Cosford incident
- Date
- 31 Mar 1993
- Place
- RAF Cosford and RAF Shawbury, Shropshire, and across western Britain, United Kingdom
- Record
- Curated case
- Assessment
- Explained
- Evidence strength
What was reported
Around 1:10 a.m. on 31 March 1993 about 70 people across western Britain, including a Ministry of Defence police patrol at RAF Cosford, reported bright lights or triangular formations moving fast across the sky; at about 2:40 a.m. the Met Office observer at RAF Shawbury reported a large object sweeping a beam over the ground with a low hum. Nick Pope opened an MoD file (DEFE 24/2086/1) and Defence Intelligence another, and his line manager speculated about a secret US aircraft. The 1:10 a.m. sightings match the re-entry of the rocket body that had launched Cosmos 2238 hours earlier, confirmed by US Space Command tracking; the Shawbury report was later attributed to a police helicopter with a searchlight, which the observer came to accept.
What officials concluded
Unresolved
No official explanation has been given.
Strongest ordinary reading
Re-entry of the Cosmos 2238 rocket body; the Shawbury report probably a police helicopter
Evidence profile
- Yes: Visual
- No: Infrared
- No: Radar
- No: Video
- No: Photo
- No: Film
- No: Audio
- No: Night vision
- No: Other sensor
- Yes: Civilian
- No: Military aircrew
- Yes: Military ground
- No: Airline crew
- No: Sensor operator
- Yes: Law enforcement
- No: Scientist
- No: Astronaut
- No: Intelligence official
- No: Other
- No: Light only
- No: Orb or sphere
- No: Disc
- Yes: Triangle
- No: Cylinder
- No: Cube
- No: Other shape
- No: Physiological
- No: Physical trace
- No: Electromagnetic
- Yes: Sound
- No: Silent
Outside sources
- David Clarke: Case closed, 30th anniversary of the Cosford UFO flapdrclarke.substack.com
On the map
52.64° N, 2.31° W, plotted at the centre of the region named in the record
Show on the map