UFOs and Defense: What Should We Prepare For?

Source file: 255_413270_ufos_and_defense.pdf Originating agency: NASA (Record Group 255) Date range: 1999 (published July 1999 in VSD magazine; submitted to NASA April 2001) Page count: 94 (all read) High-significance pages: 5–12 (introduction and testimony), 55–71 (Part 3: UFOs and Defense), 71–73 (conclusions and recommendations), 77–80 (Appendix 5: Roswell and information management), 81–86 (Appendix 7: psychological, sociological, and political aspects)

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Official Blurb (from war.gov)

This file contains an independent report on UFOs written by the French association COMETA (previously published in the French magazine VDS in 1999), which details the results of a study by the Institute of Higher Studies for National Defence (IHEDN). The file also includes a letter from Carol Rosin (Carol Rosin), in which she notes that she was spokesperson for Wernher von Braun (Wernher von Braun) during the last years of his life.

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Summary

The COMETA report ("Committee for In-Depth Studies") is an independent study written in 1999 by a private French association composed of retired generals, weapons engineers, police officers, scientists, and national-security specialists, the majority of them former graduates of the French Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defence (IHEDN). The report was placed in NASA file 255-413270 after Carol Rosin and John Schuessler submitted it directly to a senior NASA official on April 30, 2001. It stands as one of the most formally credentialed documents produced by any Western establishment that openly calls for taking the UFO phenomenon seriously and for considering its implications for national defense and foreign policy.

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Research Article

Introduction: An Unprecedented Document from French Generals

In 1999 a special issue of the French magazine VSD published a document that provoked wide reactions in defense and research communities around the world. The report, titled "UFOs and Defense: What Should We Prepare For?", was the product of a private committee called COMETA, convened by General Denis Letty, a second-division general of the French Air Force.

The report stands at the top of a short list of operational and policy documents in which senior establishment figures openly recognized the UFO phenomenon as a genuine strategic problem. General Bernard Norlain, former director of IHEDN, wrote in the foreword: "This is not merely an academic study. Concrete problems are raised that require action."

The report was submitted to NASA by Carol Rosin, who had served as Wernher von Braun's spokesperson during his final years, and by John Schuessler, actor and space researcher. In correspondence attached to the file, Rosin wrote to a senior NASA official that they were bringing "a package that will give you the idea," noting that it "will not cost you or NASA a cent." Also attached to the report is a statement of purpose from NARCAP (National Aviation Reporting Center on Anomalous Phenomena), articles by journalist Leslie Kean from the Boston Globe and the Providence Journal, and an AFP wire story about a Russian airport closed because of a UFO in June 2001.

Who Wrote the Report and When

The COMETA committee was formed in 1995 after General Letty approached IHEDN, and operated for approximately three years. Its members came from a wide spectrum of professions:

• Michel Algrin — Doctor of Political Science, attorney
• Pierre Bescond — General, weapons engineering
• Denis Blancher — Police chief, Ministry of the Interior
• Jean Dunglas — Doctor of Engineering
• Bruno Le Moine — Air Force general
• Francoise Lepine — Defense studies foundation
• Christian Marchal — Chief mining engineer, research director at ONERA
• Marc Merlo — Admiral
• Alain Orszag — Doctor of Physics, general, weapons engineering

The report carries a foreword by Professor Andre Lebeau, former chairman of the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES), and an opening statement by General Norlain. Published in July 1999, it was formally designated "non-governmental," yet its authors were senior establishment figures who retained deep ties to French defense leadership.

Part One: Facts and Testimony

French Pilot Testimony

The report opens with three direct testimonies from French pilots who appeared before the committee.

Mirage IV case — General Herve Giraud (March 7, 1977): At night, at 9,600 meters altitude and Mach 0.9, both pilot and navigator observed a luminous body approaching at great intensity from the "three o'clock" position. The object maneuvered around the Mirage on two separate passes. General Letty highlighted two critical facts: first, only a military combat aircraft could have performed such movements without appearing on ground radar; second, the speed was supersonic, yet no sonic boom was heard anywhere in the region.

Colonel Claude Bosc (March 3, 1976): As a student on a night training flight in a T-33, he saw a green sphere that within seconds filled the entire front of his cockpit, skirted his aircraft, and flew off. The sphere was one to two meters in diameter, had a comet-like tail, and a bright white center. Radar operators detected nothing.

Air France flight AF 3532 (January 28, 1994): Captain Jean-Charles Duboc, copilot Valerie Chauffour, and the chief officer, cruising at 11,900 meters en route from Nice to London, observed a large entity that first resembled an ascending aircraft at an angle, then took the shape of a rust-brown bell at least 250 meters across, before disappearing instantly. The CODA control center confirmed a 50-second radar track that crossed AF 3532's path at exactly the same time.

Aerial Cases Worldwide

Lakenheath, United Kingdom (August 13–14, 1956): USAF/RAF bases tracked unidentified objects moving east to west at 3,200–6,400 km/h. A Venom night-fighter dispatched to intercept achieved both visual and radar lock, whereupon the object began trailing the aircraft at a fixed distance. The pilot reported: "My weapons are locked on target." The Condon Committee (1969) concluded: "One of the most significant UFO incidents known today."

RB-47 aircraft, United States (July 17, 1957): An RB-47 bomber crew tracked a pulsed microwave signal from an unidentified object that followed them along an axis from Mississippi to Oklahoma. The object vanished from all radar screens simultaneously at 1140 Zulu.

Tehran, Iran (September 18–19, 1976): Two Iranian F-4s dispatched to intercept each attempted to fire a Sidewinder missile at the object. Every time a pilot tried to shoot, weapons systems, radio, and intercom went dead. The U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency summarized: "An outstanding report. This case meets all the criteria for a valid UFO investigation."

Russia (March 21, 1990): General of Aviation Igor Maltsev, commander of air-defense forces, published in Rabochaya Tribuna: "According to eyewitness accounts, the UFO is a disk 100–200 meters in diameter... The object rotated around its axis and performed 'S'-shaped maneuvers in both vertical and horizontal planes... The UFO's speed exceeded that of a modern combat aircraft by a factor of two or three... Ground equipment could not create such objects."

San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina (July 31, 1995): Aerolineas Argentinas flight AR 674 (Boeing 727) on approach to landing. As the city was blacked out from a power failure, a luminous object appeared on the right side of the aircraft and flew parallel to it. The object moved to the rear, halted, climbed vertically, paused again, then vanished toward the Chilean ridge. The control tower, passengers, crew of a second aircraft, and ground observers all witnessed the event.

Part Two: The Limits of Our Knowledge

French Research Organization: GEPAN and SEPRA

The report describes a unique French research body created in 1977 within CNES: GEPAN (Group for the Study of Unidentified Aerospace Phenomena), which became SEPRA in 1988. SEPRA operates through protocols with the National Gendarmerie, the Air Force, the Civil Aviation Authority, and other agencies for systematic data collection.

Since 1974, the Gendarmerie has validated more than 3,000 reports, each representing an average of three spontaneous witness accounts. Approximately 100 field investigations have been conducted. SEPRA classifies phenomena in four categories:

• Category A: Fully identified phenomenon
• Category B: Identifiable but not with complete certainty
• Category C: Unidentifiable due to insufficient data
• Category D: Unidentifiable despite the abundance and quality of data

Category D phenomena constitute 4–5% of cases and are termed "the most mysterious."

Close-Encounter Cases in France

Valensole, Provence (July 1, 1965): Maurice Masse went out to his lavender fields early in the morning. He saw a "dolphin"-shaped object (resembling a car) resting on six legs. Two small beings approached; one pointed a device at him and Masse was left completely paralyzed. The Gendarmerie and GEPAN found a depression and imprints in the field, and the lavender dried along the axis of the object's departure. Masse slept 12–15 hours per night for months afterward.

Trans-en-Provence (January 8, 1981): An egg-shaped metallic object landed on the lawn, remained for a few moments, and departed abruptly. Circular mechanical traces and a crown pattern were found. INRA plant analysis revealed changes in chlorophyll and amino acids that diminished with distance from the center of the mark. In the view of Professor Michel Bounias of INRA, "a powerful pulsed electromagnetic field in the high-frequency range (microwave)" was the most probable cause.

Part Three: UFOs and Defense — The Heart of the Report

Chapter 10: Strategic Planning

Here the most groundbreaking section of the report unfolds. The COMETA committee concludes that, if the extraterrestrial hypothesis were confirmed, there are four categories of nations:

a) Nations that have no knowledge of extraterrestrial phenomena b) Nations that have knowledge but lack the means to investigate c) Nations that have both knowledge and means d) Nations that have entered into contact with extraterrestrial civilizations

Six scenarios are presented under "What should we prepare for?":

1. Appearance of UFOs and an extraterrestrial desire to establish peaceful official contact
2. Accidental or deliberate discovery of a micro-base in France or Europe
3. Invasion (considered unlikely, since it could have been carried out before the nuclear age)
4. Targeted or massive strikes on strategic locations
5. Deliberate manipulation of information to destabilize nations
6. Electromagnetic experimentation on populations

Chapter 11: Aeronautical Implications

COMETA recommends training five categories of aeronautical personnel:

• Flight crews (military and civilian)
• Air traffic controllers
• Meteorologists
• CNES engineers
• Aviation-industry engineers

The report stipulates that all crews should be trained in defined reflex responses: "Observe, record, photograph, report, allow visitors to take the initiative of contact, and prevent premature publication."

Chapter 12: Scientific and Technical Implications

The report presents a detailed discussion of engineering questions.

Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) propulsion: The committee concludes that aerial propulsion without propellers or jet engines is possible in principle using MHD. "An MHD aircraft model is conceivable in the short term," though creating a vehicle with the same maneuverability as those described by witnesses seems plausible only several decades hence.

Vehicle engine shutdown: The committee explains that microwave radiation from unknown objects can create an electric field around a vehicle strong enough to short-circuit the ignition system.

Motor paralysis of witnesses: Reported paralysis affects voluntary movements only, not respiration, posture, or eye movements. "The paralysis can be attributed to microwaves acting remotely on specific parts of the human body."

Chapters 13–14: Political, Religious, and Media Implications

Chapter 13 offers a striking approach: the COMETA committee places itself in the position of extraterrestrials and analyzes four possible phases of approach to terrestrial civilization:

• Phase one: Remote monitoring (electronics, radio waves, quiet observation)
• Phase two: On-site sampling and covert appearances
• Phase three: Influence on local civilizations
• Phase four: Direct contact

The report notes that the discovery of extraterrestrials would affect religions and political institutions, but would not necessarily destroy religious belief: "God did not travel in a spaceship. Moreover, the great religions of the Earth do not condemn the idea of other inhabited worlds in the universe."

Recommendations and Conclusions

The Report's Conclusions

"The UFO problem cannot be dismissed by jokes and spontaneous quips... They prove the almost certain physical reality of entirely unknown flying objects with exceptional flight performance and silence, apparently operated by intelligent entities."

"A single hypothesis sufficiently takes into account the facts... It is the hypothesis of extraterrestrial visitors... it is loaded with significant consequences."

The Report's Six Recommendations

1. Inform political, military, and administrative decision-makers, and pilots, through all French training institutions
2. Increase the human and material resources of SEPRA
3. Make UFO identification an objective for military and civilian space-surveillance systems
4. Create a unit at the highest level of government to cooperate with SEPRA
5. Initiate diplomatic approaches to the United States, with European Union support, to demand cooperation and exert pressure
6. Consider, at the level of public authorities, the steps to be taken in the event of a spectacular and irrefutable UFO occurrence: an overt attempt to establish contact, a landing before many witnesses, or other substantial actions

The American Position according to COMETA

COMETA accuses the United States of sustained secrecy. The report cites military regulation AFR 200-2 and directive JANAP 146, which prohibit military personnel and civilians from disclosing UFO information, specifying penalties of up to ten years' imprisonment and a $10,000 fine. The report asserts that the United States has been engaged in "increasing concealment" of UFO data since 1953, seeking to preserve technological supremacy:

"So long as we do not know the extent of their knowledge... it is clear that the Pentagon has had, and probably still has, the greatest interest in concealing, as far as possible, all this research."

Significance

What Makes This Document Exceptional

COMETA stands apart from other government documents for several reasons.

First, it was written by individuals with genuine, verifiable government careers — not independent researchers. The generals, admirals, and weapons engineers who authored it had headed major governmental institutions.

Second, the report reaches an explicit scientific conclusion: "The hypothesis of extraterrestrial visitors is, so far, the best scientific hypothesis."

Third, the report goes beyond analysis and proposes a concrete action plan, including an approach to the European Union and diplomatic pressure on the United States.

Fourth, it openly states that other nations — especially the United States — may be concealing information from their allies.

Connection to the NASA Question

The inclusion of the COMETA document in NASA file 255 raises questions: why was it submitted to NASA specifically? Carol Rosin, thoroughly familiar with NASA's mechanisms after years working with von Braun, apparently saw NASA as a key actor that needed to receive the information. The report itself mentions NASA several times, including in connection with antimatter propulsion research and planetary studies.

John Schuessler, in a handwritten note he added for NASA, quoted the line from Hamlet: "There are more things twixt heaven and hell than are dreamed of in your philosophy, Horatio" — an opening that captures the spirit of the report exactly.

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Key People

• General Denis Letty — Chairman of COMETA, French Air Force general, second-division officer
• General Bernard Norlain — Former director of IHEDN, wrote the foreword
• Professor Andre Lebeau — Former chairman of CNES (the French equivalent of NASA)
• Michel Algrin — Doctor of Political Science, attorney, COMETA member
• Pierre Bescond — General, weapons engineering
• Jean-Jacques Velasco — Head of SEPRA at CNES
• Francoise Louange — CEO of Fleximage, expert in photographic analysis
• Jean-Charles Duboc — Air France captain, flight AF 3532
• General Herve Giraud — Mirage IV pilot, 1977 testimony
• Colonel Claude Bosc — T-33 pilot, 1976 testimony
• General Igor Maltsev — Commander of Russian air-defense forces, published testimony in 1990
• Carol Rosin — Former von Braun spokesperson, submitted the report to NASA
• John Schuessler — Actor and researcher, co-submitter with Rosin
• Colonel Philip Klass — Aviation Week journalist who attempted to minimize the cases

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Locations

• Lakenheath, England — USAF/RAF base, 1956 case
• Luxeuil, France — Mirage IV incident, 1977
• Tehran, Iran — F-4 incident, 1976
• Trans-en-Provence, France — Close encounter and landing, 1981
• Valensole, Provence — Encounter with entities, 1965
• Cussac, Cantal — Child witnesses, 1967
• San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina — Aerolineas incident, 1995
• Kapustin Yar, Russia — Missile base, UFO reconnaissance, 1989
• Pereslavl-Zalessky, Russia — Night incident with General Maltsev, 1990
• Antananarivo, Madagascar — Mass public sighting, 1954
• Taverny, France — CCOA center, manager of French aerial information
• Pocantico, New York — Scientific conference convened by Laurance Rockefeller in 1997

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Notable Quotes

"The accumulation of well-documented sightings made by credible witnesses forces us to consider from now on all of the hypotheses regarding the origin of unidentified flying objects, and the extraterrestrial hypothesis, in particular." — General Denis Letty, introduction

"The fact that radar and ground visual observations were made on its rapid acceleration and abrupt stop certainly lend credence to the report." — Lakenheath telex, page 16

"I am not a specialist in UFOs, and therefore I can only correlate the data and express my own supposition. According to the evidence of these eyewitnesses, the UFO is a disk with a diameter from 100 to 200 meters... The movement of the UFO was not accompanied by sound of any kind and was distinguished by its startling maneuverability. It seemed the UFOs were completely devoid of inertia. In other words, they had somehow 'come to terms' with gravity." — General of Aviation Igor Maltsev, commander of Russian air-defense forces, page 21

"A single hypothesis sufficiently takes into account the facts and, for the most part, only calls for present-day science. It is the hypothesis of extraterrestrial visitors... it is loaded with significant consequences." — COMETA conclusions, page 71

"If we persist in refusing to recognize the existence of the UFOs, we will end up, one fine day, by mistaking them for the guided missiles of an enemy - and the worst will be upon us." — General L.M. Chassin, NATO coordinator for Allied Air Forces, quoted page 82

"In our obsession with the antagonisms of the moment, we often forget how much unites all the members of humanity. Perhaps we need some outside, universal threat to make us recognize this common bond. I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world." — President Ronald Reagan, address to the 42nd UN General Assembly, September 21, 1987, page 85

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Written on the basis of a complete reading of all 94 pages of the document