(UFO:) GHANA WARNS AGAINST AIRSPACE INTRUSIONS; FRENCH - REPORTEDLY CULPRITS.

[Terry W. Colvin]

R 031438Z NOV 73
FM AMEMBASSY ACCRA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 8402
INFO AMEMBASSY ABIDJAN
AMEMBASSY DAKAR
AMEMBASSY LAGOS
AMEMBASSY LOME
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY OUAGADOUGOU
AMEMBASSY PARIS
DIA WASHINGTON DC//AT-6/DB-3D/DC-4A/JSI-5B//
BT
S E C R E T ACCRA 09546 NOFORN

( TWC: Declassified by open sharing on a commercial web site. NOFORN caveat means No Foreign Nationals. )

DAKAR FOR FAA
E.O.12356:
DECL: OADR
TAGS: PBTS, MOPS, EAIR, GH
SUBJ: GHANA WARNS AGAINST AIRSPACE INTRUSIONS; FRENCH - REPORTEDLY
CULPRITS
1. (C) WHAT APPEARED AT FIRST TO BE A BIZARRE OVER- REACTION BY THE
GHANAIAN GOVERNMENT TO POSSIBLE SIGHTINGS OF UFO'S SEEMS NOW TO HAVE
BEEN A SERIOUS REACTION TO REAL INTRUSIONS INTO GHANA'S AIRSPACE,
ALLEGEDLY BY FRENCH AIRCRAFT.
2. (U) IN A NOTE ADDRESSED TO ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR MISSIONS
IN ACCRA OCT 31, THE FOREIGN MINISTRY REFERRED TO "THE INCREASING
VIOLATION OF GHANA'S AIRSPACE BY FOREIGN AIRCRAFT," ADDING THAT THE
VIOLATIONS "REACHED A PEAK" OCT 29 AND 30. ALL MISSIONS WERE ASKED
TO INFORM THEIR GOVERNMENTS OF THE GHANAIAN GOVERNMENT'S SERIOUS
CONCERN, AND WERE WARNED THAT "COUNTRIES OF ANY AIRCRAFT WHICH
VIOLATE GHANA'S AIRSPACE IN FUTURE WILL BE HELD FULLY RESPONSIBLE
FOR THE CONSEQUENCES...."
3. (C) FOREIGN SECRETARY DR. OBED ASAMOAH CONVOKED ALL CHIEFS OF
MISSION LATE IN THE AFTERNOON NOVEMBER 1 TO MAKE THE SAME POINTS
PERSONALLY AND TO ASK THE CORPS TO ADVISE THEIR RESPECTIVE AIRLINES
WHICH FLY WITHIN THIS AREA THAT GHANA WOULD TAKE STEPS TO PROTECT
ITS SOVEREIGNTY. HE SAID THE WARNING APPLIED TO BOTH CIVILIAN AND
MILITARY FLIGHTS. ALTHOUGH HE FAILED TO SPELL OUT WHAT STEPS GHANA
CONTEMPLATED, HE INDICATED THAT THEY DID NOT INCLUDE SHOOTING DOWN
COMMERCIAL AIRLINERS. (COMMENT: GHANA'S ABILITY TO INTERCEPT
INTRUDERS IS VIRTUALLY NON-EXISTENT.)
4. (S/NFN) ON NOV 2 A RELIABLE SOURCE TOLD OUR DEFENSE ATTACHE
THAT THE INTRUSIONS WERE BY THREE FRENCH MILITARY PLANES. THE
FLIGHTS POSSIBLY ORIGINATED AND ENDED IN TOGO THE EVENING OF OCT 29.
ONE OF THE PLANES ALLEGEDLY DISCHARGED A ROCKET THAT EXPLODED WITHIN
GHANAIAN AIRSPACE NEAR DEVO. THERE WAS ALSO A UTA SCHEDULED FLIGHT
BETWEEN LOME AND PARIS JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT OCT 29.
5. (C) THE PILOT OF THE DAO C-12, WHICH WAS FLYING NEAR KUMASI ON
NOV 1, REPORTED PICKING UP RADIO SIGNALS APPARENTLY FROM PAN AM
FLIGHT CLIPPER 118, BUT THERE WAS NO INDICATION THE PLANE WAS
VIOLATING GHANA'S AIRSPACE.
6. (C) COMMENT: APART FROM THE C-12'S PICK-UP, WE HAVE NO EVIDENCE
THAT ANY U.S. AIRCRAFT MAY HAVE INTRUDED INTO GHANA. BECAUSE OF
OUR DESIRE NOT TO AGGRAVATE THIS GOVERNMENT'S SUSPICIONS OF THE
U.S., HOWEVER, THE DEPARTMENT MAY WISH TO ASK PAN AM AND U.S.
CARRIERS WHO OPERATE CHARTER FLIGHTS NEAR GHANA TO MAKE SURE THEIR
PILOTS ARE ESPECIALLY CAREFUL NOT TO STRAY FROM AUTHORIZED FLIGHT PATHS.
FRITTS
BT