Documents / FOIA release

roswell

Office of the Secretary of Defense · 993 pages · text from the file's own layer

The Roswell Report: Fact versus Fiction in the New Mexico Desert was published in 1995 by Headquarters United States Air Force. It was written in response to Representative Steven H. Schiff's request and a General Accounting Office audit, and it contains Col. Richard L. Weaver's report and 1st Lt. James McAndrew's synopsis, along with attachments, appendices and photographs. The report says researchers found no evidence of an extraterrestrial craft or crew. It concludes that the 1947 debris came from a Project MOGUL balloon train.

  • p. 5 …possible without the expert assistance and outstanding cooperation of many persons and organizations. Appreciation is extended…
  • p. 18 …These were to continue the cooperative wartime relationship between civilian research institutions and the military, and…
  • p. 181 …have imagined a lot of things and cooperated more. MC: Well, that's what Doyle said…
  • p. 736 …Meisinger was interested 1 Sponsored by, and in cooperation with the Watson Labora~ tories of the…
  • p. 805 …Made arr- angements for cooperation with Evans in coming tests. Jan 4 Sat. At Oakhurst about…
  • p. 821 …ewer 6/16/47 Mr. r. Y. Cooper SpeCification ot Considering 959 lbittier .lYe. large balloon…
INTRODUCTION
Throughout the latter half of the twentieth century the subject of Unidentified Flying
Objects (UFOs) has evoked strong opinions and emotions. For some, the belief in or study
of UFOs has assumed the dimensions of a religious quest. Others remain nonbelievers or
at least skeptical of the existence of alien beings and elusive vehicles which never quite
seem to manifest themselves. Regardless of one's conviction, nowhere has the debate
about UFOs been more spirited than over the events that unfolded near the small New
Mexico city of Roswell in the summer of 1947. Popularly known as the Roswell Incident,
this event has become the most celebrated UFO encounter of all time and has stimulated
enthusiasts like none other. Numerous witnesses, including former military personnel and
respectable members of the local community, have come forward with tales of humanoid
beings, alien technologies, and government cover-ups that have caused even the most
skeptical observer to pause and take notice. Inevitably these stories coming from the
desert have spawned countless articles, books, films, and even museums claiming to have
proof that visitors had come from outer space.
In February 1994, the Air Force was informed that the General Accounting Office (GAO),
an investigative agency of Congress, planned a formal audit to ascertain "the facts
regarding the reported crash of an UFO in 1949 [1947] at Roswell, New Mexico." 1 This
task was delegated to numerous agencies, but the focus was on the U.S. Air Force, the
agency most often accused of hiding information and records on Roswell. The Presidential
Science Advisor had also expressed an interest in the investigation. Thereupon, the
Secretary of the Air Force directed that a complete records search identify, locate, and
examine any and all information available on this subject. From the outset there was no
predisposition to refute or overlook any information. Moreover, if any of the information
discovered was under security classification, it was to be declassified, and if active or
former Air Force officials had been sworn to a secrecy oath, they were to be freed from
it. In short, the objective was to tell the Congress, and the American people, everything
the Air Force knew about the Roswell claims.
Subsequently, researchers conducted an extensive search of Air Force archives, record
centers, and scientific facilities. Seeking information that might help to explain peculiar
tales of odd wreckage and alien bodies, the researchers reviewed a monumental number
1. Memo, Marcia J. Van Note, DOD/IG, for Distribution, subj: General Accounting Office (GAO)
Letter Dated February 9, 1944 ..., Feb 23, 1994.
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FOIA release, from the osd collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 993 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.