Calvine UFO: The 1990 Sighting That Shocked Scotland

Greetings, space puzzle lovers! Today we will tell you about the Calvine UFO incident – ​​one of the most exciting and, perhaps, the most reliable cases of UFO sightings. This story, as if torn from the archives of the X-Files, is full of secrets, missing evidence and heated debates in attempts to find the truth, which do not cease to this day. Get ready for a fascinating investigation of the Calvine UFO enigma.

Calvine UFO Sighting: what happened 

Let’s rewind to August 4, 1990, to Scotland, Calvine village location. Two young men, Kevin Russell and his friend, working in a hotel in Pitlochry, Perthshire, finished their shift at about 8.30 pm and decided to go for a ride on their bikes in the area around Craigower Hill, near Calvine, 13 miles northwest of Pitlochry. The weather was clear; visibility was excellent.

At about 21:00, when the sun was already beginning to set, Russell and his companion became witnesses to an unusual phenomenon that changed their lives forever. A huge diamond-shaped object about 30 m long hung motionless and silent in the sky. It was dark grey, almost black, with a metallic sheen. No lights, portholes, or visible engines.

As the lads watched in fascination, a Royal Air Force Harrier fighter jet appeared. The plane circled the object several times, as if studying it, and then flew off in a southeasterly direction. The next moment, the Calvine UFO began to slowly rise vertically upwards. Then, at incredible speed, literally in seconds, it disappeared from sight, leaving the witnesses in complete bewilderment.

Calvine UFO photo that stunned the world

While the fighter was manoeuvring, Russell took six colour pictures of the object with his camera (presumably a point-and-shoot with 35mm film).

And that’s where it gets really intriguing. These images, and one in particular, have become some of the most discussed and scrutinised UFO images in history. The photo does indeed show the diamond-shaped object, and in the background, just below it, is what is believed to be a Harrier fighter jet. It appears that the jet is either following the object or trying to intercept it. The quality of the image is astonishing: it is quite clear, and at first glance, there is no reason to doubt its authenticity.

Many experts and enthusiasts still consider the Calvine UFO photo one of the most detailed images of a UFO ever to become public.

1990 Calvine UFO: 30 years under the “secret” heading

Immediately after the incident, the young men, realising the importance of what had happened, sent negatives with a description of what they had seen to the Scottish newspaper Daily Record, hoping for publication and public resonance. However, the newspaper did not publish sensational material; instead, it handed the pictures over to the British Ministry of Defence (MOD). From this moment on, a story worthy of a Hollywood adaptation begins — full of secrets, omissions and a fight for the truth.

The MOD classified all case materials, including photographs, for the standard 30 years in accordance with the State Secrets Act. However, when the deadline for disclosure approached, the secrecy was extended until 2076! This decision caused a wave of indignation, gave rise to many conspiracy theories and strengthened the UFOlogists’ confidence that the government was hiding something incredible.

Has the Calvin Scotland UFO incident been revealed?

Over the years, researchers, journalists and UFO enthusiasts from all over the world have tried to find the original Calvine UFO photos or at least copies of them. But all efforts were in vain, as were attempts to find Kevin Russell and his partner. Their former colleague Richard Grieve told the Daily Mail that the guys were terrified by what they saw, and then people wearing black suits came in a black car; after that, they started showing up at work less and less often and eventually seemed to “disappear off the face of the earth.”

For a long time, the only image available was a hand drawing by RAF press officer Craig Lindsay, who saw the original photographs in the early 1990s while working for the Ministry of Defense.

Lindsay claimed to have seen a close-up of the image, which showed fine details of the object, including what he called “rivets and seams.” He also confirmed the presence of a Harrier fighter jet in the background, noting that the aircraft was quite far from the object.

And now, in 2022, after more than 30 years of search and disappointment, a real breakthrough occurs! British journalist and researcher David Clarke, who has devoted many years to investigating the Calvine incident, together with Dr Andrew Robinson, a former RAF employee and lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University, discovered what can be called the “holy grail” of UFOlogy — a copy of Calvine UFO photo.

It turned out that Nick Pope, a former MOD employee who headed the unit investigating UFO reports (the so-called “Secretariat 2a”) from 1991 to 1994, had kept one of the black-and-white prints of the Calvine UFO photo made from the original colour negative. He offered this photograph to Clarke and Robinson. This image is by far the best available picture of the mystery object, which corroborates the eyewitness descriptions and Craig Lindsay’s drawing.

Calvine UFO Debunked: Skeptics and counterarguments

Of course, such a resonant case as the Calvine incident gave rise to many sceptical versions and attempts to ‘debunk’ the case. Let’s consider the most popular ones, along with the counterarguments from the supporters of the alien spaceship version:

1. Experimental aircraft/secret military project: This is perhaps the most common version. It is assumed that the object could be a secret prototype of the American F117A or B-2 Spirit stealth aircraft, an unmanned aerial vehicle, or another secret experimental aircraft.
   
   Counterargument: This version does not explain why the MOD so carefully concealed information about the incident and extended the secrecy period until 2076. In addition, the shape of the object captured in the photo is significantly different from the shape of the F117A, B-2 Spirit, or other known aircraft.
   
2. An optical illusion (lenticular cloud, mirage, etc.): There have been suggestions that eyewitnesses may have mistaken an optical illusion for an alien spaceship, i.e., the top of a hill hidden in the fog.
   
   Counterargument: the witnesses’ description, their clear indications of the object’s shape, size, metallic sheen and, most importantly, manoeuvres (silent hovering, instant vertical takeoff) do not agree with the version of a natural phenomenon. In addition, if you look at the photograph closely (and if you believe the descriptions of Lindsay and Pope), you can see details that are not typical of clouds or mirages.
   
3. Hoax/Photo Forgery: This version, although put forward by some sceptics, was rather quickly refuted.
   
   Counterargument: Nick Pope, who saw the original negatives and examined them as part of his work for the MOD, has repeatedly stated that the photographs are genuine and show no signs of forgery. He claimed that the images had been thoroughly checked by experts, including those from the Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC), and were found to be genuine.

The Calvine Incident: Unanswered Questions

Even though a “copy” of the Calvine UFO photo was found and partially revealed the mystery, the incident still leaves many unanswered questions:

• What exactly is captured in the photograph? Is the object an extraterrestrial spacecraft, a secret military project, a fundamentally new type of aircraft based on unknown technologies, or something else that is still beyond our understanding?
• Why did MOD extend the secrecy period of the case materials until 2076? What information are they so carefully hiding from the public? Is it national security, technological secrets, or something more serious?
• Where did the two witnesses, Kevin Russell and his friend, disappear to, did they end up at the scene of the incident by chance, and why did they choose to remain anonymous?

The Search Continues

Calvine UFO incident is not just another story about “flying saucers.” It is a complex, multi-layered case, which might be one of the most significant and convincing evidence of the existence of UFOs in the history of UFOlogy. Who knows, perhaps solving the mystery of the Calvine UFO will become the key that will open the door to the world of the unknown and help humanity finally get answers to the most exciting questions about extraterrestrial civilisations and their presence on our planet. In the meantime… we can only gaze at the sky, hoping to find new traces of visits from alien guests.

References and Additional Information:

• The Calvine UFO https://nickpope.net/wpte19/the-calvine-ufo/
• ‘Best’ UFO Picture Ever, the Calvine Photo, Found After 30 Years Missing https://www.newsweek.com/best-ufo-picture-calvine-photo-found-30-years-missing-1733673
• The Calvine UFO – A Photographic Analysis  https://anthologycouk.substack.com/p/the-calvine-ufo-a-photographic-analysis?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
• Disclosure Team Podcast Dr David Clarke ‘The Calvine UFO’ Interview with Vinnie – YouTube