The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 182

By PEG YOUNG Pholof Simmi merous ground tests it will be used for aerial test work. John Searl is a very ordinary looking man. He has six children and lives in a modest council house in Mortimer. He has all the fire and enthusiasm of most back garden inventors, but with one exception; after working alone for nearly 22 years, he is finally coming to the point of being recognized by scientists and promoters world-over. He has been written up by international journalists and has spoken to many scientific research societies with varying degrees of success.

One particular highlight was a book written by a Japanese university professor of mathematics and physics named Shindchi Seike. The highly technical volume entitled The Principles of Ultra Relativity explains Searl's theories. Searl and his associates have formed a coalition known as the Searl National Space Research Consortium through which additional information and data can be obtained. EARL CANNOT dedicate him OECLUDED IN A remote, tree-covered glen outside Mortimer, a rather eerie construction is taking form. It resembles what science fiction writers refer to as a flying saucer.

Robert Searl, an electrical engineer, is the inventor and designer of this craft and with his dedicated crew is putting together what he says will be a unique space vehicle. Searl claims to have discovered a new method of propulsion which will revolutionize space travel and render both the American and Russian space programs obsolete. He claims that by using the electromagnetic force field around us in a suitable generator that his craft will be able to fly at speeds near that of light, without the costly fuels or massive rocketry now used. a I's invention began in 1949 when he found that by spinning a metal disc, a magnetic force field could be detected between the negative toward the periphery and positive toward the rotational axis. Using this principle, he built a generator which produced the expected current but with a sensational result the generator lifted itself up.

Searl's invention and subsequent experiments led to the de-velopment of a saucer-shaped body to house his generator. So far he and his workers have built about 38 "levity discs" some of which are in operation now. The demonstration craft now under construction is known as "Starship Ezekiel" after the Biblical prophet who wrote of seeing a wheel in the sky believed to be one of the first recorded flying saucer sightings. vfc mm self fully to the project due to lack of funds and time. After work he catches a few hours of sleep before plunging back into the masses of blueprints and construction work at the launching site.

He also does the majority of the correspondence work with interested people and shareholders in the Consortium. He prints a regular news letter explaining the progress of Starship Ezekiel. On the weekends he is joined by many dedicated young people from various parts of England who assist with the construction. He hopes to have this model ready for flight by next year. One of the most impressive things about Searl is the way he describes so fluently the most complex technical aspects of his invention without having formal schooling in astro-physics.

As he himself states, "If I had gone to technical school and taken a science degree, I probably would never have attempted what I'm trying to achieve today, I should have thought it impossible." will (3 John Searl says this is an experimental model of his projected space vehicle hovering in flight during trials in England. About 38 discs have been built. OTARSHIP Ezekiel is 21 feet in diameter and is basically made of timber with plastic top and bottom shells and an eight-leg landing system. After it passes nu- 22.