War.gov PURSUECIA
GovernmentDecember, 1952Analysis complete

CIA-UAP-014: British activity in the Field of "Unidentified Flying Objects"

This released document records that the British have a standing committee on flying saucers. The file preserves the source account or analysis but does not independently establish interpretations beyond the cited record. This document is useful as an officially released artifact because it preserves the file's provenance and lets its claims be compared with related Release 03 records.

File
Document · Release 03
Date
December, 1952
Extent
2 pages
Agency
CIA

Probed Assessment

This released document records that the British have a standing committee on flying saucers. The file preserves the source account or analysis but does not independently establish interpretations beyond the cited record.

Key takeaways

  • The source states that the British have a standing committee on flying saucers.
  • The source states that the observations are not enemy aircraft and none have been over Britain.
  • The source states that a 'perfect flying saucer' was seen by high officials of the RAF and RAF pilots during a demonstration.

Why it matters

This document is useful as an officially released artifact because it preserves the file's provenance and lets its claims be compared with related Release 03 records.

Corroboration

The release metadata and stored source material corroborate the file's provenance. Reported sightings, interpretations, and allegations remain attributed to the source unless independently supported by the cited evidence.

Open questions

  • What additional contemporaneous records or independent evidence could test the source account?

Probed separates this editorial assessment from the source claims below. It summarizes what the released artifact supports; it is not independent verification.

Official Description from War.gov

A December 1952 Memo on the activities the British are taking to identify UFOs. The memo references a UFO sighting at an RAF field seen by high officials and RAF pilots. A more redacted version of the memo has been available on CIA's public website.

Preserved verbatim as source metadata. This wording is separate from Probed’s file-specific description and assessment.

File Context

Related entities

9

Tracker findings

1

British record says RAF officials and pilots saw a 'perfect flying saucer'

The British activity record states that high-ranking RAF officials and RAF pilots saw what the document called a 'perfect flying saucer' during a demonstration.

Release provenance

Release
Release 03
Official ID
release-03-file-023-cia-uap-014-british-activity-in-the-field-of-unidentified-flying-objects
Cleared
Jun 12, 2026
Official release source

Referenced Timeline

  1. Page 1

    Publication of paper on the origin of meteorites by Chladni

    LinkedChladni
  2. Page 1

    Swedish incident

    Referenced by R.V. Jones in the memo.

  3. Page 1

    Memo on British activity in the field of UFOs

  4. Page 1

    Yorkshire incident

    A 'perfect flying saucer' was seen by high officials and RAF pilots.

  5. Page 1

    Report from recently arrived messenger from Britain

Source Claims

Claims are attributed to the released source and remain distinct from Probed’s assessment and tracker findings.

Reported by source4Source interpretation1
Source reportedObservedPage 1

The British have a standing committee on flying saucers.

British have had a standing committee created about sixteen months ago on flying saucers.

Source reportedObservedPage 1

The observations are not enemy aircraft and none have been over Britain.

that the observations are not enemy aircraft and that none have been over Britain.

Source reportedObservedPage 1

A 'perfect flying saucer' was seen by high officials of the RAF and RAF pilots during a demonstration.

In some RAF field, there was some sort of demonstration to which high officials of the BAF in London had been invited. During the show, a "perfect flying saucer" was seen <._, by

LinkedRAF
Source reportedObservedPage 1

Articles appeared in the public press about the Yorkshire incident.

So many people saw it that many articles appeared in the public press.

LinkedYorkshire
InterpretationObservedPage 2

There are potential dangers related to UFO sightings, including difficulty in identification, mass hysteria, and communication overload.

While there is no indication that these objects represent a direct threat to the national defense, there are certain potential dangers which are related to these sightings.

Source Material & Evidence

document

Memo on British activity in the field of UFOs

CIA-UAP-014

video

Film taken by the Naval non-commissioned officer (Tremonton incident)

Research Map

9 entities · 1 grounded link

Lines appear only when two entities share a row-level source claim or dated timeline event. Unconnected nodes remain visible without implying a relationship.

UAP/Disclosure Graph
9 nodes1 links