- Feb 5, 2002
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The Brief
- A 2024 Pentagon review found the U.S. military spread fake UFO stories to conceal Cold War weapons testing
- An Air Force colonel admitted planting false flying saucer photos near Area 51 to hide stealth jet development
- AARO investigators uncovered decades of military disinformation that fueled popular alien conspiracy theories
A newly revealed Department of Defense review shows that the U.S. military deliberately spread UFO rumors—including staged photos and false briefings—to protect classified weapons programs. The practice wasn’t just passive denial or silence. In some cases, it was policy.
One such incident, first uncovered by the Wall Street Journal, involves an Air Force colonel who, in the 1980s, handed fake photos of flying saucers to a bar owner near the top-secret Area 51 base in Nevada. The colonel, now retired, later admitted to investigators that he was acting under official orders to deflect attention away from the then-classified F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter.
How the Pentagon used UFO myths to hide secret projects
Continued below.
Pentagon planted UFO myths to hide secret weapons programs, report finds
A Department of Defense review reveals the U.S. military used fake UFO stories to hide top-secret weapons programs, including a deliberate hoax near Area 51 to protect stealth aircraft testing.