AMSTERDAM POLICE CONDUCT LATE-NIGHT SEARCH FOR SPACE CRAFT 

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (MARCH 4) AP - Police deployed a dozen patrol cars and a
helicopter in a late-night chase for a craft from outer space, a police
spokesman said Friday. 

The hunt, accompanied by dozens of calls from all over the Dutch capital
reporting unidentified flying objects, failed to yield anything
extra-terrestrial, according to spokesman Klaas Wilting. 

''We were alerted late Thursday night by Schiphol (airport) air traffic
controllers who observed bright lights in a stationary position over the port
area which didn't show up on their radar screens,'' Wilting said. 

After a radio newscast had mentioned the Schiphol sighting, calls started
pouring in from all over the city, describing objects ranging from
''airplane-like things to fantastic contraptions with Darth Vader at the
helm,'' said Wilting. 

Around midnight, 12 patrol cars and a police helicopter were involved, Wilting
said. 
pal hours, ''we found nothing except some strong lamps on top of a 50-meter
(150-foot) high crane in the harbor,'' which might have been visible from the
airport's control tower, Wilting said. 

''We think it was a classic example of popular delusion, coupled with a number
of jokers trying to pull a trick on us,'' the spokesman said.