A series of UFO incidents occurred between 2007 and 2009 in the town of Kumburgaz, situated near Istanbul, Turkey. The events stunned the media and UFO enthusiasts after images and videos of the sightings went viral on the Internet. The video evidence of UFOs shared by a night watchman named Yalcin Yalman may be another strong piece of evidence of non-human technology.
In 2008 Yalcin Yalman worked as a night watchman at the Yenikent facility, from where he filmed all these incredible videos of UFOs hovering over the Sea of Marmara near Kumburgaz. He even showed his second-hand camera to the media at a press conference held at the Dedeman Hotel in Istanbul.
Yalman said he began recording the strange crafts as a hobby to pass the time at night. Due to the shaky videos, some skeptics claimed that the mysterious objects in the skies over Turkey could have been a US stealth drone or other aircraft. However, several experts confirmed that the videos were authentic. In addition, many people have witnessed the same unknown craft in the sky. The sightings caught the attention of local people, national media and even CNN. Several videos were recorded between June 8 and 12, 2009, showing mysterious objects and lights.
The video was originally analyzed and released by the Sirius UFO Space Science Research Center, led by researcher Haktan Akdoğan. Haktan said UFOs were frequently seen by civilians and military pilots during an International UFO Congress in 2009. ( Source )
In 2009 after the conference, there were 8 to 10 witnesses, including ufologist Dr. Roger Leir who also witnessed and verified the Kumburgaz UFO sighting. Leir was present during the filming of a video on May 17, 2009 and confirmed that as the UFO rotated, it was similar to the “Roswell” shaped craft (more boomerang shaped) rather than a traditional saucer. Dr. Leir discussed this incident that happened to him after the coast to coast conference with George Knapp.
Yalcin Yalman (left) sitting next to Akdoğan (right) showing his camera during a press conference in Istanbul in 2009
Dr. Leir told Knapp that he, Yalman and others went to Kumburgaz to film UFOs. The group stayed awake from midnight to 4 a.m. to capture possible sightings. The conditions were ideal, with clear skies and no obstructions.
During filming they observed a bright object below the full moon, which initially appeared as a potential star or planet. When they focused on this object they discovered a semicircular craft with a multitude of lights, possibly shaped like a boomerang or cylindrical disc.
Dr Leir said: “You would think, ‘Well, gosh, a bright sky, a bright moon, you’re not going to see anything.’ But in this case the moon was a huge help. It essentially illuminated the outside of the craft, which initially when we saw it looked a bit like a boomerang because we weren’t seeing it head on, so we couldn’t tell the exact shape of the craft. But then we got a full movie and we could see that it was a boomerang or that we were looking at a certain part of a cylindrical craft or a disc.
To this day I don’t know what the analysts said about the shape. But it was either a boomerang shape with a rounded front or a complete disk. It rotated a few times so we could see the side and it looked like it might be disk-shaped. But then we got the shock of our lives because we could see the light emanating from the inside of the craft in three areas. One was directly in front and the other on either side.
This was a full frontal view and people can look on the COST website and not only see the video but also go to the Chilean analysis because there are some photos there that show what we saw when we looked in the center part. It was quite a shock to look and see not a Rorschach type thing but actual entities that were, whatever they were doing, looking at the front of the ship, the same way we were looking at them.”
Video observation
From 2007 to 2009 Yalman recorded approximately 30 videos. The footage was shot with a Canon DM-GR1-A NTSC-based MiniDV with an aperture set to a maximum of 1.8. It is a 3CCD 20x optical 100x teleconverter mounted on a 58 mm adapter. The telephoto lens is a Sony VCL HGD 1758, × 1.7 lens. [ Original raw footage from 2007 to 2009 ]
The videos were examined by two influential state-sponsored organizations in Turkey, “The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey” and “The TUG National Observatory”. The goal was to identify any evidence of forgery, but the results supported the authenticity of the videos. The original film tapes were also studied by individuals from Japan, Chile, Brazil and Russia and despite several attempts no one was able to conclusively demonstrate evidence of fraud or manipulation leaving the case unidentified.
Yalman’s camera was equipped with a zoom option that allowed him to capture even the pilots sitting in one of the ships. The image is shaky due to the hand movements during the zoom. However, with the editing software the video was stabilized and the result shocked everyone. Two humanoid figures could be seen in the image with large black eyes and huge heads.
Haktan Akdoğan noted that these are the most important images in Turkey and the world, saying: “After carrying out all the necessary analyses that lasted several weeks, the council has come to a definitive conclusion, without any doubts, that these are 100% genuine videos.
The objects sighted in the aforementioned footage that have a structure made of specific material are definitely not made up of any type of computer animation nor are they any form of special effects used for studio simulation or for video effects, therefore in conclusion it was decided that the sightings were not a simulation or a hoax.
It is concluded that these objects in the sightings that have physical and material structures do not belong to any category such as; airplanes, helicopters, meteors, Venus, Mars, satellites, fireballs, Chinese lanterns, fireballs, weather balloons, natural or atmospheric phenomena, etc., but fall into the category of UFOs.”
“We see the heads of not only one being but also two beings in the images. This is a world first.” He further added that these images would have a huge impact on Ufology. He had been researching UFOs for 22 years and had never seen anything like this. He stated, “These are the most remarkable images taken in Turkish history.”
[In translation] Akdoğan stated that “these beings are usually seen in resource-rich areas, volcanic areas and historical sites. They started coming more frequently after nuclear tests. Perhaps the radiation released also harms cosmic neighbors, we disturb the balance of the universe. Perhaps they observe this dangerous process.”
According to the report issued by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, the examination of these tables produced the following results:
– The images were recorded in NTSC digital format by the aforementioned camera.
– The date on the video indicates that the recordings were made during 2007, 2008 and 2009.
– Filmed images of the object that visibly have a certain configuration are not computer animations, video special effects or studio-recreated images or models. . The footage is genuine.
– The first observation made from the footage is that some of the images were recorded in the night sky at a certain altitude above the horizon. The footage also includes images of the moon in some sections, which proves that the video was filmed at night and outdoors. However, the fact that the digital date displays show AM in some frames and PM in others raises suspicions about the validity of the time at which the recordings were made.
– Since in some parts there is no other object that can be presented as a reference in the close-up frames and no observable difference was found in the background examination, the actual location, distance, dimensions and nature of the objects could not have been determined.
– Through examination of footage from multiple dates, there is a strong possibility that 2 to 3 different objects were captured. However, it is difficult to determine whether the objects are moving or not. Their movement is slow, even if they are.
– Reflections of light on objects are sometimes caused by the moon being in a convenient location at that time and sometimes produced by other light sources.
– The reflection of light from the left side of the object seen in the August 10 footage is not produced by the moon. At that time, the moon was in a phase very close to the “new moon” phase and located at a proximity/angle of approximately 10 degrees in relation to the horizon. Furthermore, the analysis of the image processing performed on some parts of the footage revealed that the center of the object has the same density as its background, that is, it is transparent in nature.
Unmasked
Adam Goldstack of UAP Media UK mentions that many debunkers try to explain the craft as cruise ships, but according to former F-16 fighter pilot and researcher Chris Letho, this doesn’t make sense. Letho analyzed the videos and the case and calculated the size of the object, its distance from the horizon, as well as the visual angles of the Sea of Marmara. He concluded that the logistics of a cruise ship did not match the reported UAP. ( Source )
Furthermore, the triangulation of the UAP in most of the video cases has been calculated by other researchers to be too high to be a cruise ship or boat. Alternatively, in the fixed/stabilized camera videos (as shown below), we can see that the objects are motionless against a black background in the vast majority of the videos.
The motionless appearance of the UAP could also disregard the “small boat theory,” given that even in calm waters/oceans, floating objects will still move and sway slightly. Furthermore, despite the mainstream media coverage in Turkey at the time, no one has ever come forward to claim that the objects/boats belonged to them or that they were sailing off the coast in the middle of the night.
Goldstack writes: “From an analytical perspective the Turkey Kumburgaz UFO case is unique in that it has obtained multiple, clear video images. Throughout this case we also have sequential data that shows patterns of behavior, times and dates. We see all twenty-five encounters/incidents on video at night/early morning (with one in the late evening), which is consistent with the broader range of ufological data suggesting that UFOs often appear at night.
We also see another significant pattern that shows encounters around water – in this case the Sea of Marmara. The Sea of Marmara itself is a small sea with an area of 11,350 km2 (4,380 sq mi) and dimensions of 280 km × 80 km (174 mi × 50 mi). The sea has a maximum depth of 1,370 m (4,490 ft). The importance of the Sea of Marmara for potential UAPs has not yet been explained. No connection to nuclear facilities or weapons has been associated in this case.” Source
