Night of 18 May 1909; interview published 19 May / T018
C. Lethbridge's roadside airship encounter
Caerphilly Mountain, on the route from Senghenydd to Cardiff
Witness account
A travelling Punch-and-Judy salesman named Lethbridge said he encountered a long, tube-shaped object beside a mountain road around 11 p.m. Two men in heavy fur clothing allegedly spoke an unfamiliar language, entered a suspended carriage, and departed in the machine. He estimated the object at about 45 feet long. This is an alleged crew encounter, with no abduction claim.
Public record
Historian Brett Holman compares the contemporary Cardiff and national newspaper accounts. Lethbridge took a reporter to the alleged site, where disturbed ground and miscellaneous items were described. The much-repeated 'strange artifact' included a plug and chain with a French label referring to a tire valve; other finds included paper scraps and an empty metal-polish tin.