The Cressy sighting of October 4th 1960 is one of Tasmania’s best known UFO sightings. The cigar shaped ‘mothership’ and attendant discs “like stones skipping across water”

Black Vault – https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents

October 4th 1960

The RAAF files had a full account of the sighting together with a sighting report form.

Rev Browning stated that at approximately 6.10pm on the 4th of October 1960, he and his wife were standing in the dinning room of their Cressy home. They were looking out through the window at a rainbow over some low hills about 12 k to the east. The hills , the highest of which are about 400 m, were partly obscured by low cloud and rain. As they were looking at the scene, his wife drew his attention to a long cigar shaped object which was emerging from a rain squall.

The object was a dull greyish colour, had four or five vertical dark bands around its circumference and at regular intervals along its length had what looked like a short aerial array which projected outwards and upward from the northern facing end of the object. The object seemed to be slightly longer than Viscount aircraft which Rev Browning frequently sees flying in that area and he therefore estimated the object’s length at about one hundred feet (32 m).

The outline of the object was well defined and was even more so a little later when it had as a background the tree covered slopes of a rain free area of the hills. Rev Browning estimated from landmarks below the object, that it was over Panshanger Estate owned by the Mills family and was probably 3 to 4 miles distant (6-7 km).

The object after emerging from the rain squall moved on an even keel in a northerly direction at an estimated speed of sixty to seventy miles per hour (100-110 kph) at a constant height of about 400 feet (120 m). His estimate of the speed of the object was made by comparing its rate of movement with that of Viscount aircraft which he has seen flying in the area. His estimate of the height of the object was by comparison with the height of the hills behind it.

The object moved approximately one and a half mile(2 km) north, also estimated by reference to land marks below it, and then abruptly stopped. Within seconds, it was joined by five or six small saucer like objects which had emerged at high speed from the cloud above and behind the cigar shaped object.

The small objects stationed themselves at positions around the cigar shaped object at a radius of about one half of a mile (800 m) and then, after an interval of several seconds the cigar shaped object accompanied by the smaller objects, abruptly reversed back towards and then into the rain squall from which it had emerged.

The reverse movement was at about the same speed and height as during its outward movement. In all, the cigar shaped object had been visible for approximately two minutes and the small objects for about one minute. Neither the Rev Browning or Mrs Browning heard any unusual noise during the period of the sighting.

Rev Browning and his wife watched the area for several minutes after the disappearance of the objects into the rain squall but there was no reappearance. Rev Browning then telephoned the Control Tower at Western Junction (Launceston) Airport and reported the sighting. The weather at the time of the sighting was overcast but fine after past rain at Cressy with showers still to the east in parts.

Rev Browning stated that on October 9th he gave a full report of the sighting to the Launceston ‘Examiner’. A sketch of the object was superimposed on a photograph taken through their dinning room window. The following day (October 10th) the story was published in the paper. The published report apart from giving the length of the object as 300 instead of 100 feet and having stated that he knew of other witnesses was accurate. He also stated the artist’s impression depicted a fairly accurately the shape, size and appearance of the objects but they should have been shown as being below and not above the skyline.

Rev Browning stated that since making the sighting public, he has received several reports of believed sightings of flying objects and has also received many reports of loud explosions. He himself heard such an explosion at 21.30 on October 27th. He is of the opinion that it was too close and loud to have been from an area 10 miles (16 k) distant where the Hydro Electric Commission does rock blasting. Rev Browning was of the opinion the explosions are someway associated with the flying objects seen by him and his wife.

Rev Browning said that prior to his and his wife’s sighting of the unidentified flying objects he had been sceptical about reports of such objects but now he and his wife are convinced such objects exist.