Chilean Air Force General (Ret.) Ricardo Bermúdez, Director of Chile’s official Committee for the Study of Aerial Anomalous Phenomena (CEFAA) will address the International UFO Congress in Fountain Hills, AZ this February. This is the first time ever in the USA when a high-ranking military officer who runs an official government sponsored UFO project talks about the subject at a conference open to the general public.

Chilean Air Force retired general Ricardo Bermúdez, director of CEFAA. (Image credit: Antonio Huneeus)

“This is an incredibly exciting opportunity for us” says conference co-organizer Maureen Elsberry, “this is the first time in the U.S. that such a high-ranking government official has spoken to the public about an official government sponsored UFO project. It shows how serious other countries take the subject of UFOs. It’s something they feel is worthy of official investigation.”

General Bermúdez served as commander of the Third Air Brigade in southern Chile, Director of the Technical School of Aeronautics, Deputy Director of the Air Force Academy, and Air Attaché in London. He became Director of CEFAA shortly after Chile’s Directorate of Civil Aviation created this office in 1997.

CEFAA collects UFO cases mostly from commercial and military pilots. “The policy of CEFAA is to pursue solid cases with adequate scientific data,” stated Gen. Bermúdez, “but only if there is an indication that the safety of the aircraft might have been at risk.”

Such a case occurred in November of 2003 when a B 737-200 almost collided with a triangular formation of luminous spheres.

The co-pilot of the aircraft wrote in the official CEFAA report: “A few minutes after takeoff I observed a dark mass of triangular shape heading toward our aircraft. It approached us rapidly in a collision angle with us and I was able to skip it by making a right turn. When it passed next to us I observed a metallic object with a steely gray color which passed very quickly near the window of the commander of the aircraft.”

Gen. Bermúdez will outline the history, methodology and some of the best cases collected by CEFAA up to now. He is also expected to make an announcement about the need for an exchange of UFO data among different countries and between official and civilian research groups, to better understand this puzzling phenomenon.

(Left to right) Gen. Ricardo Bermúdez, Dr. Richard Haines, Gustavo Rodríguez and Antonio Huneeus at the FIDAE 2000 international aeronautical expo in Santiago, where a CEFAA Conference and Workshop took place. (Image credit: Richard Haines)

“The CEFAA’s official position has always been to recognize that something is happening in our skies, but we, as yet, do not know what it is,” he said.

Gen. Bermúdez will speak on Saturday February 25th at 1:00 P.M. at the Fort McDowell Resort & Conference Center in Fountain Hills, Arizona. More information about his presentation can be found at http://www.ufocongress.com.

About the International UFO Congress:

The 2012 International UFO Congress will run Feb. 22-26 in Arizona

The International UFO Congress is an Arizona based organization dedicated to the dissemination of information related to many areas in ufology. It was established in 1991 and hosts an annual conference which is the largest of its kind in the United States. It features presentations given by authors, researchers, experts, enthusiasts, and those who have witnessed paranormal or anomalous phenomena from all over the world. It also provides a forum to discuss the experiences and findings. This event usually has over 20 Speakers, a Film Festival, tons of vendors as well as experiencer sessions. Topics generally covered are abduction, UFO sightings, UFO crashes, crop circles, paranormal experiences, government conspiracy and much more.

The Royal Observatory of Belgium issued a statement saying, “The fireball observed above Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Germany on December 24 around 17h30 was the re-entry of the third stage of the Soyuz rocket that transported the Dutch astronaut André Kuipers to the [International Space Station].”

A failed Soyuz-2.1b rocket that was carrying the Meridian-5 communications satellite was launched on December 23rd and is the most likely cause for the Russian orb UFO the previous day.

These cases are not the only times a Soyuz rocket has been mistaken for a UFO:

In May of 2011 the Soyuz-2 rocket carrying Russian Meridian 4 satellite into orbit caused panic among the people of Russia until it was identified.

A few months later as another Soyuz-2 rocket was launched and strange flickering balls of light appeared near the object causing some to speculate that UFOs were disarming the rocket.

A celebration of paranormal filmmaking, the 2012 EBEFF includes screenings, social events and networking opportunities, and a closing night Banquet and Awards Ceremony where the coveted EBE statues will be awarded. The festival runs in conjunction with the International UFO Congress which is the largest annual UFO conference in the world.

Narrative short films (30 minutes or less) and feature length (60 minutes or more) completed after Jan. 1, 2010 will be considered.

Deadlines are:
* Regular – Jan. 15, 2012. Regular Entry Fees: $25 per category entered
* Late/Final Feb. 1, 2012. Late Entry Fees: $30 per category entered

EBEFF 2012’s “EBEs” will be awarded to the Best Feature and Best Short film and People’s choice at a special Awards Banquet to honor the filmmakers and their works February 25th, 2012.

Terje and Truls Toftenes of New Paradigm Films. (image credit: Peter Beste)

“We are very excited to host the festival this year and we already have some top-rate submissions,” said Festival Co-Organizer Maureen Elsberry. “This is really a celebration and exhibition of the amount of research, passion and dedication these individuals put into their work ” Elsberry said.

The International UFO Congress’ “EBE” Film Festival is a celebration of investigative filmmaking, with free films screened all day Tuesday February 21st and in the evenings Feb. 22 – 24th at the beautiful desert oasis at the Fort McDowell Resort & Casino in Scottsdale, Arizona.

For submission rules and application visit: 2012 UFO Film Festival
For further information call 480-302-2147.

Make sure to “like” the new International UFO Congress Facebook page!

About the International UFO Congress:

The International UFO Congress is an Arizona based organization dedicated to the dissemination of information related to many areas in ufology. It was established in 1991 and hosts an annual conference which is the largest of its kind in the world. It features presentations given by authors, researchers, experts, enthusiasts, and those who have witnessed paranormal or anomalous phenomena from all over the world. It also provides a forum to discuss the experiences and findings. This event usually has over 20 Speakers, a Film Festival, tons of vendors as well as experiencer sessions. Topics generally covered are abduction, UFO sightings, UFO crashes, crop circles, paranormal experiences, government conspiracy and much more.

credit: Universal Pictures

With a stellar cast, accomplished writers, producers, an outstanding director and an interesting concept, this film held all the ingredients for a tasty summer treat. Executive producer Steven Spielberg’s flair can be seen as an influential backbone throughout the film. Fans will find references to the Indiana Jones series, bits and pieces from Star Wars and assorted generic westerns. So the question is, with all the right cooks in the kitchen why are we getting second-rate fare?

We find ourselves in 1873 in the desert just outside the struggling town of Absolution. Daniel Craig plays Jake Lonergan, a man of few words who wakes up with a large gash near his stomach and a thick metal cuff around his wrist and no memory of…well, anything.

Soon he finds himself with a bounty on his head, an over-bearing cattle baron out for revenge (Harrison Ford), and a spoiled brat whining in his ear (Paul Dano). Not to mention the beautiful woman who just won’t leave him alone. Olivia Wilde stars as Ella, a mysterious woman whom turns out to be more than just screen eye candy.

Their squabbles come to an abrupt halt when flying objects swoop overhead desecrating their little town and plucking up its citizens. Thus an unlikely unification of the Wild West occurs, bonding the cowboys, outlaws and Indians against the “demons” – slimy, bug-eyed monsters from outer-space.

In what one can only assume to be a peyote fueled revelation, Craig takes us to the second act of the film, where all the mystery is suddenly blown out of the desert – a turn that flat lines the suspense. In Battle: LA they came for our water and now they’re coming for our gold. A concept which writers stated was based loosely on the Annunaki deities of Babylonian history. But why are they abducting the human beings and what exactly are they doing to them? They don’t really ever say.

Craig exudes the strong silent type and blends effortlessly into his role, perhaps because he rarely speaks. Ford pulls off the cranky Woodrow Dolarhyde but just barely…the real notable performances come from supporting roles by Adam Beach, Sam Rockwell and Clancy Brown whose characters were a bit more down to earth and whose dialogue was actually thought-out.

Where the film really suffers is the lack of character development. There isn’t enough to make you care if the cowboys triumph or if their loved ones meet a gruesome end by the disturbing three-fingered hands of their opponents. In fact, indifference is the perfect word to describe this movie.

The lack of resolution to much of the storyline leads one to wonder…is Favreau banking on a series? I’m not even sure that Craig and Ford can hold up their rustic physiques that long.

Redeeming qualities? It’s not a sequel and it’s not in 3D.

The monkey was first spotted stealing cucumbers from the residence of Mao Xiping, a housewife from the village of Gezhai.

Alien like monkey draws stares (credit: Europics)

The creature had lost the majority of it’s hair and was so thin that ribs can be seen through it’s skin. The large bug-like eyes frightened Ms. Xiping and she said, “At first I thought it was a rabbit just nibbling on some greenery, then I was shocked to see it had an alien looking face.”

Ms. Xiping called police and demanded that they come and place the creature under arrest. She was able to capture it and brought it in to the police station herself. After some time it was determined the creature was of earthly origins and attempts will be made to determine what species the monkey is and how it ended up in it’s current state of health.

The Epoch Times reported on this video stating, “Several tiny white lights are flashing around the object and its tail, both glowing with a whitish light (probably due to the effect of filming a computer screen), as the core becomes semi-translucent with a striped appearance.”

However the rocket captured here is most likely the Soyuz-2. The rocket, carrying six Globalstar satellites from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, launched early in the morning the same day the videos were uploaded. It is a three-stage carrier type rocket designed for delivering payloads into lower orbit. The strange transformation is most likely caused by the different stages of burns.

View the launch and burn here:

The Georgia and Mexico fireball UFOs still remain unidentified.

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