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The Military Saucer That Actually Existed

The VZ-9AV Avrocar shows that military engineers genuinely tested a circular aircraft, even though it never achieved its intended performance.

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On this page

  • Why designers built a circular vertical flight vehicle
  • What the Avrocar could and could not do
  • How its failure complicates claims about secret saucers

Introduction

The Avro Canada VZ-9AV Avrocar is one of the few aircraft in military history that genuinely looked like the classic “flying saucer” described in UFO reports. Unlike many supposed secret disc-shaped craft, the Avrocar was not a rumour or conspiracy theory but a documented Cold War research programme backed by the United States Army, the United States Air Force and Avro Canada. Its circular shape was not chosen to imitate science fiction. It was an engineering solution intended to create a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft capable of hovering, accelerating rapidly and eventually flying at high speed. In practice, however, the aircraft never achieved those ambitions. Its documented shortcomings make it an important case study in distinguishing real experimental military technology from later claims of hidden, highly advanced “secret saucers”.[Air Force Museum]nationalmuseum.af.milOpen source on af.mil.

Avrocar illustration 1

Why designers built a circular vertical-flight vehicle

The Avrocar emerged during the 1950s, when military planners were searching for alternatives to conventional runways. Cold War strategy assumed that fixed airbases might be destroyed early in a conflict, creating demand for aircraft that could lift vertically from dispersed locations and then transition into fast forward flight.

Engineer John Frost and his team at Avro Canada believed that a circular aircraft could meet these requirements. Rather than relying on wings for lift during take-off, the design placed three turbojet engines inside the disc to drive a large central lift fan, or “turborotor”. Air was directed downward around the edge of the vehicle, creating lift and allowing the craft to hover close to the ground before transitioning into conventional flight. Research at the time suggested that a circular wing and distributed airflow might provide efficient lift in every direction while avoiding the limitations of helicopters.[Air Force Museum]nationalmuseum.af.milOpen source on af.mil.

This unusual engineering logic explains why the aircraft genuinely resembled the popular image of a flying saucer. The disc was not decorative. It formed part of the propulsion and lift system itself. From a distance, observers would have seen a nearly symmetrical circular vehicle with no obvious fuselage, tail or conventional wings, making it visually unlike any operational aircraft of its era.[U.S. Air Force]af.milU.S. Air ForceDeclassified document shows 'real' flying saucer > Air Force > Article DisplayOctober 23, 2012…Published: October 23, 2012

The Canadian Flying Saucer | The Avro Canada VZ-9 Avrocar | History in the Dark

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What the Avrocar could and could not do

The project’s ambitions were extraordinary. Early concepts envisioned a vehicle capable of vertical take-off, high altitude and speeds well beyond those achieved during testing. Military planners hoped for a machine that combined the flexibility of a helicopter with the speed of a jet aircraft.[U.S. Air Force]af.milU.S. Air ForceDeclassified document shows 'real' flying saucer > Air Force > Article DisplayOctober 23, 2012…Published: October 23, 2012

Reality proved very different.

Testing quickly exposed several fundamental problems:

  • The air cushion beneath the vehicle became unstable once it rose more than roughly one metre above the ground.
  • Pilots encountered severe pitch and roll oscillations known by the engineers as “hubcapping”.
  • Wind tunnel testing demonstrated poor aerodynamic stability during forward flight.
  • Maximum speed reached only about 35 mph (56 km/h), far below the original expectations.
  • Engineers were unable to eliminate the instability despite multiple design revisions.[af.mil]nationalmuseum.af.milOpen source on af.mil.

NASA evaluations later identified several technical shortcomings, including insufficient thrust relative to weight, aerodynamic instability, inadequate low-speed control and losses within the ducting that reduced the effectiveness of the lift system. The programme ultimately demonstrated how difficult it was to convert a hovering lift-fan concept into a practical aircraft using the technology available at the time.[NASA Technical Reports Server]ntrs.nasa.govTechnical Reports Server NASAContractor Report 177616 The Lift-Fan Powered…

Avrocar illustration 2

Why the Avrocar fuelled flying saucer speculation

The Avrocar illustrates why genuine classified programmes sometimes became entangled with UFO stories.

Several factors encouraged confusion:

  • Its appearance matched popular expectations. Unlike conventional aircraft, it was genuinely circular and looked remarkably similar to fictional flying saucers depicted during the 1950s.
  • The programme was classified. Public knowledge of the aircraft was extremely limited while development was underway.
  • It operated during the height of UFO interest. The late 1950s saw widespread public fascination with unidentified flying objects, making unusual aircraft easier to misinterpret.
  • Observers lacked context. A witness seeing a hovering disc-shaped vehicle would have had no obvious reason to assume it was a military experiment.[U.S. Air Force]af.milU.S. Air ForceDeclassified document shows 'real' flying saucer > Air Force > Article DisplayOctober 23, 2012…Published: October 23, 2012

At the same time, the Avrocar’s documented performance places clear limits on what it can explain. Flight testing showed a noisy, unstable vehicle confined largely to low-altitude hover. It did not demonstrate the rapid acceleration, extreme manoeuvrability, silent operation or high-speed flight frequently attributed to unexplained UFO reports. Its existence therefore shows that governments experimented with saucer-shaped aircraft, but not that they successfully developed vehicles matching more extraordinary claims.[NASA Technical Reports Server]ntrs.nasa.govTechnical Reports Server NASAContractor Report 177616 The Lift-Fan Powered…

Avrocar Building a Real Flying Saucer

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Project 1794 - The US Military's VZ-9 Avrocar Flying Saucer

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How its failure complicates claims about secret saucers

The Avrocar occupies an unusual position in discussions of classified aerospace projects because it simultaneously supports and weakens arguments about hidden military technology.

On one hand, it confirms that governments genuinely funded unconventional disc-shaped aircraft. Anyone claiming that “no military ever tried to build a flying saucer” would be demonstrably wrong. Declassified records show that the United States and Canada invested years of research into precisely such a concept.[U.S. Air Force]af.milU.S. Air ForceDeclassified document shows 'real' flying saucer > Air Force > Article DisplayOctober 23, 2012…Published: October 23, 2012

On the other hand, the extensive documentation surrounding the programme shows why it failed. Flight-test reports, museum records and later technical reviews consistently describe instability, poor control and disappointing performance. Rather than revealing a suppressed technological breakthrough, the surviving evidence points to an ambitious but unsuccessful experiment that reached the limits of contemporary engineering.[nasa.gov]ntrs.nasa.govTechnical Reports Server NASAContractor Report 177616 The Lift-Fan Powered…

This distinction matters within the broader discussion of classified programmes mistaken for alien technology. The Avrocar demonstrates that real secret aircraft can resemble popular UFO imagery and generate understandable speculation. Yet it also illustrates the importance of separating documented experimental designs from claims that governments secretly perfected advanced saucer technology without leaving comparable technical evidence. The historical record supports the existence of the former while providing little support for the latter.[nasa.gov]ntrs.nasa.govTechnical Reports Server NASAContractor Report 177616 The Lift-Fan Powered…

Avrocar illustration 3

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Endnotes

1. Source: ntrs.nasa.gov
Title: Technical Reports Server NASA
Link:https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19940011245/downloads/19940011245.pdf

Source snippet

Contractor Report 177616 The Lift-Fan Powered...

2. Source: transportation.army.mil
Title: U.S. Army Transportation Corps and Transportation School | Fort Lee, Virginia
Link:https://transportation.army.mil/history/studies/flying_saucer.html?curius=3527

3. Source: nationalmuseum.af.mil
Link:https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195801/AFmuseum/avro-canada-vz-9av-avrocar/

4. Source: af.mil
Link:https://www.af.mil/news/article-display/article/110252/declassified-document-shows-real-flying-saucer/

Source snippet

U.S. Air ForceDeclassified document shows 'real' flying saucer > Air Force > Article DisplayOctober 23, 2012...

Published: October 23, 2012

5. Source: planehistoria.com
Title: V Z-9AV Avrocar
Link:https://planehistoria.com/vz-9av/

6. Source: af.mil
Title: Declassified document shows ‘real’ flying saucer > Air Force > Article Display
Link:https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/110252/declassified-document-shows-real-flying-saucer/Article/110252/declassified-document-shows-real-flying-saucer/

7. Source: nationalmuseum.af.mil
Link:https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195801/USAFmuseum/avro-canada-vz-9av-avrocar/

8. Source: nationalmuseum.af.mil
Title: mil Photos
Link:https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Upcoming/Photos/igsearch/avrocar/

Additional References

9. Source: commons.wikimedia.org
Title: Other resolutions: 330 × 193 pixels | 960 × 560 pixe
Link:https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AAvro_Canada_VZ-9AV_Avrocar_5.jpg

Source snippet

wikimedia.orgFile:Avro Canada VZ-9AV Avrocar 5.jpg - Wikimedia CommonsSeptember 8, 2024 — FILE:AVRO CANADA VZ-9AV AVROCAR 5.JPG * File *...

Published: September 8, 2024

10. Source: migflug.com
Title: The Avrocar: When the Pentagon Built a Flying Saucer
Link:https://migflug.com/jetflights/avrocar-vz-9-pentagon-flying-saucer-coanda-vtol-cancelled-1961/

Source snippet

May 20, 2026 — THE AVROCAR: WHEN THE PENTAGON BUILT A FLYING SAUCER by Connor Kerr | May 20, 2026 | History & Legends, Military Aviation...

Published: May 20, 2026

11. Source: nationalinterest.org
Title: vz 9av avrocar 2007 air force museum received flying saucer 207708
Link:https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/vz-9av-avrocar-2007-air-force-museum-received-flying-saucer-207708/

Source snippet

Air Force, and UFOs VZ-9AV AVROCAR: IN 2007, THE AIR FORCE MUSEUM RECEIVED A ‘FLYING SAUCER’ December...

12. Source: commons.wikimedia.org
Title: File:Avro Canada VZ 9AV Avrocar 8.jpg
Link:https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AAvro_Canada_VZ-9AV_Avrocar_8.jpg

Source snippet

wikimedia.orgFile:Avro Canada VZ-9AV Avrocar 8.jpg - Wikimedia CommonsSeptember 8, 2024 — FILE:AVRO CANADA VZ-9AV AVROCAR 8.JPG * File *...

Published: September 8, 2024

13. Source: youtube.com
Title: Avrocar: Canada’s Flying Saucer That Couldn’t Fly Straight
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J52oo-s969I

Source snippet

Project 1794 - The US Military's VZ-9 Avrocar Flying Saucer...

14. Source: youtube.com
Title: The Canadian Flying Saucer | The Avro Canada VZ-9 Avrocar
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGwfCKsRC2A

Source snippet

Avrocar: Canada's Flying Saucer That Couldn't Fly Straight...

15. Source: researchgate.net
Link:https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Critical-altitude-of-Avrocar-and-the-hubcapping-9-10_fig6_280498156

16. Source: youtube.com
Title: Avrocar Building a Real Flying Saucer
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlsI9q1lROI

Source snippet

The Canadian Flying Saucer | The Avro Canada VZ-9 Avrocar...

17. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFoSYntvFVk

Source snippet

Avrocar! Saucer Secrets from the Past...

18. Source: unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov
Title: avrocar the u s militarys flying saucer
Link:https://unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov/2014/04/03/avrocar-the-u-s-militarys-flying-saucer/