DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE
HEADQUARTERS AIR UNIVERSITY
MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE AL 36112,5001

October 16, 1992


HQ AU/IMD
50 LeMay Plaza South
Maxwell AFB AL 36112-6334




This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act request of September
14, 1992, for a copy of the "Thesis Submitted to the Air Command and Staff College of Air University ..." entitled "The UFO Problem: Time for a Reassessment" by J. King, Major, USAF, dated June 1968.

The requested document is releasable and a copy is attached. there is no charge for the document.

Sincerely

/s/ Lucy P. McInnis

LUCY P. McINNIS 1 Atch
Chief, Records Management Division Copy of Thesis
Directorate of Information Management






Strength Through Knowledge
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AIR COMMAND AND STAFF COLLEGE




THE UFO PROBLEM: TIME FOR A REASSESSMENT

by

John R.King, FR 47113, 1930-
Major, USAF





A Thesis Submitted to the Air and Staff College of
Air University in Partial Fulfillment of
The Requirements for Graduation



June 1968

Thesis directed by Dale E. Downing, Lieutenant Colonel, USAF
No. 0670-68



AIR UNIVERSITY

MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, ALABAMA

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ABSTRACT



The debate centered around whether or not UFOs are
extraterrestrial space vehicles, or whether they exist
at all, has raged for many years. During the course of
the debate the United States Air Force, official govern-
ment agency responsible for UFO report evaluation, has
been subjected to severe criticism for the manner in
which it has handled this problem. This paper presents
the positions of the critics, outlined the Air Force re-
sponse and general approach to the subject and concludes
that the Air Force has performed ineptly. Recommendations
are made for the future conduct of UFO investigations.






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PREFACE

Anyone attempting a discussion of the UFO problem
must present his scientific/technological credentials
to the reader. Failure to present some assurance that
things scientific and technological are not totally be-
yond the comprehension of the writer exposes the writer
to possible dismissal as untrained and/or unreliable.


The writer of this paper presents the following:

Occupation: Active duty Air Force officer with over
fourteen years service.

Academic Experience: Scientific. Chemistry, Biology,
Botany, mathematics. Baccalaureate degree
in Geology, University of Cincinnati, 1953.
Member, Sigma Gamma Epsilon national geology
honorary fraternity.

Civilian Experience: Soils technician, The H. C. Nutting
Company, General Engineering Testing, Cin-
cinnati, Ohio.

Air Force Experience: Technical officer. Communications-
cs operation, maintenance. Radar
site selection. Project Officer, Minuteman
System program Office, in charge of develop-
ment and aquisition of minuteman II Ground
Electronics System (Launch Control and Sta-
tus Monitoring System - digital data).



iii

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ABSTRACT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii

PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii

Chapter

I. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

The Psychology of the Times
The Antagonists and the Bewildered
Formalities of the Approach to the Subject
The Plan

II. THE POSITION SPECTRUM AND SALIENT CHARACTERISTIC .. 9

The Ultra Group (Hostile)
The Ultra Group (Benevolent)
The Normal Believers
The Converts
The Neutrals
The Non-Believers

III. THE AIR FORCE AND UFOS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Past Performance
The Current Situation

IV. THE IMPLICATIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Political
Sociological
Military

V. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . . . 91

FOOTNOTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

APPENDIX A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

APPENDIX B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

APPENDIX C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

APPENDIX D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

BIBLIOGRAPHY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127


iv
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION


The Psychology of the Times

We have not yet arrived at the point in our culture
where it is in vogue to believe in flying saucers. On
the contrary, if one suggests that these machines might
exist, and that we need to look at the problem objective-
ly, he frequently meets with a not so subtle change in
the topic of conversation. Why is this so?
Within the last twenty years, Man has discovered
that through his conscious efforts he can improve his
material lot in marvelous ways. He no longer waits for
accidental discoveries to take place. Rather, he active-
ly searches out answers in the physical sciences and con-
verts these discoveries into tangible and practical materi-
al things for the good of humanity. The general advance-
ment of what is known as technology is attributed to
scientists, to the scientific method, and to the pragma-
tism of the laboratory. The accomplishments in technolo-
gy have been so impressive that scientists and things sci-
entific have assumed an aura almost of infallibility.

1
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We are living in a pragmatic society. However, one
detects a curious thing about all this objectivity. There
has been built up almost a cult of allegiance to, and un-
questioned confidence in, the scientist of today. the
high priests are the coldly objective scientists, who
"prove" truth and falsity in mathematical formulae and
in laboratory demonstration. Their ability to do this
in many areas has been quite convincing. This success
has in large measure been responsible for the commonly
heard statements, "It's not scientific," or, "Science
has proven that...etc." Science is looked upon as the
authority. However, people forget that some of the mis-
conceptions of mankind have been shared with, or even
caused by, the scientists of the times. The concept of
the flat Earth and the concept of the Earth as the cen-
ter of the universe were concepts commonly held by the
scientists and people of the times. We today hold dif-
ferent views about the nature of the Earth. Hopefully
we are closer to the truth. It must be remembered that
every succeeding generation has modified the scientific
"truths" of past generations. No generation should be
so brash as to think that it has once and for all deter-
mined the ultimate in scientific truth.

2
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Man continues to be egocentric and arrogant about
his status in the universe. he has a tendency to be-
come resentful and confused when he is confronted with
a problem which he feels may be beyond his capacity.
Scientists have developed what is known as the scienti-
fic method. This approach to a problem includes as one
of its precepts testing of hypotheses. This testing
places emphasis on demonstrations perceivable to the
five obvious senses. The scientific community until re-
cently has looked askance at any attempt to include ad-
ditional senses to the human inventory. Science has been
using the five senses as the intellectual base for support-
ing or refuting hypotheses. the scientific method has been
sacrosanct. To challenge its adequacy has been heretical.
Then along came things like psychic phenomena: clair-
voyance, clairaudience, precognition, apportation, psychic
surgery. In some scientific circles this must have been
traumatic. Psychic attributes are not included in the
five standard senses. Immediately some scientists set
about to prove that demonstrations of psychic powers were
either fraudulent or could be explained in terms of the
five senses. Others refused to discuss the topic at all.
Some of the open-minded scientists started to do what

3
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True objectivity demands: investigate, on the assump-
tion that these powers may in fact exist, and may war-
rant a change in the established order of things. Out-
of-hand rejection based on ignorance appears to be more
human than scientific. These scientists who decided that
psychic phenomena deserved investigation have been sub-
jected to the scoffings and ridicule of the "stable"
scientific community to the extent that much investiga-
tion has had to be conducted clandestinely and anonymous-
ly to preserve scientific reputation. Today, investiga-
tions into psychic phenomena do not carry the paralyz-
ing stigma of the past, but the existence of psychic
senses is still not universally accepted.
The writer's point is that objectivity may be sub-
ject to various definitions, depending on how closely
this objectivity conforms to the norms of the times.
It appears to be much easier to be objective about any
given "fact" or theory if the "fact" or theory fits neat-
ly into the body of information currently accepted as
valid. A "fact" or theory which fits may be taken almost
as prima facie proof of itself. On the other hand, if
some piece of information turns up which runs counter to
current thought, which is unscientific, or which shakes
the egocentricity of the scientific community or Man
himself, then that piece of information or theory meets

4
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with particular non-objecvtivity. man finds it extreme-
ly difficult to accept or even to objectively investi-
gate anything which threatens to shatter his emotional
equanimity or his high regard for himself.


The Antagonists and the Bewildered

It is not at all surprising that the UFO debate has
frequently become charged with emotion. It contains
within it many of the characteristics of the Earth-as- the-center-of-the-universe debate; it is probably viewed
by some in the scientific community as a threat to their
reputation of near-omniscience; it carries implications
of the highest import to Man's status and future. The
idea of the existence of UFOs ( and the corollary that they
are operated by intelligent beings who are extraterrestrial)
is emotionally difficult for Man to contemplate. A large
section of society probably wishes that the problem would
go away. The writer feels that, at least subconsciously,
this wishful thinking has pervaded what is claimed to be
an objective investigation. Currently the debate is con-
centrated on what constitutes valid proof and evidence.
The non-believers insist on physical, "scientific" proof
and evidence. they are adamant. The believers maintain
that there is already ample evidence, which should be

5
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accepted by the non-believers. But among the believers
are those who have taken up positions so far away from
the norm that they have earned nothing but the scorn and
ridicule of the non-believers. These believers have serv-
ed the non-believers well, because it is in the far out
literature that monsters, little green men and ray guns
appear, and the non-believers can point to this litera-
ture as they make their sweeping statements about the
mental condition of believers. And so the debate rages.

Formalities of the Approach to the Subject

The Problem: To investigate the bases for the op-
posing positions taken in the existence of extraterrestri-
al unidentified flying objects in order to determine the
validity of the predominantly negatively oriented position
of the U.S. AIr Force.
The Major Objective: To determine the advisability
of a modification in the Air Force's public relations
approach to the subject of UFOs.
The Specific Objectives:
- To identify the various camps which are study-
ing the UFO problem and to characterize their attitudes
and consider their arguments.

6
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- To weigh the divergent positions.
- To assess the political, sociological and
military implications contained in the UFO
debate.
- To analyze the advisability of the current
Air Force approach to the UFO problem in
view of the implications.

Research Limitations: Research will be limited to
source materials available in the Montgomery, Alabama,
area, with the possible exception of written or tele-
phonic contact with Air Force Project Blue Book person-
nel and special project personnel at the University of
Colorado.

Assumptions:
That: -
- The Air Force will not modify its approach
to the problem prior to the completion
of this paper.
- Physical evidence of the type acceptable
to the Air Force will not be re-
ceived prior to the completion of this paper.
- Cognizance over UFO matters will not be
removed from the Department of the Air Force.

7
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The Plan

In succeeding chapters the author will review the
various schools of thought of the believers, will pre-
sent their respective stands, and will present the types
of evidence offered by each school. He will also present
the position of the non-believers and of the U.S. Air
Force. An analysis will be made of the opposing and non-
committal positions, with an attempt to present the salient
points of each position. In the closing chapters, some
of the debate will be explored, and certain conclusions
drawn and recommendations made for consideration by the
Air Force.

8
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CHAPTER II


THE POSITION SPECTRUM AND

SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS


The Arena

In the UFO debate there are many shades of opinion,
from the ultra-liberal to the ultra-conservative, with
a graduation of opinion between these two extremes. As
is usual in a debate with high emotional content, and
on a subject with such profound implications, the most
vociferous are to be found at the extremes, with the
middle ground pleading for objectivity on the one hand
and open-mindedness on the other.
Diagrammatically, the position spectrum might be de-
picted as follows. The diagram indicates the names of
the principal spokesmen for the respective positions.
There is no absolute line of demarcation between the con-
tiguous positions of the believers. However, there are
in each group certain rather clearly identifiable central
traits which do not appear as major traits in the other
groups. These key characteristics have been used by the
author as the basis for the position spectrum.

9
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The Position Spectrum

--------------The Family of Believers--------------- Neutral Non-Beliver

Ultra group Ultra group Normal Converts
(Hostile) (benevolent) Believers

Barker,G. Adamsky,G. Aime', M. (USAF) - - - USAF - - - - USAF

Edwards,F. Bethurum,T. Girvan,W. Hynek,J. Fuller,J. Airman mag.

Kent,M. Fry,G. Hall,R. Ruppelt,E. Jung,C. Menzel,D.

Steiger,R. Leslie,D. Keyhoe,D. Look mag. Project
Blue Book
Williamson,G. Lorenzen,C. Quintanilla Tacker,L.

Skully,F. Simon,B. Von Braun,W.

Vallee,J. Sagan, C.

Young,M. Time mag.
University----University
of of
Colorado Colorado

Note: Dashes for USAF, Qunintanilla/Project Blue Book and University of
Colorado indicates that the position is either not clear or tends to
vacillate

10

<<< CUFON Note: original has dashed line between "Qunintanilla" and Project >>> <<< Blue Book. Original diagram is turned 90 degrees. >>>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Family of Believers

Although there are differences of opinion in some
areas, all groups in the family of believers have cer-
tain characteristics in common. Among these are:
- A belief in the existence of UFOs as extrater-
restrially originating space vehicles controlled by in-
telligent beings.
- Enthusiasm and active attempts through personal
contacts and published material to persuade the popu-
lace that UFOs do exist.
- A general contempt towards the investigative ef-
fort of the USAF and towards its official pronouncements
and findings. This contempt of the USAF effort is the
most important single unifying factor within the camp
of the believers and presents itself to the Air Force
As a common position.
The Ultra Group (Hostile). Although this group is
smaller than the group which believes that space visitors
are benevolent, the members of this group will neverthe-
less be heard. The literature of this group contains
claims of hostile actions by space beings. Hostility
in this context includes instances of death and injury
supposedly related to UFO appearances, abductions, the
appearance of monster-like beings, reconnaissance of

11
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defense installations, harassment of aircraft and auto-
mobiles, power blackouts, imminent invasion of the world
and other happenings which purportedly take place because
of the basic hostility of the space beings towards Man. [1]
It is this group which publishes the sensational, alarmist
material so often seen at the news stands. The emphasis
is on the threat to mankind. It is claimed that the space
beings have mastered space travel and are using this know-
ledge to menace the Earth. the inference is that the space
beings are sub-humans who are morally and spiritually de-
generate.
Usually the books of this group are of the paperback
type and deal with only one or two alleged incidents of
hostile action on the part of space beings. the writing
is usually not of the highest caliber, and the depth of
thought and of analysis leaves much to be desired. In
addition, care is usually taken by the authors to conceal
the identity of the person or persons involved. [2] This
prevents any reader from pursuing independent investiga-
tion. While this prevents a reader from confirming the
story, it likewise protects the author from exposure. Be-
cause of the sensationalism, the concealment of the identi-
ty of the principals involved, the shallow treatment of the
subject and the general alarmist approach, the credibili-
ty and qualifications of the authors is subject to question.

12
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- One suspects commercial motives in the bulk of this type
of literature
Nevertheless, one does find a few works which are
serious attempts to warn of the malevolent nature of at
least some of the space beings. [3] In any serious investi-
gation of a problem all factors and approaches should be
considered. For this reason, claims of hostile actions
must be considered and not rejected out of hand.
What are hostile actions/ For the purpose of this
paper, hostile actions are defined as actions which re-
sult in the death or injury of human beings and actions
which disrupt the normal flow of human activity in a
manner antagonistic to human interests. There are in
the literature many examples of hostile actions on the
part of space beings: death of two South AMerican tech-
nologists, [4] death of Capt. Mantell (USAF), [5] disappear-
ance of U.S. aircraft, [6] injury to a scout master in
Florida, [7] abduction of a South American farmer, [8] abduc-
tion of Mr. and Mrs. Barney Hill, [9] the appearance of a
monster-like being in Virginia, [10] reconnaissance of de-
fense installations, [11] harassment of aircraft and auto-
mobiles, [12] power blackouts [13] and actions which purported-
ly indicate preparations for an invasion of the Earth. [14]

13
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members of the group claiming hostility on the part
of space beings take the ominous approach. In addition
to citing examples of distasteful contact with space
beings, they also claim suppressive actions on the part
of mysterious representatives of space societies, and
even threatening visits by individuals who, in the opin-
ion of the visitee, represent such agencies as the CIA,
FBI and clandestine US government agencies. [15] It is
claimed that these visitors issue threats to UFO investi-
gators to terminate their investigations immediately.
It is claimed that the reason for such government interven-
tion is that the implications in the existence of extra-
terrestrial beings are so serious that the government
does not want their existence proved to the public. [16]
The subject of implications is treated in chapter IV of
this paper. Suffice it to say at this point that the
implications are serious enough that the rationale for
suppression is not altogether unreasonable.
Those who claim hostile intent share the burden of proof is
upon them. As with the other camps, the hostile group
has no convincing hardware-type evidence. The evidence

14
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is circumstantial. Conclusions are drawn from the frame
of reference of the observer. For example, if an indi-
vidual suffers temporary paralysis caused by some action
on the part of a space being, he, as a human being , may
consider this to be undesirable and a hostile act. This
is a subjective conclusion drawn from an act which in it-
self contains no malevolent or benevolent connotation.
In this example, consider that paralysis may likewise be
a beneficial condition to prevent death or injury to the
observer by keeping him a safe distance from harm. The
same rationale can be used for the death, injury, abduc-
tion and reconnaissance incidents cited in the literature.
these acts could be considered benevolent or neutral in
intent as well as malevolent. For this reason, the author
has found that hostile type literature is more interesting
from the standpoint of description of the incident than
from the conclusions drawn. The account of the abduction
of Mr. and Mrs. Barney Hill is one of the most compelling
report in the literature and is highly recommended to in-
terested readers. [17] While such an abduction would admit-
tedly be very unnerving to the abducted, the incident
caused no harm, if one can discount the possible long term
psychological effect of the experience on the Hills.

15
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In summary, the proponents of hostility tend towards
sensationalism, address only specific cases without re-
gard to the general context, are rather superficial in
their treatment, may conceal the identity od the prin-
cipals and draw conclusions concerning intent which do
not necessarily follow from the incidents. On the other
hand, some of the points made worthy of consideration,
especially those which relate to implications.

The Ultra Group (Benevolent). this group is charac-
terized by claims of periodic personal contact with saucer
beings, trips in flying saucers to other planets, tours
of exotic cities on other planets and discussions with
extraterrestrial beings concerning their way of life, at-
titudes, philosophies and reasons for contact with the
Earth. As a general rule, the extraterrestrial beings
described by this group are similar to Man in physical
characteristics, but of much higher order of intelli-
gence. The space beings are technologically, morally,
and spiritually for advanced and either directly or through
implication attempt to allow Man that he, too, can attain
this higher degree of development. The space beings are
benevolent and urge the spiritual approach to life. [18] They
have a fraternal attitude towards Man. Their visits to
Earth occur either as a part of programmed visits to

16
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- various parts of space for educational or recreational
purposes or specifically for the purpose of enlighten-
ing Man. In addition, there is some concern with Man's
experimentation with nuclear energy, since atmospheric
detonations modify the lines of magnetic force around
the Earth sufficiently to cause an imbalance of the mag-
netic relationships within the solar system. [19] this dis-
turbs the space beings for at least four reasons: They
use magnetic forces for power for their space ships; [20]
they use magnetic lines of force for navigation; [21] they
do not want to see the planet Earth significantly altered,
since this would cause an imbalance within the solar sys-
tem; and they feel that Man has within himself the poten-
tial for spiritual development, which would suffer re-
gression in the event of world nuclear suicide. [22] So,
the interest of the space beings in humanity is one of
self interest in addition to the more compelling desire
to see Man advance spiritually. It is claimed that through-
out the history of Man the space beings have taken an
interest in the spiritual development of Man. [23] Propo-
nents of the benevolent approach cite many cases of con-
tact between Man and the space beings throughout history.
Classic examples of such contacts, supposedly not proper-
ly recognized, are the miracle at Fatima [24] and Ezekiel and

17
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- the wheel. [25] The cloud by day and fire by night which
guided Moses on his journey out of Egypt is also claimed
to have been a space ship. [26]
the general approach of the benevolent space beings
is to discuss problems of humanity in very broad terms.
Concepts of love for fellow man, cooperation, pursuit
of things spiritual, a downgrading of material wealth....
all these topics are discussed by the space beings with
select Earth beings. The message is that Man's value
system is in error and that pursuit of his present way
of life is contrary to the universal plan nd prejudi-
cial to Man's further spiritual enlightenment. Mastery
od space travel, telepathic communication, reception and
display of images three-dimensionally and in color as
exact reproductions of the original, electromagnetic
transmission or power....all these technologies and abi-
lities are presented as only natural consequences of high-
er spiritual development. [27] It is pointed out that Man
does not yet recognize that relationship which exists be-
tween the spiritual and the material and therefore strug-
gles along in his feeble efforts to advance his technolo-
gy without truly understanding what he is doing. The
point is made that Man will continue to ponder the "whys"
in his scientific investigations until he has reached the

18
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- point in his spiritual development where he will be able
to comprehend the interrelationship between the spiritual
and the material, and be able to use this understanding
to further his interests, which he will recognize as spiri-
tual.
Although the emphasis is on the spiritual shortcomings
of Man, as a matter of course during these discussions the
Earth contactee is treated to tours of space vehicles and
contacts with space beings. [28] the space people are usual-
ly described as being similar to Man in stature, facial
features, skeletal structure, etc., but of superior intel-
ligence and ethical development....soft spoken, kind,
gentile, polite and with a radiance which comes from super-
ior spiritual development.
The most convincing writers in this group present
comprehensive, lucid, logical, literate writings in the
highest ethical tradition. Students of philosophy,
world religions, occult sciences and the Bible will find
that the purported statements if the space beings are in
consonance with the major religious beliefs of Man. Ac-
cording to authors of this group, the space beings have
long ago recognized the universal truths scattered through-
out all Earth religions and have been able to synthesize
these truths into an ethic which they live in their daily

19
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- lives. This recognition of and adherence to the Truth
gives the space beings individual powers which we consider
supernatural, but which they claim derive as a natural
result of spiritual development.
Here again, the evidence presented by this group is
not physical. That is, they do not present pieces of
apace ships or other tangible items. They ask us to be-
lieve their accounts on face value because the contacts
did in fact occur as written. In some cases the author
presents affidavits warranting the truth of the story or
has signed statements by the witnesses. [29] Affidavits not-
withstanding, many in contemporary society will find the
spiritual approach to be too rarified to accept and will
continue to insist on physical evidence as the only accept-
able scientific proof.

The Normal Believers. The author has included the
word "normal" in identifying this group because its member-
ship is composed of individuals who would be considered
rational human beings, as opposed to cult-oriented, by
the uninitiated. The Normal Believers are, nevertheless,
believers. As such, they still are targets for the non-
believers, but are not subjected to the intensely sarcas-
tic criticism reserved for the Ultra Believers. The Normal
Believers are convinced that UFOs exist and urge a serious,

20
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- methodical approach to investigating UFO incidents.
In addition, they feel that some attempt should be made
to understand the extraterrestrials: to try to determine
the reasons for their Earth visits.
This group takes an approach acceptable to modern
society. That is, their approach is pragmatic, practi-
cal and in consonance with the scientific method. It is
this group which shows an objective approach to the prob-
lem while at the same time vigorously urging a serious
investigation into the UFO phenomenon.
The emphasis in this group is on establishing for the
populace that UFOs do exist. the interest of this group
is in feasibility, technology and the establishment of
motive or intent. Their general approach is documentation
of sightings, description of incidents, establishment of
witness credibility and sincere requests for a thorough
and methodical investigation.
The National Investigations Committee on Aerial Pheno-
mena (NICAP) is the single best representative organization
for this group. It consists of respected and "normal"
members of society who are specialists in fields such as
the physical sciences, the humanities, psychology, etc.
In addition to members and consultants in the Washington,
D.C. area, the location of the home office, NICAP has

21
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- qualified regional representatives who are on call to
respond to reports of sightings in their respective
geographical areas. Reports of sightings are investi-
gated promptly and documented much in the same format
as is recommended by the Air Force. [30] The NICAP report,
"The UFO Evidence," is an excellent example of the object-
ive, thorough approach of NICAP. The report consists
of complete reports of sightings: diagrams of space ve-
hicles as sighted, statements on color, size, shape,
maneuvers, direction of movement, etc. Most impressive
are the paragraphs on witnesses. NICAP has collected
sightings from diverse individuals whose testimony can-
not be lightly dismissed. reports come from airline
pilots, technical people and a host of other men, women
and children, either as individual or group witnesses
to sightings. many sighting reports come from indivi-
duals who were skeptics prior to their personal involve-
ment in a sighting. NICAP is thoroughly convincing in
pointing out that UFO sightingg do not only come from
UFO cultists, but come from random sources and from people
of various educational levels and occupations. In one
section of the report there is a table showing compari-
sons of UFO shapes, size, color, maneuvers, etc. The
reader is immediately struck with the consistency in

22
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- characteristics which is apparent among re-
ported at different locations and at different periods
of time by different witnesses. However, these consis-
tencies are apparent not only within the NICAP report
but appear throughout the literature, whether the UFO
is supposedly benevolent, malevolent or neutral. (Ap-
pendix A to this paper describes those characteristics
of UFO sightings most commonly reported throughout the
literature.)
The Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (APRO)
is another organization which uses a "rational" approach,
but organizational discipline appears not to be as re-
fined as NICAP's. Hover, in addition to being rela-
tively objective, the APRO periodical publication enables
a reader to learn of recent sightings in the world short-
ly after they are reported to APRO. [31]
lest it be assumed that the Normal Believers are all
members of one or the other of the above cited organiza-
tions, the author offers the following examples of the
types of statements which come from independent techni-
cal people:

- Dr. Herman Oberth, noted German rocket expert:
These objects are conceived and directed by intel-
ligent beings of a very high order. They probably
do not originate in our solar system, perhaps not
even in our galaxy. [32]

23
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- Dr. James E. MacDonald, professor of meteorology at
the University of Arizona and senior physicist at the
Institute of Atmospheric Physics in Tucson:

(UFOs) are probably extraterrestrial vehicles
engaged in something of the nature of a recon-
naissance operation. (This conclusion is) the
least unsatisfactory hypothesis for accounting
for the fascinating array of UFO phenomena that
are now on record. [33]

- from the noted psychoanalyst, Dr. Carl Jung, after
he tried to explain UFOs as a psychic manifestation:

Unfortunately, however, there are good reasons
why the UFOs cannot be disposed of in this simple
manner. It remains an established fact, supported
by numerous observation, that UFOs have not only
been seen visually but have also been picked up
on the radar screen and have left traces on the
photographic plate. It boils down to nothing less
than this: that either psychic projections throw
back a radar echo, or else the appearance of real
objects affords an opportunity for mythological
projections. [34]

- Dr. Leo Sprinkle, professor of psychology at the
University of Wyoming, after having seen "something in
the sky, round and metallic looking:"

"...from a personal viewpoint, I am pretty well
convinced that we are being surveyed." [35]

Perhaps the key characteristic of the Normal Believers
is their belief that the whole issue of the existence of
UFOs is being suppressed by the Air Force. this allega-
tion is dealt with more fully in Chapter III. There are
various reasons given for this alleged suppression, but
the most popular are the impotence of NORAD against UFOs

24
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- and orders given to the Air Force to debunk UFOs to
prevent mass hysteria among the populace. [36] The Normal
Believers argue that to ignore a reality is to take an
ostrich-like approach to the problem, and furthermore,
the populace would be able to cope woth the realization
that UFOs exist without hysteria. It is claimed that
the Ir Force knows UFOs exist, protestations to the
contrary notwithstanding. SO, the Normal Believers
persist in their efforts to establish the existence of
UFOs. That a congressional hearing on UFOs took place
in 1966 largely because of the pressures of this group
attests to its influence. [37]

The Converts. Those who have been neutrals, skeptics
or outright non-believers but who have eventually sided
with the Believers have been placed in this category.
This group, although relatively small, contains indivi-
duals who speak persuasively, its members having been
at one time in the neutral or negative camp. In addi-
tion, the top level converts have been, or are present-
ly, officially connected with the U.S. Air Force inves-
tigation of UFOs.
The author places in this category Edward J. Ruppelt
(formerly Capt. Ruppelt, chief of Project Blue Book,
1951-1953), and Dr. J. Allen Hynek, (director of Dearborn

25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Observatory, director of the Lindheimer Astronomical
Research Center, Chairman of Department of Astronomy
at Northwestern University and consultant to the USAF on
the UFO problem since 1948.) ____ of the understandable
characteristics of this group is the tendency to issue
ambiguous or ambivalent public statements on the sub-
ject of UFOs which st__ _____ t the speaker to
maneuver in response to diverse external pressures.
Their official and public relationship to the Air Force
investigation most likely causes these investigators to
assume this relatively safe, non-commital, fence-sit-
ting position. However, the difference between the pub-
lic position and the private position can be rather easi-
ly detected by the serious researcher.
Let us look at a few of the statements of Captain
Ruppelt and Dr. Hynek as exemplifying this sometimes
subtle shift from non-belief or skepticism to belief.
Capt. Ruppelt (deceased) was the chief of the Air Force's
Project Blue Book, the project charged with the resonsi-
bility for investigating UFO reports, from 1951 until 1953.
During the course of his tenure in this position, he and
his staff studied over 4500 reports of UFOs. All reports
were subjected to military intelligence analysis proce-
dures. they were analyzed through consultations with

26
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- astronomers, physicists, aerodynamic engineers and
psychologists in the course of the Air Force investiga-
tions. [38] After his release from the Air Force, Captain
Ruppelt wrote a now famous book about these investiga-
tions entitled "The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects." [39]
The following statements by Capt. Ruppelt appear in
the Book.

I know the full story about flying saucers and
I know it has never before been told... [40]

Personally, I don't believe that "It can't be."
I wouldn't class myself as a "believer" exactly,
because I've seen too many UFO reports that first
appeared to be unexplainable fall to pieces when
they were thoroughly investigated. But every time
I begin to get skeptical I think of the other re-
ports, the many report made by experienced pilots
and radar operators, scientists, and other people
who knew what they are looking at. These reports
were thoroughly investigated and they are still
unknowns. Of these reports, the radar-visual
sightings are the most convincing. When a ground
radar picks up a UFO target and a ground obser-
ver sees a light where the radar target is loca-
ted, then a jet interceptor is scrambled at inter-
cept the UFO and the pilot also sees the light
and gets a radar lock on only to have the UFO
almost impudently outdistance him, there is no
simple answer. We have no aircraft on this earth
that can at will so handily outdistance our
latest jets. [41]

What constitutes proof? Does a UFO have to land
at the River Entrance to the Pentagon near the
Joint Chiefs of Staff offices? Or is it proof
when a ground radar station detects
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