Declassified UFO / UAP Document
CIA's Role in the Study of UFOs, 1947-90
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AI-Generated Summary
This article by historian Gerald K. Haines reviews the CIA's historical engagement with UFOs from 1947 to 1990. It concludes that the Agency's interest was substantial only in the early 1950s and has been minimal since, refuting claims of a long-term cover-up.
This document, authored by National Reconnaissance Office historian Gerald K. Haines, provides an overview of the CIA's historical involvement with the study of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) between 1947 and 1990. It notes that while 95 percent of Americans have heard of UFOs and a majority believe they are real, the CIA's actual engagement with the subject has been limited. The article traces the origins of the modern UFO phenomenon to the June 24, 1947, sighting by pilot Kenneth Arnold near Mt. Rainier, Washington, which triggered a wave of reports. In response, the Air Force established Project SAUCER (later Project SIGN) in 1948 to evaluate these sightings. The Technical Intelligence Division of the Air Material Command at Wright Field concluded that UFOs were not extraordinary, attributing sightings to mass hysteria, hallucinations, hoaxes, or misinterpretations of known objects. The document highlights that in 1993, following pressure from UFO enthusiasts, DCI R. James Woolsey ordered a review of all Agency files on the subject. This review confirmed that while the CIA maintained significant interest in the early 1950s, its subsequent involvement has been minimal and peripheral, contradicting theories of a massive government cover-up.
While Agency concern over UFOs was substantial until the early 1950s, CIA has since paid only limited and peripheral attention to the phenomena.
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Official Assessment
The Air Force soon concluded that UFOs were real but easily explained and not extraordinary. The Air Force report found that almost all sightings stemmed from one or more three causes: mass hysteria and hallucination, hoax, or misinterpretation of known objects.
While Agency concern over UFOs was substantial until the early 1950s, the CIA has since paid only limited and peripheral attention to the phenomena.
Witnesses
- Kenneth Arnoldprivate pilot and reputable businessman
Key Persons
- CarterFormer US President
- ReaganFormer US President
- James WoolseyDCI
- Nathan TwiningAir Force Gen., head of the Air Technical Service Command