HMG Report 40744

HMG Report 40744 Click to view 6 page report

HMG Report 40744 reflects the Ministry of Defence in the United Kingdom’s current official ‘position on UFOs’ — that UFO aerial phenomena is rubbish, and can nominally be explained as natural phenomena, or “perfectly normal aircraft”. The report is classified as “Secret Discreet”, meaning that the six page document is allowed to be disseminated with discretion, typically within MoD intelligence branches. The MoD has stood-by this document since 1951.

Flying Saucer Working Party

Clement Attlee, PM (26 July 1945 – 26 October 1951) for the United Kingdom, and Leader of the Labour Party (UK)

PM Clement Attlee (1945 – 1951) quickly wanted an official scientific study to debunk UFO phenomena before the conclusion of his term. The Defence Intelligence and Joint Intelligence Committee of the United Kingdom agreed to have Sir Henry Tizard assemble a small scientific team to carry out this task. The team was set up in October 1950 as the ‘Flying Saucer Working Party’. They were required to produce monthly reports on UFO phenomena for at least six months.

Their final report 40744, was to conclude that all UFO aerial phenomena could be explained as misidentifications of ordinary objects or phenomena, optical illusions, psychological delusions or hoaxes. The main body of the report ends with the following statement:

“We accordingly recommend very strongly that no further investigation of reported mysterious aerial phenomena be undertaken, unless and until some material evidence becomes available”.

G. L. Turney was authorized to say that the working party be dissolved with immediate effect. “He went on to say, that following the lead given by the Americans on this subject, the Report should he thought, have as little publicity as possible and outside circulation should be confined to one copy to Sir Henry Tizard”.

Majestic-12

Nick Pope wrote a commentary on ‘the American influence’ on the Flying Saucer Working Party’s Report No 7. Pope says that he cannot overstate the influence of the Americans. The phrase “following the lead given by the Americans on this subject” is extremely revealing that much of the material comes from liaison with those involved with Projects Sign and Grudge. If Pope’s assertions are correct, then Majestic 12, established in 1947, was involved.

If Majestic-12 influenced the Flying Saucer Working Party, then ‘Report 40744’ is likely designed to brief the Prime minister-designate on the UK’s official position on UFO aerial phenomena, the same as was designed for the United States in Operation Majestic 1952. PM Clement Attlee ensured that Report No. 7 was completed before the end of his term.

Further studies

UFO reports of aerial phenomena were monitored by the MoD and put into Red Book in the 1950s. When the United Nations addressed the UFO phenomenon and “adopted a resolution in 1978 asking all nations to pay close attention to the UFO problem”, the MoD setup a civilian UFO study desk that lasted into the nineties and ended by 2006.

However, since Clement Attleel, the MoDs position on UFO aerial phenomena has not changed as mandated by Report 40744, issued on June 1951. It is the ‘go to’ report on all UFO aerial phenomena in the interests of security for the United Kingdom. In 2001, Report 40744 was disseminated to investigative journalist Georgina Bruni, and UFO researchers David Clarke, and Andy Roberts, who had requested UFO documentation under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Resources

• Flying Saucer Working Party by David Clarke, Jan 2020