CIA Releases 900 Pages of UFO Documents Under FOIA Lawsuit
On December 15, 1978, approximately 900 pages of CIA documents pertaining to UFOs are released under FOIA provisions, due to the CAUS and Ground Saucer Watch (GSW) lawsuit. These documents, which the CIA had previously denied possessing, attest to a thirty-year interest in UFOs. Attorney Peter Gersten notices that references in the released documents point to the existence of 200 or more additional classified pages still within the CIA. The release proves the CIA had been actively involved in UFO matters since at least the late 1940s, contradicting decades of official denials.
Background
1. On December 15, 1978, approximately 900 pages of CIA documents pertaining to UFOs were released under FOIA provisions. This release was a result of a lawsuit brought by CAUS and Ground Saucer Watch (GSW). The documents revealed a thirty-year interest in UFOs by the CIA, which they had previously denied.
The Incident The release of the 900 pages of CIA documents on December 15, 1978, revealed details of alleged UFO incidents and related investigations. One document summarized an extraterrestrial presence, mentioning the Kenneth Arnold sighting in June 1947 as the catalyst for a wave of flying saucer sightings. It also described a reported crash 75 miles northwest of Roswell Army Air Base.
The document stated that secret recovery operations began on July 7, 1947, after aerial reconnaissance discovered a crashed craft and four small, human-like beings who had apparently ejected before the explosion. The beings were deceased and badly decomposed. Strange, undecipherable writing was found in the wreckage, and the ship's propulsion method was unknown.
The bodies and wreckage were removed to various locations. Study of the bodies, led by Dr. Detlev Bronk, indicated they were not human but possessed human features. They were designated as "Extra-terrestrial Biological Entities," or EBEs. Some speculated they came from another planet in the solar system, while others believed they were from another solar system.
The document also mentioned a second UFO crash on December 6, 1950, in the El Indio-Guerrero area of the Texas-Mexican border. This object was nearly completely incinerated but was transported to the Atomic Energy Commission’s facility in Sandia, New Mexico.
Investigation According to the document, the origin and intentions of these visitors remained unknown. Concern was high throughout 1952 that "new developments" might be imminent. The need to avoid public panic was paramount, as was the necessity to understand this exotic technology.
The Majestic-12 Group had decided unanimously that the strictest security precautions be continued into the next (Eisenhower) Presidential administration.