NSA Response to FOIA Request MDR-73494 Regarding UFO Records

This document contains a response from the National Security Agency (NSA) to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request submitted by John Greenewald on 24 July 2013. The NSA denied the request for unredacted records pertaining to Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), citing that the majority of the requested documents could not be located, and the one document that was located remained classified under Executive Order 13526. The package includes a formal letter from Blake C. Barnes, Chief of Declassification Services, dated 21 July 2014, explaining the denial and outlining the appeal process. The letter clarifies the NSA's position that 'UFOs,' 'extra-terrestrials,' and 'paranormal activities' do not fall within the Agency's mission. It categorizes existing 'UFO' records as either foreign intelligence reports describing conventional aircraft or objects (such as weather balloons) that were unidentified at the time of reporting, or personal items written by NSA employees with an interest in the subject. The document also includes a 'Top Secret Umbra' classified affidavit from Eugene F. Yeates, Chief of the Office of Policy, originally executed in 1980 for Civil Action No. 80-1562. This affidavit provides a detailed justification for withholding 156 COMINT reports produced between 1958 and 1979. Yeates argues that these records are inextricably linked to sensitive signals intelligence operations, and their disclosure would compromise the Agency's ability to intercept and process foreign communications. The affidavit details how these reports were generated, the nature of the intelligence targets, and the potential damage to national security if the methods and sources were revealed. The document concludes with a transmittal form confirming the release of the redacted material.