Lloyd Berkner

Lloyd Viel Berkner (1905-1967) was an American physicist and engineer renowned for co-inventing the ionosonde, a standard device for measuring ionospheric conditions. In UAP/UFO research, he served as a member of the 1953 Robertson Panel, a CIA-convened scientific committee chaired by H.P. Robertson to evaluate UFO sightings and recommend policies. The panel included experts like Luis Alvarez and J. Allen Hynek, reviewing cases amid post-1947 sighting waves and projects like SIGN. Berkner is also named in UFO conspiracy theories as a member of the alleged Majestic 12 (MJ-12) group, purportedly formed by President Truman in 1947 for alien spacecraft recovery, though documents are disputed.