The Wellington/Kaikoura UFO Incident (1978): A Comprehensive Analysis

The December 1978 UFO sightings over the Kaikōura mountain ranges in New Zealand’s South Island stand as one of the most thoroughly documented UFO cases in history. Commonly referred to as the “Kaikoura Lights,” these events featured multiple credible witnesses, radar confirmations from both ground and air, color film footage, and audio recordings - creating a compelling body of evidence that has continued to challenge conventional explanations for decades. This report examines the historical record, assesses witness credibility, explores skeptical counterarguments, and analyzes the lasting impact of this remarkable case.

Historical Background and Sequence of Events

Initial Sightings: December 20-21, 1978

The Kaikoura incident began on December 21, 1978, when the crew of a Safe Air Ltd cargo aircraft (an Armstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy) reported observing a series of strange lights while flying over the Kaikōura ranges. The crew described a very large object with five white flashing lights that tracked alongside their aircraft for several minutes before disappearing and then reappearing elsewhere¹. Some witnesses reported seeing “little disks” drop from the UFO that subsequently disappeared. The pilots characterized some of the lights as “the size of a house” while others appeared smaller but were “flashing brilliantly”¹.

Significantly, these objects were simultaneously detected on the Wellington Air Traffic Control radar and on the aircraft’s onboard radar systems, providing crucial corroborating evidence beyond mere visual sightings¹. This multi-sensor confirmation would become a hallmark of the Kaikoura incident.

The initial radar contacts of December 20-21 created sufficient concern that New Zealand’s Civil Aviation officials alerted the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). According to declassified documents, an Air Force Skyhawk was placed on standby to investigate any subsequent positive sightings¹.

The Filmed Encounter: December 30-31, 1978

While the initial sightings generated significant local interest, it was the events of December 30-31 that propelled the Kaikoura incident to international prominence. An Australian television crew was aboard another Argosy aircraft specifically to record background footage for a news story about the earlier sightings¹².

During the flight to Christchurch, unidentified lights were observed by five people on the flight deck, tracked by Wellington Air Traffic Controllers, and filmed in color by the television crew¹. According to contemporaneous reports, at least one object appeared to follow the aircraft almost until landing¹.

After landing in Christchurch at 1:01 AM on December 31, the cargo plane took off again at 2:16 AM with the television crew still aboard, heading for Blenheim³⁴. Approximately three minutes into this return flight, as the aircraft climbed through cloud cover, the crew encountered what appeared to be a large luminous orb off the right wing tip¹⁴. This object tracked alongside the cargo aircraft for almost fifteen minutes while being filmed, observed by the crew, tracked on aircraft radar, and described in real-time on audio recordings made by the TV crew¹⁵.

The captain, Bill Startup, obtained a strong return on his radar, which was operating in “mapping mode.” The flight crew estimated the radar “blip” to be three to five times larger than the return from a large fishing boat⁴. The object was described as a bright yellow/white/orange light that would appear and disappear through cloud tops, positioned between 10 and 30 degrees to the right of the aircraft⁴.

The Wellington/Kaikoura UFO Incident (1978): A Comprehensive Analysis - Full-Text (SVG)

Credibility Assessment of Evidence and Witnesses

Multiple Credible Witnesses

The Kaikoura sightings derive significant credibility from the caliber of witnesses involved. These included:

Professional airline pilots with extensive flight experience
Air traffic controllers from Wellington
A professional television news crew
Military personnel including Warrant Officer Ian Uffindell at Woodbourne RNZAF base⁵

The primary witnesses were trained observers whose careers depend on accurate perception and reporting. Captain Bill Startup, who piloted the aircraft during the December 31 event, was particularly adamant about what he observed, later commenting that skeptics “hadn’t explained how Jupiter, Venus and the harbour lights could be travelling at 140 knots (260 kph) according to his radar!”⁶

Multi-Sensor Confirmations

Perhaps the most compelling aspect of the Kaikoura incident is the multi-sensor nature of the evidence:

Visual sightings by multiple independent observers
Ground-based radar confirmation from Wellington Air Traffic Control
Airborne radar confirmation from the aircraft’s onboard systems
Color film footage recorded by professional cameramen
Real-time audio recordings documenting the crew’s reactions and communications

The correlation between visual sightings and simultaneous radar returns from both ground and air-based systems is particularly significant. As noted in declassified documents, objects were “tracked by Wellington Air Traffic Controllers, and filmed in colour by the television crew”¹.

Analysis of the Film Evidence

The film footage captured during the December 30-31 incident underwent detailed analysis by Dr. Bruce Maccabee, a US physicist and optical data analyst. His report, “What Really Happened in New Zealand,” made several important determinations⁴⁶:

The film was genuine, confirmed through examination of manufacturer edge numbers showing continuous sequencing (except for a planned film change in Christchurch)
The landing light sequences provided color and brightness information for calibration and established the optical quality of the airplane window
Statements from various witnesses complemented rather than contradicted each other
The phenomenon was difficult to explain through conventional means

Dr. Maccabee concluded that this case ranks “among the top 10 UFO sightings worldwide”⁵ and continues to maintain this assessment decades later.

Official Investigation

The Kaikoura incident holds the distinction of being the only UFO case fully investigated by New Zealand authorities, according to declassified Defense Force files⁷. This investigation occurred at the direct request of Prime Minister Robert Muldoon, indicating the seriousness with which the New Zealand government treated the matter⁷⁸.

The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) submitted a report to the United Nations in January 1979 classifying the objects as “UFOs until identified,” though they maintained that the “prospect of extra terrestrial intervention being proved is regarded as extremely remote”⁹. Notably, the DSIR appeared to struggle with debunking the TV1 footage, acknowledging that while one film (Crockett’s) could be dismissed due to filming through an aircraft window, the TV1 footage was “more interesting as it was a straight shot free of any distortion produced by filming through glass and plastic”⁹.

Counterarguments and Skeptical Explanations

Official Explanations

The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ultimately attributed the sightings to several natural phenomena:

“Freak propagation” of radio and light waves
An unusually bright Venus or Jupiter
“Anomalous returns” on Wellington radar
Lights from squid fishing fleets
Lights from cars and trains
Atmospheric conditions causing false radar readings⁸

Wing Commander J.B. Clements stated, “Almost all the sightings can be explained by natural but unusual phenomena,” and recommended that “Defence should issue a PR statement fairly soon in order to tone down much of the wild speculation that has existed over recent weeks”⁸.

The Wellington/Kaikoura UFO Incident (1978): A Comprehensive Analysis - P1 (SVG)

Problems with Official Explanations

The RNZAF explanations encountered significant criticism from witnesses and analysts:

The RNZAF report acknowledged that aircrews “do not seem to be prepared to accept the fact that they might have observed Venus. Thankfully, however neither do they believe that they saw a visitor from outer space”⁸.
Captain Bill Startup pointedly questioned how celestial bodies or harbor lights could be “travelling at 140 knots (260 kph) according to his radar”⁶.
When a local astronomer in Christchurch initially suggested Venus as an explanation, he was forced to change his theory to Jupiter when it was pointed out that the sighting occurred long before Venus was visible. Critics noted that Jupiter was “nearly overhead at the time and could not have been seen through the roof of the plane”⁶.
The squid boat explanation was particularly problematic. While a New Zealand Air Force officer arranged a special flight several nights later and observed the squid fleet “putting out as much light as a small city,” the crew of the December 31 flight had also seen the squid fleet and noted it was “over 100 miles from the area of the sighting”⁶.

Alternative Explanations

Beyond official explanations, other skeptical theories included:

Light reflected from the breasts of mating mutton birds (proposed by an ornithologist)
Light reflected from cabbages in a cabbage patch (suggested by a local resident)
Drug runners
Military maneuvers
A hoax by the Australian TV station
“Unburned meteorites” (proposed by Sir Bernard Lovell of Jodrell Bank Radio Observatory)⁶

Many of these explanations were considered implausible even at the time, with some being openly mocked in New Zealand media. A cartoon by Eric Heath (himself ex-RNZAF) in Wellington’s Dominion Post satirized the official explanations⁶.

Influence and Impact

Media Coverage and Public Awareness

The Kaikoura incident generated significant media attention both in New Zealand and internationally. The involvement of a professional television crew ensured that compelling footage was broadcast globally, increasing public interest and scrutiny¹².

As noted in contemporary accounts, “The media had a feast”⁵. However, some observers have suggested that coverage was “quickly shut down and disappeared from the news”⁶, though the case has been periodically revisited by news organizations in subsequent years, particularly after the declassification of official documents.

Government Response and Document Declassification

The New Zealand military released hundreds of documents detailing UFO sightings, including the Kaikoura incident, in December 2010. These files, dating from 1954 to 2009, comprised approximately 2,000 pages of accounts from members of the public, military personnel, and commercial airline pilots²¹⁰.

New Zealand Air Force spokesman Kavae Tamariki stated at the time of release: “We have just been a collection point for the information. We don’t investigate or make reports, we haven’t substantiated anything in them”². However, this statement appears to contradict evidence that the Kaikoura case specifically was investigated at the request of Prime Minister Muldoon⁷.

The declassification of these documents has provided researchers with valuable primary sources, though “all the original documents on which the reports were based are to remain sealed in the national archive”².

Impact on UFO Research

The Kaikoura incident remains significant in UFO research for several reasons:

It features multiple types of evidence (visual, radar, film, audio)
It involved highly credible witnesses
It underwent official investigation
The original evidence has been preserved and analyzed by qualified experts

Dr. Bruce Maccabee’s ongoing analysis has helped maintain interest in the case, and he continues to cite it as one of the most compelling UFO incidents on record⁵⁶¹¹. The case is particularly valuable because it doesn’t rely solely on witness testimony but includes instrumental recordings from multiple independent systems.

Effect on Witnesses

The professional witnesses involved in the sightings faced significant challenges following their reports. As one source notes, “those who perhaps suffered the most were the professionals involved in the sightings – the pilots and ATCs – men of professionalism, and highly skilled and experienced”⁵. Their credibility was questioned despite their training and experience, a common pattern in high-profile UFO cases involving professional observers.

Primary Sources and Follow-up Research

Key Primary Documents

Declassified New Zealand Defence Force files (released in 2010)
Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) report to the United Nations (January 1979)
Dr. Bruce Maccabee’s analysis “What Really Happened in New Zealand”
Original film footage and audio recordings from the Australian television crew
RNZAF official report on the sightings

These materials form the core documentary evidence for the case and have been partially preserved through the declassification process.

The Wellington/Kaikoura UFO Incident (1978): A Comprehensive Analysis - P2 (SVG)

Expert Analysis

Dr. Bruce Maccabee’s work stands as the most thorough independent analysis of the case. As recently as January 2025, Dr. Maccabee has discussed the Kaikoura Lights in relation to other significant UFO cases, maintaining his assessment of its importance¹¹. His technical expertise in optics and image analysis provides a valuable scientific perspective on the photographic evidence.

Avenues for Further Research

Several promising avenues exist for additional research:

Re-analysis of original film using modern technology: Modern digital enhancement techniques could potentially extract additional details from the original footage.
Interviews with surviving witnesses: John Cordy, the last surviving Air Traffic Control witness as of 2020, and other living participants could provide valuable contemporary reflections⁵.
Comparison with similar cases: The Kaikoura incident shares features with other cases involving both visual sightings and radar confirmations. Comparative analysis could reveal patterns or distinctions.
Complete access to original materials: Researchers have noted that while many documents have been declassified, “all the original documents on which the reports were based are to remain sealed in the national archive”². Full access to these materials could yield additional insights.

Conclusion

The 1978 Wellington/Kaikoura UFO incident remains one of the most well-documented and compelling UFO cases on record. Its strength lies in the multiple forms of evidence, the credibility of witnesses, and the official attention it received. While conventional explanations have been offered, many observers—including the direct witnesses—find them inadequate to account for all aspects of the incident.

The case illustrates both the strengths and limitations of UFO investigation: even with professional witnesses, multiple sensor confirmations, and preserved evidence, conclusive identification remains elusive decades later. What can be said with confidence is that something unusual was observed and recorded in the skies over Kaikoura in December 1978—something that has resisted simple explanation for over 46 years.

Whether one favors the extraterrestrial hypothesis or believes some as-yet-unexplained natural phenomenon was responsible, the case continues to merit serious scholarly attention. As with many significant UFO incidents, the Kaikoura lights exist in an evidential middle ground—too well-documented to dismiss outright, yet too anomalous to easily classify within our current understanding of natural phenomena.

⁂

Isaac Koi