Near Nowra, Nsw being encounter — January 1973

Elizabeth C. was driving an older Valiant north along the Princes Highway in early January 1973 after an outing on the New South Wales South Coast. Bill Chalker's fuller account places her husband, asleep, in the front passenger seat, with daughters Jennifer and Robyn and off-duty army officer Trevor G. behind. The family dog was on the rear floor. The catalogue gives 9 p.m.; Chalker's later reconstruction instead estimates about 3:30 a.m. Beyond the Sussex Inlet turnoff, Elizabeth noticed a light resembling an approaching truck. It passed to their left, reversed direction, and reportedly traveled beside them for approximately twenty-four kilometers. The object appeared disc-shaped, with possible windows, a thin red light beneath them, and a rotating searchlight effect below. Trevor said he could see figures through the windows. Near the HMAS Albatross turnoff it appeared high above them, arced around Nowra, and headed out to sea. A subsequent observation of helicopters and a fiery offshore mass occurred at their campsite, separately from the road encounter. Elizabeth, Jennifer and Trevor reported their experience at the naval base and said they were told of other witnesses and radar disturbance. Chalker and colleagues interviewed Elizabeth in 1992 and later spoke with Trevor and Jennifer; his official inquiries did not substantiate the military details. The plate depicts the road phase, keeping occupants inside the object and preserving uncertainty about their features.