Posted On: June 23, 2022

In the late 1950s, the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena or NICAP, revealed some significant statements they had received from prominent members of Congress, of which the following give a clear indication of how seriously the aspect of official secrecy about the UFO subject was treated.

Sorry about the robot voice. For now we are going to do a combination of some human narrator videos and some robot voiced ones. Our long term goal is to have 100% of our videos, human narrator. We are looking for volunteers. Send us an email if you are interested.

Senator Leverett B. Saltonstall (Massachusetts):

"We must consider the genuine security necessities, but I think there are many cases in which more information should be made available to the public."

Representative Thomas L. Ashley (Ohio):

"I share your concern over the secrecy that continues to shroud our intelligence activities on this subject."

Representative William H. Ayres (Ohio):

"Congressional investigations have been held, and are still being held on the problems of unidentified flying objects. Since most of the material presented is classified, the hearings are never printed."

Representative Walter H. Moeller (Ohio):

"[I have] every confidence that the American public would be able to take such information without hysteria. The fear of the unknown is always greater than fear of the known."

Representative Ralph J. Scott (North Carolina):

"If this information could be presented in such a way as to appeal to reason, and not to emotion, I think it would be a good thing."

Senator Richard B. Russell:

Former Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who had a sighting in the Soviet Union in 1955, was subsequently asked about official secrecy by the aviation columnist Tom Towers.

"I have discussed this with the affected agencies of the government," the senator replied, "and they are of the opinion that it is unwise to publicize the matter at this time."

Senator Barry Goldwater:

Former Air Force Reserve Colonel and Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has made several attempts to extract the suppressed material on UFOs, only to be told that it is classified above top secret.

Resources: Above Top Secret, Timothy Good, 1988.

My Take: All you have to do is read what these senators are saying. It basically says, UFOs are real and we aren't going to share it with you at this time. I am not sure why more people do not latch onto these types of things.

1959: Serious USAF Business

On 24 December 1959 the Air Force issued the following warning to every air base commander in the continental United States:

“Unidentified flying objects, sometimes treated lightly by the press and referred to as flying saucers, must be rapidly and accurately identified as serious United States Air Force [USAF] business in the ZI [Interior Zone], The phenomena or actual objects comprising UFOs will tend to increase, with the public more aware of goings on in space but still inclined to some apprehension. Technical and defense considerations will continue to exist in this era.”

Vice Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoetter, former Director of the CIA, (1947-50), as well as a NICAP committee member, said that a copy of the warning, issued by the Inspector General, had been sent to the Senate Science and Astronautics Committee.

"It is time for the truth to be brought out in open congressional hearings," he said.

Behind the scenes, high-ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about the UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense," and he charged that "to hide the facts, the Air Force has silenced its personnel", through the issuance of a regulation.

In April 1959, Major General Donald J. Keirn, Chief of the USAF nuclear engine program, stated that although the Air Force had no proof that intelligent beings existed elsewhere, the UFO reports had "emphasized our innate curiosity, It is entirely possible that some of them may have passed through our stage of evolution, and may have already achieved a higher level of social and technological culture than our own."

In 1962 an order affecting all Air Force statements on UFOs was disclosed via NICAP by Major William T. Coleman, former Project Blue Book officer and Air Force Headquarters spokesman. The directive covered books, articles and scripts for talks and broadcasts, and Chapter 4, Section B.2.g (AFM 190-4), is particularly apposite:

"When the manuscript concerns military subjects it will be submitted to the Office of Information, which will review it for accuracy, propriety, and conformance with policy, security, and for the deletion of classified matter. The policy applies to active duty personnel, retired personnel, civilian employees, and members of civilian components.

By this order, the Secretary of Air Force Office of Information must delete all evidence of UFO reality and intelligent control, which would, of course, contradict the Air Force stand that UFOs do not exist. The same rule applies to A.F. press releases and UFO information given to Congress and the public."

Another Air Force spokesman at the Pentagon, Major C. R. Hart, revealed in 1962 that UFO investigations and evaluations involved hundreds of Air Force intelligence officers, as well as "the best scientific brains available in the laboratories of all government agencies, also scientific investigators in commercial laboratories, whenever needed."

Major Hart also disclosed that the chief Air Force scientific consultant, Dr. J. Allen Hynek, had conferred with the world’s leading scientists regarding the UFO problem. That same year. Lieutenant Colonal Spencer Whedon of the USAF Air Technical Intelligence Center revealed that the Air Force spent an estimated $10000 on each major sighting investigation.

On 29 October 1962, Defense Department Assistant Secretary Arthur Sylvester admitted that withholding information on UFOs from the public was necessary if the ends justified it, and cited Air Force Regulation 1 1- 7, in which it is stated that sometimes information requested by Congress may not be furnished "even in confidence."

But a number of Air Force officers opposed official secrecy on UFOs at this time. "In concealing the evidence of UFO operations the Air Force is making a serious mistake," said Lieutenant Colonel James McAshan. "The public should be informed as to the facts." Major Edwin A. Jerome went further in criticizing "this inane veil of security classification. I suggest we are several centuries behind the intellects of other planets, the national policy should be to educate the public."

Colonel Howard Strand, who had three encounters with UFOs while flying F-94 jets, stressed that "too many intelligent, competent observers have reported UFOs and added: "My conclusion is that this is a reconnaissance by an advanced civilization. I urge a congressional investigation of UFOs and the military secrecy surrounding them."

But supposing that some UFOs are dangerous, and have been responsible for the deaths of a number of Air Force pilots, as General Benjamin Chidlaw has confirmed, are the authorities not fully justified in their policy of withholding the facts from the public in the interests of national security? This policy may also have been predicated on a suspicion by intelligence analysts that our planet might be viewed acquisitively by beings from elsewhere, a possibility discussed in Chapter 14. Fanciful though this scenario seems, it was accorded a measure of credence by Air Force Intelligence Colonel William C. Odell in 1954, when in a script cleared by AF security but never published, entitled Planet Earth, Host to Extraterrestrial Life , he stated:

"Granted that superintelligents in another solar system are looking for a suitable planet for a second home, why would earth be singled out?"

Although Colonel Odell’s manuscript had been cleared, potential publishers had been put off by Air Force stipulations that Odell was not to be identified as an AF officer, nor could the clearance by AF Security and Review be mentioned.

Resources: Above Top Secret, Timothy Good, 1988.

My Take: More very interesting statements that show just how serious this all was and is treated by the US government.

Posted On: June 23, 2022

In the late 1950s, the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena or NICAP, revealed some significant statements they had received from prominent members of Congress, of which the following give a clear indication of how seriously the aspect of official secrecy about the UFO subject was treated.

Sorry about the robot voice. For now we are going to do a combination of some human narrator videos and some robot voiced ones. Our long term goal is to have 100% of our videos, human narrator. We are looking for volunteers. Send us an email if you are interested.

Senator Leverett B. Saltonstall (Massachusetts):

"We must consider the genuine security necessities, but I think there are many cases in which more information should be made available to the public."

Representative Thomas L. Ashley (Ohio):

"I share your concern over the secrecy that continues to shroud our intelligence activities on this subject."

Representative William H. Ayres (Ohio):

"Congressional investigations have been held, and are still being held on the problems of unidentified flying objects. Since most of the material presented is classified, the hearings are never printed."

Representative Walter H. Moeller (Ohio):

"[I have] every confidence that the American public would be able to take such information without hysteria. The fear of the unknown is always greater than fear of the known."

Representative Ralph J. Scott (North Carolina):

"If this information could be presented in such a way as to appeal to reason, and not to emotion, I think it would be a good thing."

Senator Richard B. Russell:

Former Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who had a sighting in the Soviet Union in 1955, was subsequently asked about official secrecy by the aviation columnist Tom Towers.

"I have discussed this with the affected agencies of the government," the senator replied, "and they are of the opinion that it is unwise to publicize the matter at this time."

Senator Barry Goldwater:

Former Air Force Reserve Colonel and Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has made several attempts to extract the suppressed material on UFOs, only to be told that it is classified above top secret.

Resources: Above Top Secret, Timothy Good, 1988.

My Take: All you have to do is read what these senators are saying. It basically says, UFOs are real and we aren't going to share it with you at this time. I am not sure why more people do not latch onto these types of things.

1959: Serious USAF Business

On 24 December 1959 the Air Force issued the following warning to every air base commander in the continental United States:

“Unidentified flying objects, sometimes treated lightly by the press and referred to as flying saucers, must be rapidly and accurately identified as serious United States Air Force [USAF] business in the ZI [Interior Zone], The phenomena or actual objects comprising UFOs will tend to increase, with the public more aware of goings on in space but still inclined to some apprehension. Technical and defense considerations will continue to exist in this era.”

Vice Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoetter, former Director of the CIA, (1947-50), as well as a NICAP committee member, said that a copy of the warning, issued by the Inspector General, had been sent to the Senate Science and Astronautics Committee.

"It is time for the truth to be brought out in open congressional hearings," he said.

Behind the scenes, high-ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about the UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense," and he charged that "to hide the facts, the Air Force has silenced its personnel", through the issuance of a regulation.

In April 1959, Major General Donald J. Keirn, Chief of the USAF nuclear engine program, stated that although the Air Force had no proof that intelligent beings existed elsewhere, the UFO reports had "emphasized our innate curiosity, It is entirely possible that some of them may have passed through our stage of evolution, and may have already achieved a higher level of social and technological culture than our own."

In 1962 an order affecting all Air Force statements on UFOs was disclosed via NICAP by Major William T. Coleman, former Project Blue Book officer and Air Force Headquarters spokesman. The directive covered books, articles and scripts for talks and broadcasts, and Chapter 4, Section B.2.g (AFM 190-4), is particularly apposite:

"When the manuscript concerns military subjects it will be submitted to the Office of Information, which will review it for accuracy, propriety, and conformance with policy, security, and for the deletion of classified matter. The policy applies to active duty personnel, retired personnel, civilian employees, and members of civilian components.

By this order, the Secretary of Air Force Office of Information must delete all evidence of UFO reality and intelligent control, which would, of course, contradict the Air Force stand that UFOs do not exist. The same rule applies to A.F. press releases and UFO information given to Congress and the public."

Another Air Force spokesman at the Pentagon, Major C. R. Hart, revealed in 1962 that UFO investigations and evaluations involved hundreds of Air Force intelligence officers, as well as "the best scientific brains available in the laboratories of all government agencies, also scientific investigators in commercial laboratories, whenever needed."

Major Hart also disclosed that the chief Air Force scientific consultant, Dr. J. Allen Hynek, had conferred with the world’s leading scientists regarding the UFO problem. That same year. Lieutenant Colonal Spencer Whedon of the USAF Air Technical Intelligence Center revealed that the Air Force spent an estimated $10000 on each major sighting investigation.

On 29 October 1962, Defense Department Assistant Secretary Arthur Sylvester admitted that withholding information on UFOs from the public was necessary if the ends justified it, and cited Air Force Regulation 1 1- 7, in which it is stated that sometimes information requested by Congress may not be furnished "even in confidence."

But a number of Air Force officers opposed official secrecy on UFOs at this time. "In concealing the evidence of UFO operations the Air Force is making a serious mistake," said Lieutenant Colonel James McAshan. "The public should be informed as to the facts." Major Edwin A. Jerome went further in criticizing "this inane veil of security classification. I suggest we are several centuries behind the intellects of other planets, the national policy should be to educate the public."

Colonel Howard Strand, who had three encounters with UFOs while flying F-94 jets, stressed that "too many intelligent, competent observers have reported UFOs and added: "My conclusion is that this is a reconnaissance by an advanced civilization. I urge a congressional investigation of UFOs and the military secrecy surrounding them."

But supposing that some UFOs are dangerous, and have been responsible for the deaths of a number of Air Force pilots, as General Benjamin Chidlaw has confirmed, are the authorities not fully justified in their policy of withholding the facts from the public in the interests of national security? This policy may also have been predicated on a suspicion by intelligence analysts that our planet might be viewed acquisitively by beings from elsewhere, a possibility discussed in Chapter 14. Fanciful though this scenario seems, it was accorded a measure of credence by Air Force Intelligence Colonel William C. Odell in 1954, when in a script cleared by AF security but never published, entitled Planet Earth, Host to Extraterrestrial Life , he stated:

"Granted that superintelligents in another solar system are looking for a suitable planet for a second home, why would earth be singled out?"

Although Colonel Odell’s manuscript had been cleared, potential publishers had been put off by Air Force stipulations that Odell was not to be identified as an AF officer, nor could the clearance by AF Security and Review be mentioned.

Resources: Above Top Secret, Timothy Good, 1988.

My Take: More very interesting statements that show just how serious this all was and is treated by the US government.