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Frederick Valentich (, VAL-ən-tich) was an Australian pilot who disappeared while on a 125-nautical-mile (232 km) flight in a Cessna 182L light aircraft, registered VH-DSJ, over Bass Strait.

On the evening of Saturday 21 October 1978, twenty-year-old Valentich informed Melbourne air traffic control that he was being accompanied by an aircraft about 1,000 feet (300 m) above him and that his engine had begun running roughly, before finally reporting: "It's not an aircraft." There were belated reports of a UFO sighting in Australia on the night of the disappearance; however, the Department of Transport was sceptical that a UFO was behind Valentich's disappearance, and some of their officials speculated that "Valentich became disorientated and saw his own lights reflected in the water, or lights from a nearby island, while flying upside down".

Frederick Valentich (9 June 1958 – disappeared 21 October 1978) had about 150 total hours of flying time and held a class-four instrument rating, which authorised him to fly at night, but only "in visual meteorological conditions". He had twice applied to enlist in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), but had been rejected because of inadequate educational qualifications. Valentich was studying part-time to become a commercial pilot but had a poor achievement record, having twice failed all five commercial licence examination subjects. As recently as the month before his disappearance, Valentich had failed three more commercial licence subjects. Six days before his disappearance, Valentich discussed with his girlfriend Rhonda Rushton the possibility of a UFO taking him away, according to her. Valentich had also failed to inform King Island Airport of his intention to land there, going against "standard procedure".

Valentich radioed Melbourne Flight Service at 7:06 pm to report that an unidentified aircraft was following him at 4,500 feet (1,400 m). Valentich said that he could see a large unknown aircraft which appeared to be illuminated by four bright landing lights. Valentich then reported that the aircraft was approaching him from the east and said that the other pilot might be purposely toying with him. Valentich said that the aircraft was "orbiting" above him and that it had a shiny metal surface and a green light on it. Asked to identify the aircraft, Valentich radioed: "It's not an aircraft." His transmission was then interrupted by unidentified noise described as "metallic, scraping sounds" before all contact was lost.

An investigation into Valentich's disappearance by the Australian Department of Transport was unable to determine the cause, but it was "presumed fatal" for Valentich. The bureau noted that "the part has been identified as having come from a Cessna 182 aircraft between a certain range of serial numbers", which included Valentich's aircraft.

According to Brian Dunning, Valentich's radio conversation was similar to the dialogue from a scene in the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which was released less than a year before the disappearance, and was popular among pilots, young people and UFO fans. Dunning speculated that it is possible that Valentich was trying to imitate the scene for fun, and deliberately made his aircraft fly in a circular pattern in order to "give the radar guys something to see", but accidentally became disoriented and crashed into the water. McGaha and Nickell also propose that the apparently stationary, overhead lights that Valentich reported were probably the planets Venus, Mars and Mercury, along with the bright star Antares, which would have behaved in a way consistent with Valentich's description.

The group Ground Saucer Watch, based in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, claims that photos taken by plumber Roy Manifold on the day of Valentich's disappearance show a fast-moving object exiting the water near Cape Otway Lighthouse.

Department of Transport Aircraft Investigation Summary Report p. Last Flight - The Valentich Disappearance, an ABC Listen episode featuring people who knew Frederick Valentich.

Quick Facts

• Last Flight - The Valentich Disappearance, an ABC Listen episode featuring people who knew Frederick Valentich.
• Frederick Valentich (9 June 1958 – disappeared 21 October 1978) had about 150 total hours of flying time and held a class-four instrument rating, which authorised him to fly at night, but only "in visual meteorological conditions".
• An investigation into Valentich's disappearance by the Australian Department of Transport was unable to determine the cause, but it was "presumed fatal" for Valentich.
• Six days before his disappearance, Valentich discussed with his girlfriend Rhonda Rushton the possibility of a UFO taking him away, according to her.
• As recently as the month before his disappearance, Valentich had failed three more commercial licence subjects.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Disappearance of Frederick Valentich". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.