Wednesday 22 May 2013

The Flying Saucers are Real by Donald Keyhoe

Official Blurb

The Flying Saucers are Real is a book that investigates numerous encounters between USAF fighters, personnel, and other aircraft, and UFOs between 1947 and 1950. Keyhoe contended that the Air Force was actively investigating these cases of close encounter, with a policy of concealing their existence from the public until 1949. He stated that this policy was then replaced by one of cautious, progressive revelation. Keyhoe further stated that Earth had been visited by extraterrestrials for two centuries, with the frequency of these visits increasing sharply after the first atomic weapon test in 1945. Citing anecdotal evidence, he intimated the Air Force may have attained and adapted some aspect of the alien technology: its method of propulsion and perhaps its source of power. He believed the Air Force or the US Government would eventually reveal these technologies to the public when the Soviet Union was no longer a threat.

Donald E. Keyhoe, who relates here his investigation of the flying saucers, writes with twenty-five years of experience in observing aeronautical developments. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis. He flew in active service with the Marine Corps, managed the tour of the historic plane in which Bennett and Byrd made their North Pole flight, was aide to Charles Lindbergh after the famous Paris flight, and was chief of information for the Aeronautics Branch, Department of Commerce. 


My Review

This audobook is narrated by Roger Melin, one of my faves over at Librivox.  This is not a novel ( or at least it purports itself as investigative journalism. It follows the writers investigation into the "truth" about all of the flying saucer incident that took place after the end of WWII.

I found the whole book fascinating. The details of the cases involved, the investigative process and the reactions of those being interviewed were very well presented. I felt my own curiosity woken up by the questions the author put forwards, and  I ended up as doubtful of the official position as he did himself.

There are a number of UFO theories put forwards here that are still floating around today. I also found the assumptions and the thoughts he had about space travel were made even more interesting because they were written before we actually had space travel.

Well written, well read, totally absorbing.  If you have any interest in ufology, this is a must-listen.

Reading 3/3
Production 2/3
Story 2/3

Total Score 7/9

Download it from Librivox.


Listen to the first chapter.