Correspondence between Vicente-Juan Ballester Olmos and Manuel Bautista Aranda regarding UAP research

This document consists of an exchange of letters between Vicente-Juan Ballester Olmos of the Centro de Estudios Interplanetarios (CEI) and Manuel Bautista Aranda, Vice President of the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (INTA), in August and September 1990. In his initial letter, Ballester Olmos proposes a collaborative effort to create a standardized database of UFO sightings using forms from the USAF, CEI, and NASA. He suggests that INTA could serve as a repository for declassified UFO reports currently held by the Spanish Air Force, arguing that such transparency would help mitigate public suspicion and sensationalism. In his response dated September 14, 1990, Bautista Aranda politely declines the enthusiasm for the project. He states that his personal interest in the UFO phenomenon has waned over the years, having read various seminal works on the subject, including the Condon Report. He compares the collection of sighting reports to a primitive tribe observing airplanes without understanding the underlying technology or aerodynamics, suggesting that such data collection does not lead to a true understanding of the phenomenon's essence. Regarding the institutional role of INTA, Bautista Aranda mentions that he has discussed the matter informally with the Director of INTA, Professor Enrique Trillas. He concludes that while INTA would not oppose a mandate from the Ministry of Defense to archive such reports, the organization has no intention of taking the initiative to pursue this task independently.