Close call: Was a Mosquito trailed by a flying saucer(dailymail.co.uk)
British wartime prime minister Winston Churchill banned the reporting for 50 years of an alleged UFO incident because of fears it could create mass panic, according to claims made public on Thursday.
The grandson of an RAF officer who was one of Churchill's personal bodyguards wrote to Britain's Ministry of Defence in 1999 about the alleged incident.
His account and Churchill's claimed reaction featured in documents released on Thursday from Britain's National Archives.
According to this account, the man's grandfather overheard Churchill discussing the alleged incident with US wartime General Dwight Eisenhower.
Reports given to Churchill claimed that a reconnaissance aircraft returning to Britain from a mission was shadowed by a UFO as it crossed the British coast.
The plane's crew were reported to have photographed the object, which they said had "hovered noiselessly" near the aircraft, before moving off.
According to the letter describing this alleged incident: "Mr Churchill is reported to have made a declaration to the effect, 'This event should be immediately classified since it would create mass panic among the general population and destroy one's belief in the Church.'"
英国于本周四披露的一份机密文件称，二战期间，英国时任首相温斯顿•丘吉尔曾下令在50年内禁报一起不明飞行物（UFO）事件，以防引发公众恐慌。
1999年，英国皇家空军一名军官的孙子曾就这起UFO事件致信英国国防部，这位军官曾是丘吉尔的私人保镖。
英国国家档案馆于本周四解密了相关文件，这其中包括空军军官的孙子写给国防部的信件以及当时丘吉尔就此事做出的反应。
据写信人描述，当时他祖父无意中听到丘吉尔和美国将军德怀特•艾森豪威尔讨论这起UFO事件。
丘吉尔接到的报告称，一架侦察机在执行完任务穿越英国海岸返航途中，遭到一架不明飞行物的尾随。
据称，当时机组人员拍下了这个飞行物的照片，并称当时它就在侦察机附近“无声地盘旋”，然后飞走了。
信件中称：“据称，丘吉尔首相下了命令，‘这起事件应立即被列为国家机密，一旦公布，会引发民众的大规模恐慌，摧毁人们的宗教信仰。’”
UFO: 不明飞行物，Unidentified Flying Object的缩写
reconnaissance: a search made for useful military information in the field, esp. by examining the ground（侦察）
shadow: to follow about secretly（跟踪）