Project Waterloo

Project Waterloo was the name given to a secret military research project based in Malton during World War II. The project's head was Group Captain Winston Addam Perryn, Royal Air Force.

Overview

Project Waterloo was first conceived by Lt. Col. Perryn in late 1940. According to popular sources, Perryn was inspired by reports of Norwegian commandos using a horse-drawn zeppelin to sabotage German invasion transports, although it is equally likely that he read an account of a French medic using a horse-drawn balloon to transport the wounded off of the battlefield.

After months of toiling with gaining recognition for the idea of a horse-drawn zeppelin, Lt. Col. Perryn was finally granted funds and access to a research team. He was also given an abandoned airbase near Malton to use as a test facility for his idea.

In addition to several practical flaws in the idea itself, Perryn faced numerous hardships. During the early part of the war, his airfield was a target for German bombing raids, and, although no casualties or significant damage was ever done, the threat of German planes was enough to slow progress considerably. In addition he had to deal with other R&D officers who wanted to see Perryn's project disbanded and the funds going to "more practical pursuits" (most notably their own ideas).

Ultimately the dissenting voices won out; after a thorough investigation of the project the RAF cut all funding to Lt. Col. Perryn's research teams, forcing Project Waterloo to be cancelled. The many prototypes the teams had constructed were ordered dismantled and scrapped; however, it is thought that a number of these still survive, hidden somewhere among Malton's abandoned warehouses.

During the war many Maltonians reported seeing "strange aerial phenomena," including "shining dots floating on the horizon." It is now thought that most of the sightings can be connected to Perryn's Project Waterloo.