Branchoria UFOs and UAP by UK County UFOs and UAP by UK County

Compare sightings, records, and explanations across 92 historic UK counties.

Within Devon UFOs

Why Devon's Flying Cross Still Matters

The 1967 flying cross case remains Devon's headline UFO story because police witnesses, press attention and Parliament all converged.

On this page

  • What the police officers reported
  • How Parliament and the Mo D responded
  • Why the case remains famous but disputed
Preview for Why Devon's Flying Cross Still Matters

Introduction

North Devon’s “flying cross” remains Devon’s headline UFO case because it brought together three unusually strong ingredients for a British sighting report: named police witnesses, rapid national media coverage, and a direct question in Parliament. The core event was reported on 24 October 1967 near Okehampton and the Holsworthy–Hatherleigh area, when two Devon police officers said they had followed a bright, cross-shaped object that appeared to move ahead of their patrol car. The case matters less as proof of an extraordinary craft than as a test of evidence: what did trained witnesses say, what did the Ministry of Defence do with the reports, and how well does the official Venus explanation fit the story? The fairest reading is that the case is famous and still unresolved in some details, but weakened by its overlap with a wider October 1967 flap in which many British sightings were attributed to bright planets, aircraft, and other ordinary lights. [Getty Images+2Parliament API]gettyimages.comGetty Images Police officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage VideoGetty ImagesPolice officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video - Getty Images…

Overview image for Flying Cross

What the police officers reported

The strongest part of the North Devon case is that the original witnesses were on-duty police officers, not anonymous later storytellers. Contemporary ITN footage, now catalogued by Getty Images, places the filmed report in Devon near Okehampton on 24 October 1967 and identifies the officers as P.C. Roger Willey and P.C. Waycock, with the catalogue noting that they described the object, drew it on a pad, said it was travelling fast, made no sound, accelerated sharply, and seemed to be watching them. [Getty Images]gettyimages.comGetty Images Police officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage VideoGetty ImagesPolice officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video - Getty Images…

That makes the evidence more substantial than a bare anecdote. The officers were interviewed at the time, in uniform, with a drawing and a clear claim: they had seen a distinct shape, not merely a vague glow. Later summaries of the case commonly describe the object as a bright cross or star-spangled cross seen from a patrol car in the early hours, followed over a stretch of North Devon road. Ian Ridpath’s case page identifies the event as the famous Devon “flying cross” of 24 October 1967, involving police constables Roger Willey and Clifford Waycott pursuing an apparent UFO in their police car. [Ian Ridpath]ianridpath.comIan RidpathDevon Flying Cross UFO of 1967The famous Devon 'flying cross' case of 1967 October 24 in which police constables Roger Willey…

The wording used by the witnesses is important. A “cross” is not a standard astronomical description, and that is why the case has survived in UFO literature. Yet the phrase does not necessarily mean a solid cross-shaped aircraft. Witnesses often describe bright lights through haze, wet glass, windscreens, cloud gaps, branches, or optical glare in shape-based language. In this case, the evidence supports that something striking was seen by the officers; it does not by itself establish that a structured object was close to the road or under intelligent control.

The location also matters. North Devon has dark rural roads, wooded stretches, changing horizons, and long sightlines where a low bright light can appear to move when the observer is driving. The reported pursuit is therefore one of the most memorable details, but also one of the easiest to misread: a distant astronomical light can seem to “lead” a moving car if it remains in roughly the same bearing while the road curves or rises.

Flying Cross illustration 1

How Parliament and the MoD responded

The sighting reached Parliament quickly. On 8 November 1967, North Devon MP Peter Mills asked the Secretary of State for Defence about “an unidentified flying object” seen in the Okehampton area and specifically asked whether the object described as a “star-shaped cross larger than a conventional aircraft” was British aircraft or a UFO. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

The answer from Merlyn Rees, then Under-Secretary of State for Defence for the Royal Air Force, is the key official source for the case. He said the Ministry had received “a number of reports” of objects over North Devon in October. After investigation, some were found to be aircraft and some were lights; of the lights, the majority were identified as Venus, while “a few lights” had not been positively identified. He added that none of the unidentified lights was an alien object. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

That answer is careful rather than dismissive. The MoD did not say nobody saw anything. It accepted a cluster of reports, separated aircraft from lights, identified most of the lights as Venus, and left a small residue without positive identification. This is a recurring pattern in British official UFO handling: “unidentified” meant not conclusively matched to a known cause, not evidence of extraterrestrial origin.

Mills pressed the point by referring not only to the two police officers but also to engineers at Hessary Tor, asking how the official statement fitted reports of low-flying objects moving for more than an hour in the area. Rees replied that investigations over recent years gave no reason to believe in unidentified objects in the stronger implied sense, and said the authorities had access to scientific advice and to radar coverage. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

The wider Parliamentary context helps explain why ministers wanted a controlled answer. The previous day, the MoD had told Parliament that between 1 January 1959 and 30 September 1967 it had examined 625 UFO reports, with 555 found to have mundane explanations and the remaining 70 lacking enough data for evaluation, but with nothing suggesting they were materially different from the explained cases. [Hansard]hansard.parliament.ukHansard Unidentified Flying ObjectsUnidentified Flying Objects - Hansard - UK Parliament…

Police Officers Describe UFO Encounter (1967)

Channel: Frontline by ITN · Views: 399.7K · Uploaded: November 2022 · Length: 2 minutes 12 seconds

Open on YouTube

What the surviving records add

The National Archives research guide confirms that this was not only a press story. It identifies AIR 20/11889 and AIR 20/11890 as containing papers and reports on a “flying cross” seen by police officers and other witnesses in Devon, Sussex and elsewhere during October 1967. That places the North Devon report inside an official file trail and also inside a wider multi-county sighting pattern. [National Archives]cdn.nationalarchives.gov.ukNational Archives Research Notes 6National Archives Research Notes 6

The same National Archives guide explains the type of machinery behind such investigations. UFO report files could include letters from the public and reports from official sources such as police, coastguard and the Civil Aviation Authority. Reports often used a standard proforma covering date, time, duration, description, observer position, direction, movement, weather, nearby objects, other witnesses and whether the incident had been reported to police or military bodies. [National Archives]cdn.nationalarchives.gov.ukNational Archives Research Notes 6National Archives Research Notes 6

This matters because it shows the Flying Cross was not merely folklore repeated in later UFO books. It entered the post-war British UFO bureaucracy: local witnesses, press interest, MPs, RAF channels, MoD assessment and archival preservation. The case is therefore stronger as a documented social and official event than as a proven anomalous aircraft encounter.

The archival context also cuts both ways. The National Archives guide notes that UFO records from 1967 can be found in Air Ministry and MoD files and that from 1966–67 UFO reports and correspondence were preserved in separate sequences. It also notes that papers from 1967–68 include field investigations of selected UFO reports by S4 (Air) and DI55, the Defence Intelligence branch. [National Archives]cdn.nationalarchives.gov.ukNational Archives Research Notes 6National Archives Research Notes 6

For a reader weighing the North Devon case, that means the right question is not “did the MoD ignore it?” The better question is whether the surviving investigation found anything beyond witness testimony and visual interpretation. The public record available through Parliament shows no radar confirmation, no physical trace, no recovered object, and no official finding of defence significance.

Flying Cross illustration 2

Why Venus became the main explanation

Venus is the central sceptical explanation because the North Devon sighting occurred during a wider British UFO flap in October 1967, when many reports involved bright lights. Ridpath’s overview of the October 1967 flap describes a rash of sightings over Britain and argues that the cases were readily resolved, with most caused by Venus. [Ian Ridpath]ianridpath.comOpen source on ianridpath.com.

To many readers, “it was Venus” can sound like a stock dismissal. In this case, it is more serious than that because Rees’s Parliamentary answer independently states that, of the North Devon lights investigated by the MoD, the majority were identified as Venus. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

The Venus explanation works best for the broad pattern: bright early-morning light, multiple reports over more than one area, no sound, no physical trace, no confirmed radar track, and witnesses interpreting motion while travelling in vehicles. It is less tidy for the most dramatic details: the reported cross shape, apparent acceleration, tree-top height and sense of being followed or watched. Those details are the reason the case remains discussed.

The key distinction is between the object as described and the likely stimulus. A bright planet cannot accelerate across the sky or fly at tree-top height. But a witness’s perception of a bright distant light can change when seen through a moving car windscreen, mist, roadside trees, uneven roads and shifting lines of sight. That does not make the officers careless or dishonest. It means human perception under night-driving conditions is part of the evidence, not an afterthought.

1967-10-24: Devon Flying Cross UFO or Venus?

Channel: Tom Owens UAP

Open on YouTube

Why the case remains famous but disputed

The North Devon Flying Cross is famous because it is unusually memorable: a cross-shaped light, police witnesses, a pursuit, a same-day media record and Parliamentary attention. Many UFO reports fade because they are anonymous, late, or poorly located. This one has names, place, date, footage metadata, and official discussion within weeks. [Getty Images]gettyimages.comGetty Images Police officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage VideoGetty ImagesPolice officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video - Getty Images…

It is disputed because the strongest evidence is still testimonial. The case does not appear to rest on photographs, radar plots, physical effects, landing marks or instrument data. Parliament confirms multiple reports and an MoD investigation, but the ministerial answer points mainly towards aircraft and Venus, with only a small number of lights left unidentified. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

The case also became part of a wider “flying cross” pattern across Britain. The National Archives explicitly groups Devon with Sussex and elsewhere in October 1967, and that wider spread weakens a narrow interpretation of a single local craft operating only over North Devon. It makes a shared sky stimulus, media feedback, or repeated misidentification more plausible than a one-off exotic machine over the county. [National Archives]cdn.nationalarchives.gov.ukNational Archives Research Notes 6National Archives Research Notes 6

Still, the dispute is not trivial. The officers’ confidence, their description of speed and silence, and the reference to other local observers at Hessary Tor are all reasons the case cannot be reduced to a throwaway “mistake” without explanation. A balanced assessment should hold both points together: the witnesses were credible enough to be taken seriously, but credibility is not the same as accuracy under difficult viewing conditions.

Flying Cross illustration 3

What the evidence supports today

The evidence supports a clear historical conclusion: on 24 October 1967, two North Devon police officers reported an unusual cross-shaped light near Okehampton; the report gained national attention; the MoD investigated a cluster of North Devon sightings; Parliament discussed the case; and official records later preserved the Flying Cross within the wider October 1967 UFO file series. [Getty Images+2Parliament API]gettyimages.comGetty Images Police officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage VideoGetty ImagesPolice officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video - Getty Images…

The evidence does not support a stronger claim that an extraordinary craft was established. The official answer identified many reports as aircraft or Venus, gave no indication of hostile or unknown technology, and explicitly rejected an alien interpretation. The surviving public trail leaves some lights not positively identified, but that is a limited conclusion: unresolved details, not confirmation of a structured unknown object. [Parliament API]api.parliament.ukunidentified flying object north devonParliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)…Published: November 1967

For Devon’s UFO history, that is exactly why the Flying Cross still matters. It shows how a local rural sighting could become a national case when credible witnesses, press imagery and political scrutiny lined up. It also shows the limits of witness-led UFO evidence: the story is vivid, documented and culturally durable, but the best official and sceptical readings still point towards ordinary lights, especially Venus, as the most likely explanation for much of the October 1967 North Devon flap.

Devon Cross UFO Encounter (1967) - two police officer witnesses

Channel: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena

Open on YouTube

Amazon book picks

Further Reading

Books and field guides related to Why Devon's Flying Cross Still Matters. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.

BookCover for UFOs

UFOs

By Leslie Kean

Focuses on credible witness testimony, official investigations, and government responses, matching the Devon police-witness and MoD angle.

See on Amazon
Browse more on Amazon: UFOs The UFO Experience The UFO Enigma

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

eBay marketplace picks

Marketplace Samples

Example marketplace items related to this page. Use the search link to explore similar finds on eBay.

Using USA
Browse more on eBay.co.uk

Example items shown for inspiration; availability and pricing can change. Branchoria may earn a commission if you purchase through outbound eBay links.

Endnotes

  1. Source: api.parliament.uk
    Title: unidentified flying object north devon
    Link: https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1967/nov/08/unidentified-flying-object-north-devon
    Source snippet

    Parliament APIUnidentified Flying Object (North Devon) (Hansard, 8 November 1967)...

    Published: November 1967

  2. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: Hansard Unidentified Flying Objects
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1967-11-07/debates/9f4b9f7e-8c3f-434e-95e8-19670ba5a191/UnidentifiedFlyingObjects
    Source snippet

    Unidentified Flying Objects - Hansard - UK Parliament...

  3. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Unidentified Flying Object (North Devon)
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1967-11-08/debates/98dc02f8-db01-49f3-add4-1b6132d61fe0/UnidentifiedFlyingObject%28NorthDevon%29

  4. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Oral Answers To Questions
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/%E2%80%8CCommons/1967-11-08/debates/a30cb0b7-d1b5-4ea2-95d3-cc3f211a9091/OralAnswersToQuestions

  5. Source: api.parliament.uk
    Link: https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/sittings/1967/nov/08

  6. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Commons Chamber
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/html/%E2%80%8CCommons/1967-11-08/CommonsChamber

  7. Source: api.parliament.uk
    Title: sir john langford holt
    Link: https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/people/sir-john-langford-holt/1967

  8. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk House of ‌Commons
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/%E2%80%8CCommons/1967-11-07

  9. Source: api.parliament.uk
    Title: oral answers to questions
    Link: https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1967/nov/08/oral-answers-to-questions

  10. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Written Answers
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/html/Commons/2007-06-04/WrittenAnswers

  11. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Unidentified Flying Objects
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1967-11-29/debates/376f4e4d-9470-4204-a6d6-ebddc82af579/UnidentifiedFlyingObjects

  12. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk House of Commons
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1967-11-22

  13. Source: api.parliament.uk
    Title: mr emanuel shinwell
    Link: https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/people/mr-emanuel-shinwell/1967

  14. Source: hansard.parliament.uk
    Title: uk Unidentified Flying Objects
    Link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1967-10-25/debates/ae34448a-42f5-4bd3-9419-6d624d418e56/UnidentifiedFlyingObjects

  15. Source: gettyimages.com
    Title: Getty Images Police officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video
    Link: https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/police-officers-see-ufo-while-on-patrol-england-devon-nr-news-footage/823352618
    Source snippet

    Getty ImagesPolice officers see UFO while on patrol; Stock Footage Video - Getty Images...

  16. Source: ianridpath.com
    Link: https://www.ianridpath.com/ufo/flyingcross.html
    Source snippet

    Ian RidpathDevon Flying Cross UFO of 1967The famous Devon 'flying cross' case of 1967 October 24 in which police constables Roger Willey...

  17. Source: cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    Title: National Archives Research Notes 6
    Link: https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/aug-2009-research-guide.pdf

  18. Source: ianridpath.com
    Link: https://www.ianridpath.com/ufo/octoberflap.html

  19. Source: nationalarchives.gov.uk
    Title: Help with your research Archives
    Link: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/category/records-2/page/29/

  20. Source: cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    Link: https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/missing-documents-2011.xls

  21. Source: cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk
    Link: https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/missing-or-misplaced-documents.xls

  22. Source: facebook.com
    Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/4995087850/posts/10160954110972851/

Additional References

  1. Source: youtube.com
    Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwAkB0Fv5qA
    Source snippet

    On October 24th, 1967 DEVON FLYING CROSS UFO CHASED BY PLOICE OFFICERS...

  2. Source: youtube.com
    Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tw5IxquAlw8
    Source snippet

    1967 ufo devon police Police Officers Describe UFO Encounter (1967) Frontline by ITN...

  3. Source: youtube.com
    Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p9yTJaee6g
    Source snippet

    Devon Cross UFO Encounter (1967) - two police officer witnesses...

  4. Source: facebook.com
    Link: https://www.facebook.com/BritishPowerboatRacingClub/posts/british-pathe-release-early-footage-of-a-ufo-seen-off-cowes-torquay-and-again-at/10157080527446961/

  5. Source: facebook.com
    Link: https://www.facebook.com/BeamishLivingMuseum/posts/if-you-spot-any-ufos-around-beamish-make-sure-to-report-any-sightings-to-our-pol/1243953641105434/

  6. Source: reddit.com
    Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/mystery/comments/f0r5dl/one_of_britains_strangest_ufo_cases_began_when/

  7. Source: facebook.com
    Link: https://www.facebook.com/dailymirror/posts/one-of-the-most-famous-and-unexplained-ufo-sightings-took-place-in-the-uk-45-yea/1322515663256848/

  8. Source: medium.com
    Link: https://medium.com/%40/police-chase-an-alien-craft-for-14-miles-in-devon-england-4a70a2060257

  9. Source: academia.edu
    Link: https://www.academia.edu/120283987/The_Reliability_and_Psychology_of_Eyewitness_Centered_UFO_Experience_A_Bibliography

  10. Source: facebook.com
    Title: on october 24 1967 2 police officers in devon england reported witnessing an unu
    Link: https://www.facebook.com/ancientwhispers/posts/on-october-24-1967-2-police-officers-in-devon-england-reported-witnessing-an-unu/959484243737664/

Topic Tree

Follow this branch

Parent topic

Devon UFOs

Related pages 3