIA requires the public authority to provide advice and assistance wherever possible. You may also find it helpful to know that those files which have already been released are available to view on the TNA website via the following link:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

You may also wish to know that descriptions of the UFO files available on the TNA website can be found at the following link:

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/aug-2009-highlights-guide.pdf

2. Which documents have not yet been declassified or a list of

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Information held. There are 18 remaining files being prepared for release to The National Archives (TNA), which are due to be transferred to TNA late 2015 or early 2016.

The outstanding files are detailed in the table below:

File Reference | File Title DAIRDEF/111/6/4 | C31 Air Traffic Control Low Flying UFOs D/DAIRDEF/111/6/4 | C31 Air Traffic Control Low Flying UFOs D/DAIRDEF/111/6/4 | CS I Air Traffic Control Low Flying UFOs D/DDOPS(GE)/10/8 | Admin and General UFOs D/DAO1/13 | ADGE UFO Reports D/DAO1/13 | ADGE UFO Reports D/DAO1/13 | ADGEUFO Reports GE UFO REPORTS D/DAO1/13 | ADGE UFO Reports D/DAO1/13 | ADGE UFO Reports D/IPR2X/2/4/1 | Freedom of Information Act (2000) Copyright Issues concerning internet publication reports of UFO sightings 2GP(BP)/88772/10/ISTAR | UFO Reports M9/18 | Defence Policy issues UFOs D/DS8/75/2/1 | UFO Reports Correspondence D/DI55/108/15 | UFO Policy 1971-96 D/DI55/108/15 | UFO Policy 1996-2000 D/D155/108/15 | UFO Policy June-Dec 2000 D/DI55/108/15 | UAP Policy Dec 2000-March 2004 D/DI55/108/15 | UAP Policy March 2004

3. Whether or not a book was actually written and published by PENNISTON & BURROUGHS.

No information held.

If you are not satisfied with this response or wish to complain about any aspect of the handling of your request, then you should contact me in the first instance. If informal resolution is not possible and you are still dissatisfied then you may apply for an independent internal review by contacting the Information Rights Compliance Team, 1st Floor, MOD Main Building, Whitehall, SW1A 2HB (e-mail [email protected]). Please note that any request for an internal review must be made within 40 working days of the date on which the attempt to reach informal resolution has come to an end.

If you remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you may take your complaint to the Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act. Please note that the Information Commissioner will not investigate your case until the MOD internal review process has been completed. Further details of the role and powers of the Information Commissioner can be found on the Commissioner’s website, http://www.ico.org.uk.

Yours sincerely,

[Signature Redacted]

Air Command Secretariat