Southern Africa Unexplained

Case · UFO Afrinews No 21, January 2000

Sqn Ldr Roberts' Tiger Moth and the elliptical sausage, Lake Chivero

1954 · near Lake Chivero, some 35 km from Harare, Belvedere Airport, Harare, Zimbabwe

What was reported

Roberts, a former RAF Bomber Command squadron leader, was flying with student Bob Woodward in a Tiger Moth at 2100 m and 137 km/h when they saw a silver object about 760 m above them, like an elliptical sausage with a clear centre and hazy ends. Roberts took control and closed in, but the object tipped onto its side and departed at great speed. Over the lake it came back towards them, stopped dead and hovered about 4 km away, now looking like two saucers one above the other, either separate or joined by something the colour of the sky, silver-grey, non-reflective and about 12 m long. After a short hover it tipped again and shot off at incredible speed. Both reported to Flying Control at Belvedere Airport, but the radar was not working.

What Hind made of it

From her book UFOs: African Encounters; no radar confirmation possible because the radar was down.

In their words

  • The most amazing thing about the object was the way it changed direction....

    A J Roberts, spread 7

Cross references

  • UFOs: African Encounters (1982) pp 72-3

Connected

  • Buckmasters Farm Case, May 1951Case fileSame behaviour

    Two shallow dishes one inverted on the other, greyish metallic, silent, hovering then shooting off (Buckmasters Farm, Marlborough, May 1951); two saucers one above the other, silver-grey, stopping dead, hovering, departing at incredible speed (Tiger Moth near Lake Chivero, 1954). Both Salisbury-area daylight cases from the worldwide saucer years; both checked with aviation authorities at the time (Herald: no air activity; Belvedere flying control: radar down).

Source

Cynthia Hind, UFO Afrinews No 21 (January 2000), spread 7

In the archive

This case became a story on this site.

1954 · Zimbabwe

The elliptical sausage over Lake McIlwaine

A bomber pilot and his student turned a Tiger Moth towards a silver sausage. It tipped over and left, then came back over the lake as two saucers and hovered.

ACCAccelerationLIFTLift
Documented

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