Great Oil Sniffer Hoax

In 1979 Elf Aquitaine, the large French oil company, supported development of a new gravity wave-based oil detection system. After spending millions it was revealed to be a scam. Elf lost over $150 million in what is now known as The Great Oil Sniffer Hoax.

Hoax demonstration

Elf had been approached by Belgian Count Alain de Villegas, who introduced them to an Italian inventor, Aldo Bonassoli. Bonassoli claimed that he had been tinkering with electronics as part of his "day job" of fixing televisions when he hit upon the idea of a gravity wave detector. After some experimentation he had been able to build a crude, but working, prototype and had partnered with the count in order to find a prospective financier. Then, in classic scam form, they said that the device could actually detect any mass, submarines under water for instance, but they had decided to turn to the oil companies because that's where the money was. This allowed the Elf officials to believe the story that much easier; after all, the pair were stating right up front that they were in it for the money.

Gravity waves do exist, at least there is good reason to suspect they do. They were a "hot topic" in the 1970s, as some of the first serious attempts to detect them had just started. Contrary to Bonassoli's claims, however, gravity waves are generated by "moving" masses, and would be completely useless for detecting a mass of oil, sitting still. Moreover gravity is the weakest force, and the "size" of the moving masses is also important: current detection attempts rely on enormous astronomical events such as supernovas or the collision of two neutron stars in order to create waves of sufficient force to be seen.

But, as expected, the Elf officials were businessmen and were completely convinced by Bonassoli's scientific bafflegab. He went on to note that he was ready to demonstrate the prototype to Elf, but only if there were no scientists allowed, as they might steal his ideas. Elf was only too happy to oblige.

A demonstration followed in which the device, not much larger than a few photocopiers, was installed in a transport plane hidden behind curtains and flown around over known oil fields. Sure enough the device flashed lights, drew lines on an attached TV, and outputted paper with a graph on it. The Elf observers were completely convinced.

Exposure of the hoax

Elf soon signed a $80 million contract to develop the prototype into a usable machine, with the provisos that Elf would get exclusive use of the machine, and guaranteeing to Bonassoli that no one would examine it. Continued testing failed, but Bonassoli repeatedly stated that it appeared to be far "too accurate" to be used, requiring further development. Elf responded with a second contract, this time for $133 million.

Eventually Elf started to get suspicious and someone examined the machine. What was inside one cabinet appeared to not simply look like a photocopier, but actually was a photocopier. In another, attached to the TV, was a simple signal generator, which appeared to be creating the lines on the display. Bonassoli attempted to deflect all criticism by stating that the entire secret of the device was one key component, which was locked in a box that he refused to open.

They then arranged for Jules Horowitz, chief of research and development for France's atomic energy agency, to visit the lab and examine the device. Instead of examining the device he started asking Bonassoli questions about the machines's capabilities, leading him on through a series of smaller objects until Bonassoli eventually dismissively agreed that it could easily detect a metal ruler through a wall. Horowitz, pretending to simply play along with what was now a simple test, had actually planned for this event and walked behind the wall with the ruler in his hand. Bonassoli turned on the device, and sure enough out came a piece of paper with a short line on it. Horowitz returned from around the corner, and held up the ruler, which he had bent into a L shape while hidden from view.

Astoundingly Bonassoli managed to successfully flee and return to Italy, where he became something of a folk hero. Elf never completed paying for the final contract, but nevertheless had spent over $150 million in total.

References

* Article in the New Zurich Newspaper (German) [http://www.nzzfolio.ch/www/d80bd71b-b264-4db4-afd0-277884b93470/showarticle/84b62915-f34d-498e-a541-18bccd135c1b.aspx Als Elf-Erap freudig erbebte]
* " [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E04E6DD1638F931A15752C1A962948260 Foes Blame Giscard for Sniffer Plane Scheme] ," New York Times, November 22, 1984.
* " [http://www.thenation.com/doc/19840225/singer AutoWorkers and 'Sniffing Planes': Letter From Europe] ," The Nation, February 25, 1984.
* " [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,954097,00.html Big Stink] ," TIME magazine, January 30, 1984.