Page 49 - EM 1 Oct Nov 2019_june_july_2009_Neat

The Pentagon’s UFOs 49

The Pentagon’s UFOs

How a Multimedia
Entertainment Company created

a UFO news story

by Robert Sheaffer

On December 16, 2017, the New York Times
published “Glowing Auras and Black Money—
The Pentagon’s Mysterious U.F.O. Program,” a
now-famous article about the previously
unknown Pentagon UFO study program, as
reported by To The Stars Academy (TTSA). It
was founded by a rock musician named Tom
DeLonge, formerly of the band Blink-182, who
describes TTSA as an “independent multimedia surveillance equipment? consultant, wrote “Surprisingly, commercial
entertainment company.” This set off a media As for the so-called “Tic Tac” video of and military pilots appear to make relatively
UFO frenzy that still continues. 2004 (see image below), serious fault lines are poor witnesses” (The Hynek UFO Report,
To show how little TTSA’s people starting to appear in the differing accounts of 1977, p. 271). The pilot is, and must be,
understand about what they are doing, the so- various persons involved. David Fravor is the focused on keeping the aircraft safely aloft,
called “glowing auras” surrounding the objects pilot who was vectored to the supposed location and not on watching some strange-looking
in the widely circulated video shot by a military of the Tic Tac UFO but didn’t see anything in the object.
jet represent nothing more than a processing air at that location. Looking down, he saw a • The Pentagon did not “disclose” or “release”
artifact of the infrared image. But TTSA’s disturbance in the water, which he presumed anything about UFOs. This whole
“experts,” as well as those who look up to them, was caused by the object that apparently had just “disclosure” line came about from
don’t realize that obvious fact and think instead been airborne. Of course, it is a big assumption statements by TTSA’s Luis Elizondo and
that it represents something deeply mysterious. that the two must necessarily be the same. others, and not from any internal Pentagon
Most people didn’t notice that Leslie Fravor spoke at the recent UFO Fest in activity. The Defense Department’s
Kean, one of the authors of this piece, is a McMinnville, Oregon (held annually to honor Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification
dedicated UFO promoter who has written a the famous Trent UFO Photos, taken just outside Program (AATIP) came about because
popular UFO book. She is also very gullible, at that town). Reporter George Knapp and multimillionaire investor (and longtime
one point promoting a video of a fly buzzing documentary filmmaker Jeremy Corbell were UFO believer) Robert Bigelow, a frequent
around as if it were some great proof of high- also on the panel. Fravor sharply criticized the campaign contributor to Sen. Harry Reid,
performance UFOs. (And she still has not accounts of certain other people who were prevailed upon Reid, then the Democratic
admitted that she was fooled by the fly.) Another involved and have been speaking about the leader in the Senate, to set up the AATIP
author of the article, Ralph Blumenthal, has also incident. He seemed to be singling out the program. AATIP then funneled $22 million
been a UFO believer for years. So this was not account of the radar operator, Kevin Day, as in contracts to Bigelow’s company (because
the customary news article written by New York being non-factual. He dismissed claims of Air that’s how things are done in Washington).
Times journalists assigned to investigate a Force personnel coming on board the Nimitz The only thing that AATIP is known to have
mystery and write an objective story. Instead, it and confiscating evidence as being untrue. produced are 38 papers in weird physics, like
was crafted by UFO believers to appear neutral Fravor also referred to Dave Beaty’s “Nimitz anti-gravity, wormholes, and negative mass
and objective when it is anything but. UFO Encounters” documentary as a “cartoon.” propulsion.
Now the other shoe has dropped. On This prompted Knapp to say to Fravor, “I guess • TTSA has claimed from its inception that the
May 26, 2019 the New York Times carried you’re being diplomatic, but some of the stories Pentagon released the three blurry infrared
another article by Helene Cooper, Ralph and claims that have been made by people, who videos that they ceaselessly show us. They
Blumenthal and Leslie Kean—the same three may have been on those ships, are just bullshit.” claim to have “chain of custody”
authors as the earlier piece—headlined “Wow, When people began commenting about these documentation for the videos, but nobody
what is that?’ Navy Pilots Report Unexplained remarkable disagreements, Corbell pulled the has ever seen this documentation. Elizondo
Flying Objects.” They write: video off YouTube. recently released to George Knapp, a
The strange objects, one of them like a There was little that was new or reporter friendly to TTSA (and it seems to
spinning top moving against the wind, appeared unexpected in the long-anticipated May 31 anybody else making UFO claims) a copy of
almost daily from the summer of 2014 to March premiere of the series “Unidentified” on the a document purporting to show the videos’
2015, high in the skies over the East Coast. Navy History Channel. Produced by Tom DeLonge, release. But a careful analysis by John
pilots reported to their superiors that the objects whose efforts have more or less dominated UFO Greenewald of The Black Vault shows
had no visible engine or infrared exhaust news for the past two years, it repeated the same beyond any doubt that the document does
plumes, but that they could reach 30,000 feet claims that I and others have have already not prove what Elizondo claims it does.
and hypersonic speeds. “These things would be written about many times. Sandwiched between Greenewald notes,
out there all day,” said Lt. Ryan Graves, an F/A- episodes of “Ancient Aliens,” the first of six
18 Super Hornet pilot who has been with the episodes of “Unidentified” concentrated on the we have no proof of any [official Pentagon]
Navy for 10 years. “Tic Tac” UFO. Here are a few things about that release, let alone what is being touted [the
One seriously wonders why, if unknown episode that I found to be misleading or videos] is even the same evidence connected to
objects were supposedly seen “almost daily” for incorrect: this DD Form 1910. If we see a blatant disregard
nearly a year, and hung around “all day,” we • Much is made of the fact that reports were for the truth by Mr. Elizondo on display with this
don’t have overwhelming video, photographic, generated by highly trained military pilots, DD Form 1910, and we see the same disregard
and instrumental evidence of them, removing all some with combat experience. The for the truth by To The Stars Academy as they
doubt about their appearance and behavior? In implication is that their observations are far have touted documents proving a public
reality, all we see are the same three blurry more credible than those of just ordinary release—how can we believe everything or
infrared videos promoted by TTSA, over and folks. But longtime UFO researchers recall anything else from the same sources
over again. This makes no sense at all. Doesn’t that Dr. J. Allen Hynek, the former U. S. Air
the Navy have any cameras, radar and other Force Project Blue Book scientific (Continued on Page 50)