More and more UFO sightings are recorded every year, while information about unusually shaped crafts keeps coming in from all corners of the world. Some witnesses claim they even encountered human-like beings and talked to them.

The British Defence Ministry announced that the year 2008 noted twice as more UFO sightings than the year before. A question rises: is an “alien invasion” in question or have UFOs simply stopped being a taboo subject? We asked Nick Pope about the matter, famous UFO expert, who researched these occurrences at the British Defence Ministry. After leaving the department, Pope continued researching UFOs and ventured out for new challenges. He became the world`s leading expert on the “inexplicable”.

He has published several papers like ´Open Skies, Closed Minds, ´The Uninvited´ or ´You Cant't Tell the People´ and he has written science-fiction stories ´Operation Thunder Child´ and ´Operation Lighting Strike´.

He told us how he started working on the UFO Project, revealing some of the details from his research.

Could you please describe how you started working on the UFO Project?

I joined the Ministry of Defence in 1985. At the time, the policy was to move people every 2 or 3 years - either on level transfer or promotion - so that everybody gained experience in a wide range of different jobs: policy, operations, personnel, finance, etc. I'd done 2 or 3 different jobs and prior to taking up my post on the UFO project I was working in a division called Secretariat (Air Staff) and had been seconded into the Air Force Operations Room in the Joint Operations Centre. I worked there in the run-up to the first Gulf War, during the war itself, and in the aftermath of the conflict. I was a briefer, preparing material for the key daily briefings to Ministers and the Service Chiefs. My job was to collect raw data about RAF operations, and pick out the key things that senior personnel needed to know: details of any casualties and losses, targets attacked, battle damage assessment, etc. It was an interesting and very high-tempo job. It was while working there that I was approached and asked whether, after I was released from duties in the Joint Operations Centre, I would like to run the UFO project, which was embedded in another part of Secretariat(Air Staff). I accepted the invitation. So, in a sense, I was headhunted.

Did you believe that aliens visited the Earth before this?

I knew little about the subject and I certainly had no belief in extraterrestrials. So while I was open-minded in all my investigations, my start point was broadly sceptical.

Have you ever seen a UFO?

No. Sadly, I haven't.

Why did you decide to leave the UFO Project and the Ministry of Defence?

After having done the job for 3 years I was promoted and moved to another post at a higher grade. There's certainly no truth to the rumour that I was moved because I was getting too close to the truth, as some conspiracy theorists allege. I left the MoD in November 2006 after a 21 year career. I'd passed the Assessment and Development Centre, so could have applied for a post at B2 level (formerly known as Grade 7 and Principal), but had already deputised extensively at this grade, so decided it was an appropriate time to move on to fresh challenges outside the Department.

The year 2008 noted twice as more UFO sightings than the year before, British Defence Ministry announced. In your opinion, do the media cover more claims of persons who encountered UFOs, have UFOs stopped being a taboo subject or has the actual number of UFO visits increased?

Increasing numbers of UFO sightings are being reported in the UK. Here are the Ministry of Defence figures (which only tell part of the story, as many people don't report their sightings to the MoD):

2006: 97

2007: 135

2008: 285

2009 (first 6 months): 231

It's difficult to draw firm conclusions from this. It may mean that the number of sightings is increasing. However, all this takes place against the background of the release of the MoD's UFO files. This ongoing initiative is generating massive media coverage and public interest, so this may mean that people who would previously not have reported a UFO sighting (through fear of not being believed or being ridiculed) may now be more inclined to make a report. So, to summarise, we don't really know if more UFOs are being seen, or whether it's the case that a higher proportion of UFO sightings are being reported. There's also the fact that Chinese lanterns are increasingly popular in the UK and are often being reported as UFOs.

What is your take on the theory that aliens constructed the pyramids?

I don't believe this. The ancient Egyptians were skilled mathematicians and engineers. Additionally, they devoted a substantial part of their resources on this project.

What do you think of Erich von Daniken`s theory about gods who came down from the sky, i.e. that the gods ancient civilisations believed in were aliens?

Erich von Daniken has highlighted many genuine mysteries from our past. However, I'm not convinced that some of the gods of our history were extraterrestrial visitors. Much has been made of images of strange creatures in cave drawings, paintings, sculptures, etc. However, it's possible that these may not relate to physical entities that were seen, as opposed to visions experienced during shamanic trances.

What do is your view on David Icke`s theory about reptiles? Is there a chance of a creature from outer space becoming infiltrated in the human society? Are there testimonies of people who claim they have conversed with humanoid creatures from space?

There's an old saying in the intelligence community, when analysing information that can't be verified: "interesting, if true". That's pretty much all I can say about such theories.

The Grays are the most famous aliens – according to some, they are fallen angels who performed genetic experiments on humans. What is your position on the matter?

Again, this is another "interesting, if true".

What is your opinion about various drawings in caves, which are several thousands of years old and depict crafts, planes and machines? Is it possible that developed civilisations existed several thousands of years ago on Earth?

While some images do look a little similar to modern machines, this could be a coincidence. And again, these images may be representations of things seen in shamanic trances, as opposed to things that were actually witnessed in a physical way.

What about crop circles? Which answers has your research offered?

Some of the small, single circles (and that's where the phenomenon started) may be attributable to some form of meteorological phenomenon such as a whirlwind or wind vortex. As for the more complex ones - the so-called pictograms - there's no doubt in my mind that most of them are made by people. I've seen it done. Some of the people involved in this are highly skilled and motivated, plan the formations meticulously, well in advance, and split the work between several people. Some people call them hoaxers but many of the people involved see themselves as conceptual artists. Do I completely rule out a more exotic explanation? No. In my line of work, I tried never to rule anything out altogether, and always tried to keep an open mind.

You also investigated ghosts. What is your personal position on this occurrence?

Ghosts have been seen at numerous current or former military bases, with three of the most haunted sites being Devonport Naval Base, Priddy's Hard Armaments Depot in Gosport and Coalhouse Fort in East Tilbury, which was used as a wartime Royal Navy base. There are very detailed stories surrounding many of the ghost sightings, often linking them with executions, or violent deaths in munitions explosions and aircraft crashes. Many classic signs associated with hauntings were present in these cases, including unexplained cold spots and guard dogs growling - with their hackles rising - at the locations concerned. It's not just military bases. Ghosts have also been seen in MoD buildings in London. The sixth floor of Metropole Building (a former hotel requisitioned by the Ministry of Munitions in 1916) is reputedly haunted by the ghost of a chambermaid who was murdered in the hotel and whose body was hidden in a cupboard. Even MoD Main Building is supposedly haunted. Built on the site of the old Whitehall Palace, which dates from the 12th century, the basement still contains an old Tudor wine cellar dating from 1529. The wine cellar is now used for social functions, but I've spoken to some of the security guards who patrol the building at night, and they tell me they've seen ghosts in that area of the building. One guard told me that he'd seen what he presumed to be an intruder walk across the corridor from one room to another. He issued a challenge but on reaching the spot where the figure had been seen, found there were no doors - the figure had apparently walked through the walls. I really don't know what to think about ghost sightings.

Is your research based solely on depositions of witnesses who claim they have encountered odd occurrences or do you have material evidence, like the remains of a flying craft?

My government research was based on witness testimony. In some cases this was backed up by radar data or by photos and videos that MoD's technical experts analysed. I have never seen any material that is alleged to be extraterrestrial in origin. I am convinced that the British government possesses no such material.

What is your opinion on abductions and mysterious disappearances? Has your research yielded any results on the matter? Are the Bermuda Triangle plane disappearances connected with the aliens somehow?

I've looked into around 100 cases where people claim to have had alien abduction experiences. The few scientific studies done have found no evidence of any psychopathology in the abductees - they’re not mad. Furthermore, in one experiment it was shown that abductees exhibited physical symptoms (e.g. increased perspiration and heart rate) when recalling their experiences, when a control group asked to retell a fictitious but traumatic account displayed none. While the scientists who undertook the experiment didn't believe these people had physically been taken into spaceships, they thought they believed they'd had these experiences - the abductees weren't lying. I'm sceptical about the Bermuda Triangle. This area of the world is an area with extreme weather conditions that probably account for the loss of ships and aircraft there.

According to certain theories, people will cross over to a higher level of consciousness in 2012, when the Mayan calendar ends. According to other theories, the aliens will come, while some even say it will be the end of the world. How do you feel about these theories?

Many people are now linking ufology to the 2012 end of the Mayan calendar, some speculating that this will involve the end of the world (perhaps due to the return of Nibiru/Planet X), some suggesting an alien invasion, others suggesting a transition to a higher state of consciousness. Some people are even linking this to New World Order conspiracy theories, suggesting that a 'false flag' alien invasion will be staged. There are so many different theories. I'm sceptical about all of this and suspect that 2012 will pass without incident, just as happened with all such prophesies previously, such as the idea that the world would end in 1999, as Nostradamus predicted.

What would you say to the theory that creatures from outer space lived in Atlantis and Lamuria, whose civilisations were more developed than our own?

Another "interesting, if true", I'm afraid. Until some solid evidence is presented, this is speculation.

Are you familiar with the Cassiopaean experiment?

Yes, a little. The problem with any channeled information is that even if the channeler is being sincere, there's no real way to be sure where the information comes from. Nor is there any way of validating it.

You defended the official position of the American government regarding 9/11. In your opinion, is there any chance of this being an inside job? What about the explosives found among the ruins around the collapsed WTC towers and the mysterious collapse of WTC7?

At the time of 9/11, I was in a security-related job at the MoD. Because of this, when I left the Department I was asked by some people to look into the various 9/11 conspiracy theories. I did this in an even-handed way. I watched Loose Change, looked at various websites and attended lectures by Calum Douglas and Gordon Ross. I met and discussed the issue with Tim Sparke, Ian Henshall and Annie Machon.  Then I read the 9/11 Commission Report from cover to cover (something very few people in the 9/11 truth movement have done). I looked at the Popular Mechanics article on the conspiracy theories and read the material on the State Department website. I concluded that the conspiracy theories were unfounded. Bottom line: I'm certain 9/11 was a terrorist attack, not an 'inside job' and not an attack that was "allowed to happen". That said, there were clear failures in the US intelligence community (e.g. in areas such as information-sharing between various agencies), which could have done more to prevent the attacks. There were also failures in the US response on the day. These points have been acknowledged in the 9/11 Commission Report and the authorities have done their best to learn lessons from the terrible events of 9/11.

Some blogs and forums include posts according to which you are still working for the Defence Ministry and your mission is to spread misinformation about UFOs. How would you comment on this?

While I still have many friends at the MoD and return there from time to time, for social functions, I'm certainly not still working for the government. However, if people genuinely think this is true, they're unlikely to believe my denial.