Documents / FOIA release
This Central Intelligence Agency memorandum to the Director of Central Intelligence, from H. Marshall Chadwell, Assistant Director for Scientific Intelligence, was prepared in September 1952. It reviews the Air Force study of flying saucer reports at the Air Technical Intelligence Center, which had received about 1,500 official reports since 1947. It finds that the sightings carry national security implications, both psychological and for air defense. It recommends action by the National Security Council, new research and a public information policy that would minimize the risk of panic.
Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.
(2) A study should be instituted to determine that, if any utilization could be made of these thenazona by United States psychiatric warfare planners, and that, if any, defense should be planned in anticipation of Soviet attempts to utilize them. (5) A national policy should be established as to what should be told the public regarding the phenomena, in order to minimize risk of panic. c. Intelligence problems include (1) The present level of Russian knowledge regarding theo phonema. (2) Possible Soviet intentions and capabilities to utilize these pressures to the detriment of US security interests. (3) ina reasons for silence in the Soviet Press regarding flying saucers. d. Intelligence responsibilities in this field as regards both collection and analysis can be discharged with maximum effectiveness only after much more is known regarding the exact nature of these phenomena. 0. The problem transcends the level of individual departmental responsibilities, and is of such importance as to merit cognisance and action by the National Security Council. f. Additional research, differing in character and emphasis from that presently being performed by Air force, will be required to meet the specific needs of both operations and intelligence. ## S. REGENERATIONS It is recommended that: a. The Director of Central Intelligence advise the National Security Council of the security implications inherent in the flying reactor problem with the request that, under his statutory coordinating authority, the Director of Central Intelligence be empowered to initiate through two appropriate agencies, either within or without the government, the investigation and research necessary to solve the problem of instant positive identification of "unidentified flying objects" 5. UK, under its assigned remorbidities, and in cooperation with the diplomatic strategy board, will切实 investigate possible offensive or defensive utilization of the phenomena for psychological warfare purposes both for and against the United States, admiring these agencies charged with U. internal security of any pertinent
FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. The text was read from the page images by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word. 6 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.