Retired pilot turned UFO researcher Bruce Cathie also spoke of being questioned about his work by mysterious men, that vanished after entering a stairwell. He dedicated a chapter in his book "The Energy Grid" to this supposed interaction.
Bumping because I decided to reread some of this book today, and thought I'd link part of the chapter I mentioned above for anyone interested. It's a long read by forum standards (7 full book pages of text), so if you're the ADD type or not interested, simply go on about your day without bothering.
PEOPLE WE WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT
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STARTLING THOUGH IT WAS TO HAVE FOUND A network of man-made aerials built into the UFO grid system, some of the subsequent events were bizarre.
Up to this time I had been aware of treading on the corns of a
few faceless technicians and other parties who had some connection,
scienfically or politically, with the UFO grid. It had to be only a
matter of of time before the corns were inflamed enough to bring their
possessors out into the open. So far as I was aware, no direct action
had been taken to prevent me from proceeding with investigations
connected with my theories, or to try and stop my constant probing
into the network.
Like all the best ordered secret societies, the group had given no
positive indication that they even existed. So long as the public at
large did not insist upon answers to controversial questions, the
group's members, whoever and wherever they were, were appar-
ently content to let matters quietly take their own course, no doubt
hopeful that eventually I would be branded as just another crank,
and that anything I had to put forward would automatically
be discounted.
I was fully aware that there was a possibility that I would be
written off as a crank, but I soon decided that this was a chance I
would have to take anyway. Obviously I had to be fairly careful
how I handled information I was now receiving. If I pushed too
hard, I would almost certainly be regarded as a Grade A lunatic,
On the other hand, if I kept all the information to myself I would
lose any advantage I might have gained, and I would be placing
myself in a position that could prove to be quite dangerous. Other
investigators of UFO phenomena in the past have disappeared or
have been victims of strange accidents as a result of probing too
deeply into the so-called flying saucer enigma.
For these reasons I decided that my best course was to leak in-
formation out as it came into my hands, and also to filter out copies
of all my notes through a loose-knit chain of contacts both within
and outside New Zealand, so that it would be impossible to stop the
132
truth from spreading. All the evidence so far gathered would be in
the hands of certain newspapermen, so that it could be transmitted
via the wire services immediately any move was made to stop my
investigations.
I had no intention of becoming involved in some weird cloak and
dagger game; certainly I have never regarded my investigations as
either a game or a harmless hobby. I am also deeply aware of just
how serious the "group" is about maintaining secrecy over their
activities.
In fact, I took some pains to keep the "group" informed about the
network I had set up to ensure that all information would quickly
be disseminated in the event of some untoward accident coming my
way. There were a few people whom I was certain had direct con-
nections with the "group," if they were not members themselves.
Through these people I let the word go out as to the precautions I
had taken. One of them scornfully suggested that he could not
believe any journalist would sit on such hot news when it might be
possible for him to get a scoop on the news services of the world.
My answer to him was: "Test the truth of what I have told you by
trying to stop me in my investigations." So far the test has not been
made; perhaps he realised that after all there are more honest and
dedicated men in this world than we sometimes think.
At any rate the scheme appeared to be working very well; I found
that the public, instead of labelling me as crazy, with first-class
honours, actively encouraged my research into the UFO mystery.
Letters came every day, from many parts of the world, after the
publication of Harmonic 33. The majority of them enclosed useful
information or offered further suggestions for lines of investigation.
Only rarely did a letter turn up in my box that assassinated my
character or intimated that I was off my trolley. It was clear that
a large slice of the reading public knew that there had been some
thing going on which they were not being properly informed about
On reflection I think it was this flood of encouragement that came
through my post box, more than anything else, that drove me on
with my investigations. By nature I have a strong streak of curi-
osity; but it helps a lot more than I can estimate to find that there
are many other people around who are anxious to help in any way
they can.
When we photographed the first radio transmitter which I found
to have a connection with the UFO grid, though, our "opposition"
must have blown their cool. We had made ten prints of the photos
133
and these were in my possession when, a few days later, I was
scheduled to carry out an airways flight to New Zealand's South
Island. On the night of 16 March 1968, I was to stop over in the
capital, Wellington, and on the next day, fly on to Invercargill, New
Zealand's southernmost city, returning the following day (18 March)
via various centres throughout the country. I was well aware of the
significance of the photographs we had taken, and I considered it
unsafe to leave them at my home while I was absent.
I had stowed them into my airways brief bag, and during my stay
in Wellington I contacted the American Embassy's air attache. I
had told him the whole story, stressing that the photographs were
in my possession. Until this time, in fact, I had passed a great deal
of information to the Americans by way of the Embassy. There had
been five personal discussions with the air attache at his office in
Wellington up to this time. At first I had thought that the Em-
bassy's interest in my research was because I had found something
new. As time went by I realised that this was not the case. On the
contrary, it soon became clear to me that the scientists were well
ahead of anything that I had been able to discover. So the Em-
bassy's interest was more in order to keep tabs on what I might be
finding — and to see if I did happen to come upon something that
the scientists did not already know.
I was content to go along with this situation because I believed
that, everything I did, discovered or theorised should be kept in the
open. If, on the other hand, the Americans or anyone else wanted
to keep their findings a secret — well, that was their business. I felt
that once it was known that I had acquired a certain level of knowledge
they would have to admit something of the state of their own re-
search, even if to do so was only in an attempt to dissuade me from
continuing my own line of research.
The air attache in fact turned out to be a valuable source of
information, help and encouragement. It was he who assured me
that my calculation of the UFO grid pattern for the global system
was correct. Among other items he passed on to me: intensive UFO
research was being carried out at Wright Patterson Airfield in the
United States. The scientific laboratory there, set up for the pur-
pose, was described as a complex of buildings covering a large area
and staffed by many of the world's top scientists. Experimental
work was carried out twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year. At
one stage the official asked me if I would consider a trip to America
to visit this base. Naturally I said I would — any time they cared
134
to put out an invitation. Perhaps the idea was vetoed in the States,
for I heard no more of this. In retrospect it seems to me that al-
though at that time I was in the very early stages of my UFO
research, perhaps I had already stumbled on to something that was
of deep interest to the American scientists. They must have realised
that I was beginning to uncover information which they themselves
had kept carefully hidden from the general public for many years
The following night after this visit to Wellington, having takes
pains to inform my Embassy contact that I had the photographs of
a transmitter with me, I stayed at the Grand Hotel in Invercargill
What took place there that night convinced me that there were
other people in New Zealand besides myself who were keenly inter-
ested in our camera work. They are some of the people I would like
to know more about.
After a leisurely dinner my co-pilot and I retired to the lounge for
a chat and a cup of coffee. On this particular night there were two
complete aircrews staying at the Grand. Members of the other crew
were based in Wellington, and for some reason, which is still a
mystery to me, the rostering section of the airline had switched the
Wellington co-pilot on to my flight for the next day, while my Auck-
land co-pilot was to return with the Wellington crew on the early
morning flight. We were not informed of this switch until after we
had arrived in Invercargill earlier that afternoon. The co-pilot origi-
nally with me was most upset over this, as it interfered with some
of his personal arrangements and also meant his getting up very
early the following morning.
To verify the situation I telephoned Wellington and was told that
the Wellington co-pilot was to crew the flight with me as far as the
capital, while another Auckland co-pilot would carry on from there
back to Auckland with me. I thought the whole thing rather odd
it meant that three crew members would be chopping and changing
to do the work of two men. However, it was not really my concern
so I okayed the change and told my original co-pilot of his tough
luck.
The Wellington co-pilot chatting with me over coffee in the Grand's
lounge had been interested in my research, he said; so I brought our
the photos of the aerial from the bag in my room to show him
Before he joined the airline as a pilot, this man had been associated
with the DSIR (Department of Scientific and Industrial Research),
and had carried out duties in the radio research division at Me
Murdo Sound, in the Antarctic. I thought he might be able to tell
135
me what range of frequencies the aerial arrangement in the photo-
graphs might be operating on.
We were soon deep into a discussion on this point. He tried to
persuade me that the aerial was a completely mundane affair, in
common use among ham operators for normal transmissions. Sud-
denly we were interrupted by a tall, conservatively dressed man
who had wandered over from the company of two similarly attired
gentlemen sitting around a table some distance away from us, at the
centre of the lounge.
Just before the stranger came to a halt at our table I had slipped
the photographs back into their large envelope, and this was now
resting on my lap, so I'm sure he was unable, at any time, to see
that the photographs were related to broadcasting equipment.
Moreover, the table at which he had left his two friends was quite
some distance away, and certainly he would have been out of
earshot.
He asked me if we were talking about duck-shooting, and if we
were interested in that sport? Somewhat non-plussed at this gambit,
I told him we had no interest in ducks or any other kind of sporting
birds, and that we were in Invercargill for reasons quite uncon-
nected with shooting.
Then I asked him if he was staying in the hotel. He said that
he was; he had, he said, a farm some miles distant from Invercar-
gill, and he and his wife (of whom there was no sign) were in town
to celebrate their wedding anniversary. This certainly seemed odd
to me, and the sensation I was experiencing that this was no ordi-
nary, casual hotel lounge encounter increased when the stranger
drew up a chair and sat down with us, intent on carrying the con-
versation on for some time. I studied him more closely: he was aged
between forty-five and fifty; over six feet tall and well built, al-
though rather slim for his height. His features were on the rugged
side, and his face roundish; a small fold of skin under the lower lip
gave one an impression that at some time he might have been in a
minor accident or suffered facial burns that required slight surgery.
His hair was dark, slightly greyed, and thinning; his eyes light
coloured and conveying an impression of considerable intelligence.
His hands were long-fingered and strong, but not as rough as one
would expect in a farmer. He wore a dark suit and black shoes.
The suit was of conservative cut, well tailored though from a material
I would describe as coarse, almost cheap. Perhaps this was one of
the factors that made me feel he was odd.
136
After talking for a while about ducks he suddenly switched the
conversation on to an entirely different channel. He asked if we
were interested in ham radio or radio stations.
Trying not to show my surprise I told him we were not particu-
larly interested; privately, I began to wonder how I could get rid of
him without being obviously rude. He continued to insist that we
must be interested in radio; he said he had a friend not far out of
town who had a ham radio set-up, and if we were to go with him
we would be very intrigued with the equipment. I tried to tell him
that we were not very interested in radio, and that as it was now
after nine o'clock we certainly did not feel like taking a trip out of
town to see a ham operators gear. He then countered with the
information that he knew someone in a local government radio station,
and would we care to go with him to meet his friend there and
discuss radio matters with him?
By this time my co-pilot was looking distinctly uneasy; suddenly
he stood up and excused himself, disappearing into the TV lounge.
This left me alone with the stranger, wondering how best I could
get rid of him without making a scene about it, and at the same
time getting my envelope of precious photographs into a safe place.
Finally I made it clear to him that I was not prepared to leave the
hotel, for any reason. He at once asked me to write down the name
of his friend at the government radio station on the envelope on my
lap so that I could visit him next time I found myself in Invercargill
with nothing better to do. It seemed to me that he wanted to put
a name on the envelope so that he would be able to claim it as his,
if somehow he could get possession of it. Needless to say I kept a
firm hand on the envelope as he talked on.
From the conversation that followed I gathered that on the pre-
vious evening he had been aboard an American ship which was in
the port at Bluff, and had had a few drinks with the captain in his
cabin. He hinted that if I were interested I could go with him now
to visit the ship. He did not explain how he had met the American
captain, or how he had managed to get aboard the ship. This
omission added to my suspicions, and I made up my mind to get rid
of him.
I stood up rather abruptly and excused myself, saying that I had
some urgent business to attend to, and made to walk away. He
became apologetic, and did his best to keep me talking; he said he
hoped he had not embarrassed me or my friend in any way. I left
him then, and walked through the lounge past his two friends, who
137
were still sitting at their table, downstairs to the main office. His
two companions looked like businessmen; they had been keeping an
eye on us all this time.
At the office downstairs I asked the receptionist for some Scotch
tape and with it I firmly sealed the envelope, the photographs se-
surely inside it, writing my name boldly on the front and back I
had the receptionist place it in the hotel's safe, explaining that I
would pick it up just before I left the following day.
The task completed, I went back upstairs and let myself into a
public telephone box at the top of the stairs, just outside the en-
trance to the main lounge and the smaller TV room. I put through
a toll call to Auckland and spoke to my wife. I told her some of the
odd events of the night, and asked if she had been disturbed. She
told me that some friends of ours were with her, and that nothing
unusual had happened. Immediately after this brief conversation I
went into the TV lounge to talk to my co-pilot. He told me that the
three strangers had left a short time before by the stairway to the
ground floor and the main entrance of the hotel.
Back down the stairs I went to ask the receptionist who the three
men were who had just left, to ask whether they were staying in the
hotel. All I got was a blank look. Who was I referring to? There
were no men of that description staying in the hotel; she had been
at the desk the whole time; no one had passed her office, no one had
gone out of the main doors, in full view of her desk and less than
ten feet away. Anyone leaving by the stairs from the first floor
would have had to leave by those doors. There was no other exit.
Doors leading into the bars at the back of the ground floor were
locked at this time of night. The only other means of egress would
be from the first floor upward, by means of the fire escapes.
I was beginning to feel as confused as the girl was looking. I
went back up the stairs once more, and asked my co-pilot if he were
quite certain that the men had left by the main stairs. From his
seat he could see the top of the staircase quite clearly, and he con-
firmed that they must have left by the main entrance just a short
time before.
How had they come into the hotel — and how did they leave?
How did they pass in front of a receptionist without being seen?
Who were they? And what were they after? I am positive that our
darkly-clad friend was no more a local farmer than I am. I still won-
der, frequently, what would have happened if I had left with them,
and taken that offered trip to the radio station outside of the city.
138
A few days later I was again passing through Wellington. I con-
tacted the United States Embassy and told the air attache of the
incident. I added that I was aware that I was being kept under
observation, and that if any of the people who contacted me went
overseas agents my advice to him was to see to it that they stopped
bothering me. The New Zealand Government at this time was fully
aware of my activities, and had given me written approval of my
research. If anyone caused me trouble, I told him, I would imme-
diately make known all the facts, the evidence, the theories — ev-
erything I had put together so far.
The attache" was sympathetic, and asked for more details about
my encounter with the three strangers in Invercargill. Later on he
confirmed that an American training ship had been at Bluff over
the period I was there, but no more information than that was
forthcoming.
The three men were not New Zealanders, I'm sure; wherever
they were from, though, remains their secret.
https://archive.org/stream/pdfy-cbh896dq7O7Pp6k4/The+Energy+Grid+[Harmonic+695+-+The+Pulse+Of+The+Universe]_djvu.txt
