The Canadian government's interest in UAP between 2021 and 2024

The purpose of this article is to provide background information about the Canadian government's interest in, or lack of interest in the subject of UAP, between 2021 and 2024. 

 February 2021

 An 18 May 2022 article by CTV News, the news division of the CTV television network in Canada, reported that according to the office of Conservative MP Larry Maguire, both Maguire and another Conservative MP, had a 16 February 2021 briefing by Luis Elizondo.

Elizondo is quoted in that article as saying:

"Mr. Maguire is absolutely correct in his concern, because he knows that these reports do occur...I think the time has come for us to have an open and honest dialogue about this topic without fear of retribution, without stigma and associated taboo."

Briefing requested for the Canadian Minister of Defence 

May 2021

In a 10 May 2022 article by journalist Tristin Hopper, it was reported that relevant UAP documents had been obtained for CTV News, via the Access to Information Act, the Canadian equivalent of the US Freedom of Information Act. One of these documents was an email, dated 19 May 2021, from George Young, Chief of Staff for the then Minister of Defence, Harjit Sajjan, asking for the Minister to receive a briefing on UAP. In full, it read:

"Good afternoon,

I expect I am not alone in noting the recent increase in comment regarding Unidentified Flying Objects in the media internationally, particularly in the US. UFOs have been the focus of comment both in the Congress and in open media from former President Obama who has noted that he received briefings on UFOs. I also note in this article, for instance, that:

"A stipulation in the "committee comment" portion of the Intelligence Authorization Act for the 2021 fiscal year directed U.S. Intelligence agencies to hand over unclassified reports about Unidentified Aerial Phenomena to Congress by June of this year."

It should/could be expected that the imminent US release of information will prompt questions domestically and with Defence-related implications, more than likely given the nexus with DoD in the US for the upcoming report. 

U.S. Intelligence agencies are expected to deliver a report on "unidentified aerial phenomena" to Congress next month, sparking renewed interest and speculation into how the government has handled sightings of mysterious flying objects - and if there's any worldly explanation for them. The unclassified report, compiled by the director of national intelligence and the secretary of defense, aims to make public what the Pentagon knows about unidentified flying objects, and data analyzed from, such encounters. 

Anticipating this, I believe is is prudent to request a full briefing for Minister Sajjan from the Canadian perspective on this issue. That is to say, a report on any and all research that has been done by CAF/DND; any sightings that have been reported in recent years; any historical information that may be on file; interfaces with other governments on the issue, and any other related information that might be pertinent. In other words, use the broadest possible lens to inform us of any Canadian angle to the issue. We will need this done in a very timely fashion please, given the timeframe noted for the US release of the report."

A second email dated 20 May 2021, from Lt. Col Kris M Reeves, Senior Military Advisor to the Deputy Minister of National Defence tasked out the preparation of briefing material.

The briefing material was prepared, and a briefing was undertaken in June 2021, exact date unknown. The FOI material obtained, included five briefing slides, as follows:

October 2021

The 18 May 2022 article cited above, also noted that there had been two other briefings, this time by a U.S. based organization.  

1. A 20 October 2021 briefing for a Liberal member of Parliament, by members of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies. These members included Robert Powell, as well as Chris Mellon.

2. 28 January 2022. Presenters not stated.

Conservative MP Larry Maguire

A recent, 13 May 2022,  Op-ed piece was written by MP Larry Maguire, titled "UAPs are real, and Canada should take them seriously." The piece included the following:

"...it is time to demand action from our government departments. Moreover, it's time for them to engage with the scientific community in an open and transparent manner...Last year I met with Elizondo to learn more about UAP and to better understand the issue. While I did not get access to classified information, it was a good opportunity to ask some in-depth questions...Knowing all this, the two most logical questions we should be asking in Canada are: What information does the government of Canada possess, and what are they doing with it?" and:

"There is documented evidence outlining where DND reports their own internal UAP information, including to NORAD through the 1 Canadian Air Division in Winnipeg, Manitoba, or the 21 Aerospace Control and  Warning Squadron in North Bay, Ontario. This has never been brought to the attention of either Parliament or the Standing Committee on National Defence"

 The 18 May 2022 article added:

"Ontario NDP MP Matthew Green agrees, saying Canada has nothing to lose by investigating UAP. Green is quoted as saying:

"If the testimony coming out of the States provides the public with a glimpse into the seriousness in which they're taking it, then I think it would be well-advised for us to follow in the same pursuit...If they're having public hearings of this nature, I can only begin to imagine what they already privately know."

Chris Rutkowski

Twitter user Steve T.E. advised me that there was an earlier, 6 May 2022 version of the CTV report.  Canadian science writer and University of Manitoba communications professional Chris Rutkowski, is cited in this earlier article as providing "...material for the Minister's briefing as a 'civilian advisor' and that he last received official UFO data in early 2021."

A communication directly from Chris Rutkowski, to me, stated "One other thing: Maguire doesn't note that he was also briefed by a Canadian UAP researcher. The same one who was noted in the Sajjan briefing." This was, in fact, Rutkowski himself. Rutkowski also provided a link to a 21 May 2022 article on the Winnepegfreepress.com website titled "Disdain, Confusion around official's handling of UFO reports," reviewed by Rutkowski. It discusses the work of Canadian historian Matthew Hayes, who wrote a thesis on the topic. This work is now available as a book, published 15 May 2022, titled "Search for the Unknown: Canada's UFO Files and the Rise of Conspiracy Theory." 

Rutkowski also pointed out that he had been receiving, and publishing, government reports for decades, and that the briefing to the CDN defence minister made reference to him personally, with the unredacted version of the briefing slides even included a photograph of him.

Canadian Air Force intercept of unknowns 

In a 3 November 2022 Canadian TV news item, there was information given about Canadian Air Force jets launched to intercept unknowns. 

February 2022

In a 16 November Canadian TV news item, it was revealed that on 22 February 2022, "Members of the Pentagon's UFO task force briefed Canadian military officials."

The briefing was led by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence's National Intelligence Manager for Aviation; and was attended by ten Canadian defense officials, "...including personnel from the Royal Canadian Air Force and Canadian Forces Intelligence Command."

March 2022

On 2 March 2022, National Resources Canada (NRC) appeared before a meeting of the House of Commons Standing Committee on National Resources on the Supplementary Estimates. MP Larry Maguire asked a question on incident reporting of drone and UAP, in or near Canadian nuclear facilities.

NRC responded on 14 March 2022 to the Standing Committee on Natural Resources. This response was signed off by the Director General, Directorate of Security and Safeguards. The response was that the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC,) Canada's independent nuclear regulator, had advised "...there has been no reported drone intrusion or attempted intrusion at Canadian high-security nuclear facilities."

Further correspondence

Two letters dated 6 June 2022 are relevant to this matter. These are:

1. John Hannaford, Deputy Minister of Natural resources Canada, wrote to MP Maguire.

"I am writing in follow-up to my May 18, 2022, appearance before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources, where you raised security-related questions regarding the Government of Canada's position on drones and Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs) near North American nuclear facilities.

This is an important matter that my colleagues and I in the Natural Resources portfolio take very seriously. I would like to share with you some specific steps we have taken recently.

Beyond regular collaboration, in recent weeks the Department has liaised with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Transport Canada and Public Safety Canada on this issue. Natural Resources Canada and the CNSC are working to support Transport Canada in developing a strategy to address emerging drone security issues.

To date, there have been no reported or attempted drone incursions at Canadian high-security nuclear facilities. However, a request was made to fly a drone over a nuclear facility in early 2021, which the CSNC declined. 

Given the shared priority for nuclear safety and safety of nuclear facilities, and the growing interest in UAPs in both Canada and the United States, the CSNC is committed to raising the issue with its United States counterpart and sharing any related information going forward.

We have reached out to counterparts in the United States Department of Energy regarding the Office of the Director of National Intelligence's Preliminary Report on UAPs to learn more about its perspective in order to help inform analysis and action in Canada.

Finally, Natural Resources Canada has a long-established Energy and Utilities Sector Network that shares threat information between the Government of Canada and energy sector critical infrastructure operators. We will continue to use this to gather intelligence on emerging threats, including drones and UAPs.

Kathleen Heppell-Masys, Director General of the CSNC, will respond in a follow-up letter to the six specific questions you asked during my May appearance.

Thank you for your interest in this important safety and security issue."

2. Dr Kathleen Heppell-Masys, Director General, Directorate of Security and Safeguards, Canada Nuclear Safety Commission to Larry Maguire.

https://www.ourcommons.ca/content/Committee/441/RNNR/WebDoc/WD11637088/11637088/LetterDeputyMinisterJohnF.G.Hannaford-e.pdf

"It was a pleasure to meet with you on May 17th, 2022. The information you provided in your March 4th letter helped us further understand the context and nature of your interests, concerns, and questions regarding drones and unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) and I understand you raised a number of related issues the following day during a meeting of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources (RNNR.)

Before I turn to addressing your questions, I would like to clarify that the CNSC is Canada's independent nuclear regulator. The CSNC is a quasi-judicial administrative tribunal that reports in Parliament through the Minister of Natural Resources, and not to the Minister. As such, we will be able to to address your concerns and questions more expeditiously in the future if you contact us directly. As an open and transparent regulator, we welcome the opportunity to work with Parliamentarians to ensure their information needs are met.

As we discussed on May 17th, the CSNC's nuclear security requirements, including reporting requirements, encompass any nuclear security threats that involve an attempted or actual breach of security, or an attempted or actual act of sabotage, including credible threats made against a nuclear power plant. This would include events involving drones and unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP.) The Nuclear Safety and Control Act, Nuclear Security Regulations, associated regulatory documents and license conditions outline strong requirements on the part of licensees to ensure readiness to mitigate, deter, and respond to credible threats to regulated facilities.

The CNSC is taking steps to enquire with our licensees about any reported drones or UAP sightings and to confirm that nuclear safety was not put at risk from any related sightings. That includes a letter that I have sent to licensees for high-security nuclear sites.

We have also approached our Unites States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (US NRC) colleagues regarding the nature of their nuclear security requirements for drones and UAPs and potentially evolving requirements. We will discuss their approach further as it evolves. For now, existing nuclear security requirements in both countries are well-aligned.

You had three particular questions for follow-up after our May 17th meeting:

1. Understanding the spectrum of CNSC- regulated facilities; 

2. The length of time Canadian nuclear facilities retains security-related data, including video footage, and:

3. Confirming with CNSC licensees that no incidents with drones or UAPs have occurred at nuclear facilities since the March 2nd RNNR meeting.

On the first question. Canada has one of the most diverse nuclear sectors in the world. Regulated facilities include uranium mining, milling and refining; nuclear substances processing and end users; fuel production; nuclear power and nuclear research reactors, and waste management.

On the second question, High Security Site Licensees are required to retain all relevant security related records regarding security events for the duration of their operating licence. Unless there is an identified incident, data that are not related to specific events may be disposed of by these licensees as per their specific security program and management system program.

On the third question, the CNSC is not aware of any reported incidents of drones or UAPs near Canadian nuclear facilities. With a regulatory lens regarding nuclear security, we have taken steps to confirm with licencees that no such events have occurred.

You raised six related questions to Mr Hannaford, Deputy Minister of NRCan, at the May 18th meeting of RNNR. I would like to provide a response to five of the six questions. On the sixth question which pertains to the CNSC's receipt of your March 4th letter, I can confirm we have received your letter and have since discussed these issues with NRCan.

1. A lack of standardized reporting requirements for licensees to report on UAP or drones and no formal investigative guidelines to understand origin and/or intent; and

2. Your request to direct nuclear facility licensees to ask employees and security  officials to ensure all drone and UAP incidents are properly reported.

As discussed on May 17th, our regulatory framework is largely performance-based and not prescriptive in how licensees are to meet safety and security objectives and requirements. Licensees are required to report on credible threats. As mentioned above, I have sent a letter to licensees of high-security nuclear sites asking for relevant information. I will be pleased to update you with any related information received that I am able to share.

Licensees are required to prepare for and respond to any credible threats against their sites or facilities. In the case of nuclear security events, an investigation would typically be led by the police service of jurisdiction and would be supported by the CNSC.

3. Whether NRCan would support the Chief Scientist Advisor (CSA,) were the Government to direct that she lead a whole-of-government approach to standardize the collection of reports and analysis for unidentified drones and UAPs.

While this question was directed to NRCan, the CSNC as a technical and scientific organization would offer its full support to the CSA were she directed by government to undertake such an effort.

4. The willingness of the CNSC to begin a conversation with the US NRC on unidentified drones and UAPs.

As noted above, I have reached out to the US NRC and have concluded that our respective nuclear security reporting requirements are aligned. As noted above, we will discuss their approach further as it evolves.

5. Awareness by CNSC officials of UAP sightings near Canadian nuclear facilities.

The CNSC has not received any reports of drones or UAP sightings near any nuclear facilities. Since our conversation, we have also confirmed that neither drones nor UAPs have caused breaches to nuclear security, or been involved in attempts or actual acts of sabotage  to the nuclear security of nuclear facilities.

I would be pleased to provide you with the results of our Request for Information to licensees as mentioned earlier. Please feel free to contact the CNSC directly in the future on nuclear regulatory matters, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have further questions."

March 2023

An article in Canadian media reported that the Canadian government was launching an investigation into UAP. 

March 2023

On 13 May2023, a copy of a letter appeared on Twitter, on an account named "Cambria." The letter was dated 22 March 2023, and was from Canadian politician Larry Maguire, addressed to the Canadian Minister of National Defence. The appearance of the letter at this time went largely unremarked upon. The same letter then resurfaced and was discussed in Episode #22 of the Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp podcast "Weaponized." It gained massive exposure as a result of this podcast episode.

https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/larry-maguire(7251)

Text of letter

The full text of the letter read:

"22 March 2023

RE; Defence Research and Development Canada in possession of recovered UAP material.

Dear Minister Anand,

It has come to my attention through meetings with American officials that the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and Senate Committee on Armed Services have been undertaking in-camera hearings with government and military subject matter experts on the recovery and exploitation of physical material from Unidentified Aerial phenomena (UAP).

I am concerned that expected upcoming public announcements will be coordinated between AUKUS which could damage Canada's credibility with our allies and the Canadian public on the global stage. There is an opportunity to have a prepared communications plan in place by May 2023 to reduce this risk.

As Minister of National Defence, you may not be aware, Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) has participated in efforts to analyse UAP, which is publicly traceable to circa 1950. This recovered foreign material is studied through the Five Eyes Foreign Material Program (FMP) which, in Canada is sponsored by the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command linked with several intelligence sharing arrangements and treaties. I am writing to recommend you request a classified briefing, containing full sensitive and protected program information from your officials on the Government of Canada's historic and ongoing efforts on analyzing recovered UAP material. 

Canada's Chief Science Advisor has also launched the Sky Canada Project, which is investigating how the government of Canada manages UAP reports. They are in the process of identifying key Canadian stakeholder institutions. It is essential the Chief Science Advisor be given full access to defence programs and be briefed on the collaborative scientific research efforts with our allies.

It is imperative the Government of Canada have a communications plan to respond to these upcoming public revelations that will stem from these American FMPs. Not only are there national security and aviation safety concerns that need to be addressed, but there will also be a larger debate about why there is a lack of transparency and accountability regarding UAP programs and policy.

I also believe there must be Parliamentary oversight of efforts by government institutions, and responsible ministers should be fully briefed on this program, including releasable-to-the-public content that aligns with allied public disclosure. It is incumbent your department inform you of what collaborative efforts have occurred with our allies and the details of existing Agreements and Memorandum of Understanding that govern the program and may have been conducted through Global Affairs.

Canada's credibility with our allies and the Canadian public must transcend politics and I firmly believe we can work together in a bipartisan manner regardless of the classified details of specific FMPs, the public revelation by these subject matter experts who have testified before Congress present an opportunity for the Government of Canada to take a visible leadership role in confirming the existence of recovered material and balances our national security objectives.

I look forward to your response and if you seek any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Sincerely,

Larry Maguire, MP

Brand-on Souris.

CC:

Hon. Melanie Joly, PC, MP.

Hon. Omar Alghabra, DC, MP.

Assistant Deputy Minister (Science & Technology.)

Dr. Mona Nemer, Chief Science Advisor.

Major General Michael Wright, Commander of Canadian Forces Intelligence Command.

Canadian Forces Intelligence Command, Office for Release & Disclosure."

 The Canadian Government's response

In a 25 June 2023 article CBC News wrote in part:

"A spokesperson with National Defence Minister Anand's office said she is 'kept fully appraised of relevant incidents through established reporting protocols,' She received the letter and told Maguire in response that neither Defence Research and Development Canada nor the Canadian Forces Intelligence Committee are involved in any 'formal analyis of UAP,' according to a statement sent to CBC News on Monday. All efforts studying UAP at the federal level stopped in the 1960's, the spokesperson said.'

Toronto journalist Daniel Otis undertook his own enquires and on Twitter, published the full text of the government's reply:

"Minister Anand did receive Mr Maguire's letter and has replied to him.

In her reply minister Anand confirmed that neither Defence Research Development Canada (DRDC) nor Canadian Forces Intelligence Command (CFINTCOM) are involved in any type of formal analysis of UAP. In fact all efforts to study UAP ceased in the 1960's.

The Department of National Defence (DND) occasionally receives anecdotal reporting of unusual phenomenon, however, these are only investigated when cases are identified as potential threat incidents or events of distress. The Minister of National Defence is kept fully appraised of relevant incidents through established reporting protocols.

We will continue to work closely with our allies and domestic national authorities ensure the safety of Canadians. This collaboration includes providing updates requested by parliamentarians, for example, through Parliamentary committees. In addition, DND and the Canadian Armed Forces maintain lines of communication with NORAD and the United States Department of Defence, and routinely exchange information on a number of subjects as part of our long-standing cooperation."

Comments by me:

1. Much was made of the existence of this letter when it finally hit the news in June 2023. Highlights brought forward in numerous outlets included:

* DRDC involved in analysis of UAP material since circa 1950; implying, but not explicitly stating, that this was on-going.

* Maguire was expecting public announcements from AUKUS.

* There is a previously unknown to us, Five Eyes Foreign Material Program.

2. The Canadian Government's response was that neither DRDC nor CFINTCOM 'are involved in any type of formal analysis of UAP.' So, a denial of the two areas which Maguire thought were working on the issue. Note that this denial did not extend to the whole of the Canadian Government. There was no "No areas of the Canadian Government are currently, with the exception of the Chief Science Advisor, working on the subject of UAP"

3. The reference to "circa 1950" in Maguire's letter is probably concerning Project Magnet, which was an official Canadian "flying saucer" study established by Wilbert Brockhouse Smith, who was a senior radio engineer in Transport Canada. The project was active until 1954 and ran informally until 1962. Project Magnet ran in cooperation with the Defence Research Board and the National Research Council.

4. What did Maguire mean when he stated: "expected upcoming public announcements will be coordinated between AUKUS..."? As at 29 June 2023 no such public announcements have been made. 

5. What are Foreign Material programs? Here's a link to an excellent article on the FMP Exploitation Squadron of the USAF's National Air and Space Intelligence Center, which explains FMPs. This article defines foreign material to be such things as weapons systems, parts of aircraft or indeed whole aircraft, drones etc. We kow for example, that NASIC was legislated to receive UAP reports, but the question really is, does the FMP include the recovery and exploitation of UAP? We just don't know. Maguire states that there is a Five Eyes FMP, however, I have so far drawn a blank in trying to find out information about it.

5. Politician Larry Maguire is to be congratulated for raising the UAP subject with the Canadian government as a whole. However, is it possible that some of the information being fed to Maguire, is incorrect? In my opinion, a reference to something going on circa 1950 does not necessarily equate to an ongoing program.

May 2023 - Sky Canada's website

Sky Canada now has its own website.

July 2023

Toronto journalist Daniel Otis tweeted details of the Canadian government's response to two questions he posed to them. They were:

Q. Is any other part of the DND/CAF currently involved in formal analysis of UAP?

A. No.

Q. Did any past analysis or involvement pertain to recovered materials/objects, as Maguire alleges?

A. We can confirm that the Canadian Armed Forces/ Department of National Defence (as well as previous iterations) have never had any possession of any UAP materials. 

March 2024

The Canadian Chief Scientist provided an update on the Sky Canada Project. 

April 2024

The "Ottawa Citizen" carried an article by David Pugliese dated 16 April 2024, titled "Canada joins secret Pentagon meeting on UFOs. DND can't figure out who attended." 

It was previously acknowledged by the Canadian government that someone from the Royal Canadian Air Force had attended the May 2023 Five Eyes UAP briefing by the former Director of AARO, Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick. However, the "Ottawa Citizen" article said that Canada had no plans to attend additional meetings of UAP, nor were Canadian Forces working with the science advisor to the Canadian government on the Sky Canada project. 

Who actually attended on behalf of Canada remains a mystery. "A Canadian Forces intelligence Command officer confirmed his organization had not attended" 'We further confirmed with DRDC that they did not attend either..." DRDC stands for Defense Research and Deveopment Canada. 

May 2024

Canadian journalist Daniel Otis continues his pursuit of information on Canada's relationship with the USA, on the subject of UAP.

Update: 9 December 2024

MP Larry Maguire on 28 November 2024 asked a question in the Canadian parliament. 

Q-32272 — November 28, 2024 — Mr. Maguire (Brandon—Souris) — With regard to the government’s response to Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP): (a) how many UAP have the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) or the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) noted, tracked, or reported since January 1, 2023; (b) how many of the incidents in (a) elicited a military or similar response (e.g. a scramble); (c) how many cases since January 1, 2023, were not identified or found to be anomalous; (d) what are the details of all UAP cases since January 1, 2023, that resulted in a response or were not identified, including, for each, the (i) date, (ii) location, (iii) description; and (e) was there a follow-up investigation into the object shot down over the Yukon in February 2023, referred to by NORAD and the RCAF as “UAP 23”, and, if so, what were the findings of the investigation?

Update: 20 January 2025

As you can read above, Canadian Parliamentarian Larry Maguire has been diligently asking questions about UAP, for quite some time. Thanks to "X" user @steve_uap2020 I recently learned that Maguire met David Grusch on 31 May 2022.

 

AARO 2023-2025 - a chronology

 Establishment

In a blog article dated 27 July 2022, I reported on the establishment of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO.) Its director was named as Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick. The current article aims to provide an update on the work of AARO since its establishment, drawn from open sources.

12 January 2023

The Department of Defense announced that AARO Director Sean Kirkpatrick was to speak at the Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board , in Washington DC, on 12 January 2023. The title of his talk was "The Defense Department's UAP Mission & Civil Aviation." In the talk, Kirkpatrick spoke about "What is AARO?" and how the AARO Mission was applicable to the Transportation Research Board. To see his full presentation click here. 

19 January 2023

In a Tweet dated 19 January 2023, reporter Bryan Bender stated that:

"AARO is partnering with Enigma Labs to evaluate their application, data stream and filtering capabilities to determine the utility of its open source data to augment its collection efforts focused on national security areas only. Pentagon spokesperson Susan Gough tells me."

19 February 2023

Part of AARO's remit was to hear out the narrative and sighting experiences of individuals who wanted to convey UAP related information to AARO. In a 19 February 2023 article, U.S. researcher Robert Hastings advised that AARO had been in touch with him, regarding his collection of nuclear installation UAP events, and witnesses. As a result, a number of U.S. veterans, with accounts of incidents with UAP near military nuclear weapons facilities, had spoken to AARO.

Also, in February 2023, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Senator Marco Rubio led a group of 16  Senators who signed a letter to Kathleen H. Hicks, Deputy Secretary of Defense, and Stacey Dixon, Principle Deputy Director of National Intelligence.

Kathleen H. Hicks > U.S. Department of Defense > Biography

This letter included:

"...we respectfully request your assistance in securing the necessary funding and organizational support for AARO's success and longevity."

 The letter went on to speak of a "...serious funding gap.." It went on to remind the two addressees, that:

 "The FY23 Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA) requires that the Director of AARO report directly to the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence.."

which had not occurred as at the date of this letter. 

7 March 2023

Avi Loeb | Department of Astronomy (harvard.edu)

A draft, six page paper, coauthored by Dr. Kirkpatrick and the Galileo Project's Avi Loeb, titled "Physical Constraints on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena" was made available. Its abstract read:

"We derive physical constraints on interpretations of "highly maneuverable" Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) based on standard physics and known forms of matter and radiation. In particular, we show that the friction of UAP with the surrounding air or water is expected to generate a bright optical fireball, ionization shell and tail - implying radio signatures. The fireball luminosity scales with inferred distance to the 5th power. Radar cross-section scales similarly to meteor head echoes as the square of the effective radius of the sphere surrounding the object, while the radar cross-section of the resulting ionization tail scales linearly with the radius of the ionization cylinder. The lack of all these signatures could imply inaccurate distance measurements (and hence derived velocity) for single site sensors."

19 April 2023

Dr. Kirkpatrick was the sole presenter to the Senate Armed Services sub-committee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities. During this presentation his statement included:

"I want to underscore today that only a very small percentage of UAP reports display signatures that could reasonably be described as 'anomalous.' "

On the question of an extraterrestrial origin for some UAP, Kirkpatrick said:

"I should also state clearly for the record that in our research AARO has found no credible evidence thus far or extraterrestrial activity, off-world technology, or objects that defy the known laws of physics. In the event sufficient scientific data were ever obtained that a UAP encountered can only be explained by extraterrestrial origin, we are committed to working with our interagency partners at NASA to appropriately inform the US Government's leadership of its findings."

A video of the entire hearing is available click here.

May 2023

A vacancy notice for a Deputy Director of AARO recently appeared on an agency website. The direct link to this advert no longer works.

On 31 May 2023, NASA held a public meeting of its Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Independent Study Team. Dr. Kirkpatrick also made a presentation. In it he gave details of "UAP reporting trends" and provided examples of both identified and unknown UAP cases including some with video evidence. In closing he made several recommendations to NASA which included:

- Taking the lead on the evaluation of crowd sourced metadata from mobile phones

- Use of large-scale scientific instruments

- Use of Earth science satellites

- Reviewing archived data.

During the course of that public meeting Kirkpatrick stated that he had recently held a meeting with the "Five Eyes" partners (the USA, Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand) re UAP. The discussions included:

- What kind of analyses can they help us with?

- What kind of calibration can they help us with?

- Data sharing.

- What can we help them with?

- Kirkpatrick stated that those other countries would send their information and data to AARO to be integrated into the AARO processes. 

23 June 2023

A press release on the website of Senator Gillibrand advised that she had secured full funding for AARO in the Senate Armed Services Committee markup of the FY24 National Defense Authorization Act.

6 July 2023

The US Aerospace Corporation advised vacant positions in support of AARO. (Link not active.)

20 July 2023

In an article about a face-to-face interview with the U.S. ABC Network's, Devin Dwyer; Kirkpatrick is reported to have said that being caught off guard by intelligent or extraterrestrial technical surprise remained a top concern. Other points he made included:

- AARO had now received around 800 reports

- "We will follow the data"

- The vast majority of cases are readily explainable

- A small number of reports involved anomalies.

30 August 2023

The Defencescoop's Brandi Vincent reported , in an article dated 30 August 2023 that:

"Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks recently moved to personally oversee the Pentagon's UAP investigation formerly known as the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office....Hicks now holds regular meetings with AARO's inaugural director Sean Kirkpatrick who she has also repositioned to report directly to her...AARO is not yet at full operational capability and I look forward to AARO achieving that in fiscal year 2024."

31 August 2023

Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder at a press briefing on 31 August 2023 announced the launch of the AARO website which had been long promised.  The website sets out details of the AARO Mission and Vision; defines UAP as they see it; and has sections which include UAP reporting trends:

- Reported UAP altitudes

- Typically reported UAP characteristics

- Reported UAP morphology

- Reported UAP hotspots.

Under a heading of "Coming soon" is that:

"AARO will be accepting reports from current or former US government employees, service members, or contractors with direct knowledge of US government programs or activities related to UAP dating back to 1945."

Also "coming soon" will be "Current operational UAP reporting":

- For military personnel with the recent GENADMIN process titled "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Reporting and Material Disposition"

- For pilots, please report via the FAA.

Several UAP videos both identified, and unknown are available on the website. Following this, there is an "About us" section and "Additional information about AARO." As for reporting sightings from the general public the site states that "...we will advise when a reporting mechanism is available for others to use."

Interestingly, under "AARO Mission Overview" is a 12-slide presentation by AARO. Slide six includes a section headed "UAP object recovery" which states:

"Leads UAP recovery planning and execution, in close collaboration with AARO S & T Group.

Advises commands on the search and safe handling, storage, transport, and transfer of UAP objects and material, for AARO S&T exploitation."

 Slide eight includes "UAP Exploitation":

"Directs exploitation of recovered enigmatic technologies, leveraging cross-sector partnerships and the latest developments in theoretical and applied physics, engineering

Leads structured recording, synthesis and storage of signatures and material analyses for data consistency, across operational, analytic, and research partnerships."

31 October 2023

 1. AARO published its consolidated annual report. 

2. The US DOD issued a news release on 31 October 2023, announcing AARO's secure mechanism for authorized reporting of information about UAP programs, via the aaro.mil website. 

3. On 31 October 2023 AARO director Sean Kirkpatrick held a press briefing about UAP. Here is a transcript of that session.

4. On 31 October, the current Director of AARO, Sean Kirkpatrick held an off-camera media roundtable. Here is a link to the transcript of that session. The session described the new AARO reporting system which allows USG employees to confidentially report their knowledge of USG UAP related activities. 

8 November 2023

On 8 November 2023, the US Department of Defense announced the appointment of a Deputy Director, AARO. The appointee was Timothy A. Phillips. 

3. Also on 8 November 2023, The US Department of Defense announced the upcoming departure of the current AARO Director, Sean Kirkpatrick. 

2 December 2023

Three Case Resolution Reports were uploaded:

Middle East and Mediterranean Sea 2022 and 2023. 

South East Asia 2017.

Western United States. 2021.

8 March 2024

AARO advertised two positions titled Chief Science and Technology Officer. Duties:

Incumbents typical work assignments may include the following:

• AARO's Chief of Science & Technology (S&T) will provide oversight and direction to the S&T function of AARO. The Chief of S&T serves as the principal subject matter expert for the Director and Deputy Director of AARO.
• Fosters and cultivates strategic alliances and professional networks with interagency partners, government agencies, national laboratories, and universities/academia, to align and integrate the enterprise's array of S&T capabilities against Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) requirements.
• Provide direction and guidance to mission managers with regards to UAP efforts and liaises within AARO as well as external partners.
• Serve as the senior member of the S&T Team and demonstrate a level of managerial experience, including the ability to develop near and long-term strategies, set goals, establish metrics, and oversee projects and initiatives. Serve as a liaison to academia, and private industry to accomplish AARO's mission.

March 2024

The Geospatial Intelligence community's annual conference will be held in London this year on the 12-13 March 2024. Tim Phillips, listed on the DGI 2024 website as AARO's Director is scheduled to speak. 

8 March 2024

On 8 March 2024, Defense Scoop reporter Brandi Vincent reported on her attendance at an off-camera invite only media engagement with Tim Phillips, acting Director of AARO. It was revealed that AARO was developing and deploying a new surveillance system-called Gremlin. The media engagement was basically about the release of AARO's volume 1 of their report on US government engagement with UAP. The unclassified version of the AARO historical report may be read here. 

17 April 2024

It is being reported that AARO will be giving a briefing to some members of the US Congress between 1-3pm EST on 17 April 2024, in a SCIF. 

22 April 2024

The AARO website recently published information related to "Kona Blue" a program proposed for the Department of Homeland Security in 2011, which would have continued and extended the work of AAWSAP. It was never formally established and work on it wound up in December 2011. AARO itself provided details of how it had come to learn about Kona Blue. 

The current version of the website may be accessed here. 

Update: 1 May 2024

AARO published its case resolution for the 2023 Eglin Air Force Base case. 

Update:12 July 2024

AARO published the results of an analysis of a Magnesium alloy sample provided by TTSA.

Report and supplement:

Synopsis: Analysis of a Metallic Specimen (aaro.mil)

AARO's Supplement to Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Analysis of a Metallic Specimen

Updates: 26 August 2024

AARO gets a new Director - Dr. Jon T. Kosloski.

AARO advertises for a Deputy Chief of Staff.

Update: 14 November 2024

Brandi Vincent of Defensescoop reports on a media roundtable with Dr Jon T. Kosloski.

Update: 16 November 2024

The Fiscal Year 2024 AARO Consolidated annual report has just been released. 

Update: 17 November 2024

Dr. Jon T. Kosloski features at an AARO media roundtable.

Update: December 2024

AARO issued an information paper titled "Correlation of Starlink Satellite Flaring with UAP Observations."

Update: 9 December 2024

Brandi Vincent of Defensescoop reports on a classified AARO briefing for members of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.

Update: March 2025

AARO reveals its new Electronic FOIA reading room. 

Update: 19 March 2025

On 19 March 2025, AARO released its Case Resolution report on the 26 April 2013 Puerto Rico infrared video. "AARO assesses with high confidence that the objects did not exhibit anomalous behavior or transmedia capabilities. AARO assesses with moderate confidence that the objects were a pair of sky lanterns."

Update: 28 March 2025

"X" user D Dean Johnson posted a tweet re AARO and Michael Herrera, pointing out an error in the AARO Historical Report Part 1. 

Update: 4 April 2025

A 24 March 2025 article by Leonard David features an interview with Jon Kosloski, the current Director of AARO. 

Update: 28 April 2025

The Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies issued an announcement on the AARO findings on the Aguddilla video. 

Update: 30 April 2025

1. AARO released its case resolution report on the 2018 Mt Etna video.

2. AARO provided details of its findings in the 2017 Taqaddam Air Base "jellyfish" video. 

Update: 4 June 2025

AARO has added two more videos to its collection:

1. Middle East 2024 - 6 mins 42 secs showing an unresolved object.

2. Middle East 2024 - 1 min 36 secs showing what AARO, with a high degree of confidence regards as a "...consumer-grade reflective foil balloon."

The Australian Space Agency and UAP

Introduction

Of all the Australian government Departments and Agencies which might be expected to have an interest in UAP, the main ones in my opinion would be the Department of Defence (DOD), the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), and the Australian Space Agency (ASA). 

Department of Defence

In response to any queries about the subject of UAP, the DOD has for many years consistently stated:

"Defence does not have a protocol that covers recording and reporting of UFO sightings." (June 2019.)

"Defence does not have a protocol that covers recording or reporting of unidentified aerial phenomena..." (June 2019.)

The former Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Mel Hupfield said "...he had not seen any reports of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena or UAPs - in Australian airspace." (Oct 2021.)

An internal DOD briefing paper used at Senate Estimate Committee hearings included:

"...the United States nor any other nation or ally has requested or offered to collaborate on any UAP reporting or investigation." (Early 2022.)

The CSIRO

The CSIRO is Australia's national science agency. Included in a response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request in August 2022, was a statement by the CSIRO used to respond to queries about UAP. Dated June 2021, in part it read:

"We're expecting to receive media inquiries into whether CSIRO has been researching UAPs...CSIRO doesn't investigate or research UAPs...CSIRO won't be commenting on the release of the report (KB- ODNI June 2021 UAP report.)

ASA

So, neither the DOD nor CSIRO have any official interest in the reporting, recording or investigation or research into UAP. What about the ASA? 

On 27 August 2022 I wrote an article titled "Two Freedom of Information requests and the Australian Space Agency." In that piece I reported on the response by the ASA to two FOIA requests. One by an unnamed individual in April 2019, and one by another unnamed individual in September 2021. I also submitted my own FOIA request to the ASA in August 2022, which failed to locate any relevant documents.

On 25 February 2024 I submitted a new FOIA request to the ASA after reading the results of Defence FOI 386/23/24 which contained a copy of an email dated 16 October 2023, from the Defence Space Command to the Royal Australian Air Force Ministerial Liaison Office, which in part read:

"I'm seeking information regarding details pertaining to Unidentified Aerial Phenomena that was mentioned in a Senate Estimate by Air Force. I'm unsure of how long ago. The Australian Space Agency is requesting this information for a brief."

As I had never seen or heard of the ASA having a briefing document on UAP, I submitted my second FOIA request seeking a copy of said brief.

On 15 April 2024, I received a response from the ASA which included two versions of their briefing paper. The response was signed by Christopher DeLuis, Genral Manager, Office of the Space Regulator and dated 9 April 2024. FOIA request number LEX74644. Two individual documents were located, titled "Briefing EC23-002464-Unidentified Aerial Phenomena-23 October 2023" and "Briefing EC24-00131-Unidentified Aerial Phenomena-1 February 2024." 

Comments:

1."The Office of the Space Regulator is responsible for regulating and oversight of Australian space and high power rocket activities for safety, security and national interests."

2. The EC in the document names, indicates they were both prepared for ASA individuals attending the Australian Parliament's Senate Estimates Committe. Thanks to the work of Melbourne based researcher Grant Lavac, we already have copies of similar briefing papers prepared for individuals from the Department of Defence attending Senate Estimate Committee hearings. 

What do the ASA briefing papers tell us?

Both papers are very similar. Firstly, from EC23. 

Enrico Palermo

"Lead Enrico Palermo, Head of Agency.

"The Department has noted recent United States Congressional inquiry into Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs), also known as Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs.) The Department has no information on this, and any queries should be directed to representatives of the United States government."

"The Department also noted that NASA recently released the final report of its independent study into UAPs. The Department or the Agency did not contribute to the study. Any inquiries should be directed to NASA."

"The Agency does not monitor UAPs, or UFOs in Australia, nor seek to resolve these issues."

 "The Agency has no records relating to UAPs or UFOs in Australia - although we have received enquiries and FOI requests relating to such."

"Military reporting on UAPs and UFOs. Questions relating to military reporting of UAPs and UFOs are a matter for the Department of Defence."

From EC24.

"The Australian Space Agency (the Agency) does not monitor Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs), also known as Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), or seek to resolve these issues."

"The Agency has no records relating to UAPs or UFOs in Australia, nor does it support UAP research."

"The Agency has no information on the 2023 US Congressional hearings into UAPs and did not contribute to the 2023 NASA report on UAPs."

So, there you have the official positions of the Australian DOD, the CSIRO and the ASA.

Comments:

1. Despite saying that they have no interest in UAP, someone in the ASA had to make time to research the topic of UAP in preparing these briefs. The same within the DOD (Space Command?). 

2. As of April 2024, we still haven't located the individual from the Australian DOD who attended the May 2023 Five Eyes briefing on UAP, by former Director Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, of the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or what they did with the information that they received at said briefing. You would imagine that a report on the content of the briefing would have been reported back to the DOD in Australia. However, despite efforts to find out, Australian UAP researchers are none the wiser for certain, although a case can be made that it was an individual from the DOD's Defence Intelligence Organisation (DIO). Unfortunately for us, the DIO is one of several intelligence agencies exempt from the Australian FOIA.

3. If any reader has a suggestion as to any other area of the Australian government to look into, as regards UAP, I would be delighted to hear from you. 

U.K. Parliament and UAP

An interest by various Parliamentarians

In recent years, we have seen movement as regards individual Parliamentary member interest in UAP, in the U.S. Congress; the Australian Parliament; the Canadian Parliament, and most recently the European Parliament. The U.K. Parliament seems to have been the most reticent to have any individual member ask a question about UAP. However, thanks to the efforts of Twitter user @wow36932525 and John Priestland of @UNHidencharity, we are now aware of a short U.K. Parliamentary interaction mentioning UAP. 

U.K. House of Commons

The U.K. House of Commons' Science, Innovation and Technology Committee took oral evidence on 13 December 2023, when conducting their inquiry into the state of play with Astronomical research in the U.K.

The following is an extract of the relevant mention of UAP from the official transcript of the conversation. To watch a clip of the session video, click here. 

"Q76. Stephen Metcalfe: I am slightly loth to ask these questions, and I cannot even blame the Clerks for them. They are entirely my own invention. As has been mentioned, we are about to launch an inquiry into astronomy. At our briefing last week one of the questions was, “What is the purpose of astronomy?” and we were given some very excellent answers, but one of them was to look for the evidence of extraterrestrial life in any form. Let us not kid ourselves that we are looking for little green men, but it would fundamentally change our understanding of our place in the universe if we were to find evidence of life outside of earth. First, do the Government specifically fund the search for extraterrestrial life, or is it just through the general astronomy programme? Secondly, if life were found in whatever form, do Government have a plan about how that would be shared with the public? Does it just trickle out of the six o’clock news or is it on the risk register, for example?

Michelle Donelan: To the best of my knowledge, it is not on the risk register. The communication plan would depend on the exact specifics of the hypothetical that we are talking about and how it would play out and would also be a cross-Government undertaking with particular Cabinet Office involvement. 

Sarah Munby: We have a small effort within our space team looking at the question of how we would handle such an announcement. By the way, by far the most likely scenarios here are not ones that would feature on the risk register. They are the findings of what is likely to be relatively local, relatively unadvanced microbial life. It could actually be a really important catalysing moment for the UK science community. 

Q77 Stephen Metcalfe: You can see why I am loth to ask this question, because I can hear sniggering. We are looking for it. I just wondered how seriously that is taken. 

Michelle Donelan: It is taken appropriately seriously. 

Q78 Stephen Metcalfe: I will wait for the sniggers, but while we were in the United States, doing our AI inquiry, there were hearings taking place on the Hill about unidentified aerial phenomena. Do the Government have any views on those or did they look on with astonishment? Do they have Departments that look at these things as well? Are they thinking of having hearings on UFOs? 

Michelle Donelan: We are not planning on any hearings at the moment, but of course we work very closely with our allies on all these topics. We have a goal to be one of the most innovative space sectors in the world and our relationship with America on this agenda is incredibly important. 

Q79 Stephen Metcalfe: Were you surprised that they held those hearings? 

Michelle Donelan: I do not think I was surprised. I was intrigued. 

Stephen Metcalfe: Yes, we were all intrigued. Chair: It is interesting to know that, in terms of our preparedness, there is preparedness for a communication should such a discovery be made. This is fascinating."

Who was speaking?

Stephen Metcalfe

Stephen Metcalfe is a member of the House of Commons. The Chair for the whole session was Greg Clark, another member of the House of Commons. The Right Honourable Michelle Donelan, M.P. is the Secretary of State, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. Sarah Munby is the Permanent Secretary, Department of Science, Innovation and Technology.

I checked two more transcripts of the Committee's inquiry into Astronomy in the U.K., namely of oral testimony taken at meetings on 10 January 2024 and 13 March 2024, but found no further mention of UAP.

Acknowledgement: I wish to thank Jonathan Davies, from Wales, for research assistance with this article. 

European Parliament member and UAP

Five Eyes

Out of the Five Eyes partners, which consists of the U.S.A., the U.K., Canada, Australia and New Zealand; questions about UAP have been raised by members of the U.S. Congress, the Canadian Parliament and the Australian Parliament. Recently, parliamentary questions about UAP have extended to the European Parliament. The members of the European Parliament are directly elected by voters of all member states with regard to European Union law making.

European Parliament question E-002375/2023

Francisco Guerreiro - Brasil | MEP of the Greens/EFA

On 28 July 2023, European Parliamentary question E -002375/2023 was posed by Member Francisco Guerreiro. It was titled "European reports and protocols on unidentified anomalous phenomena." and read:

"On 26 July 2023 David Grusch, a former US Air Force intelligence officer, David Fravor, a former navy commander, and Ryan Graves, the executive director of Americans for Safe Aerospace, claimed in  a hearing of the national security subcommittee of the US House Committee on Oversight and Accountability that the US Government was concealing vital information about unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs), as well as a multi-decade secret programs to recover and reverse-engineer potential non-human technologies. These claims, by high-ranking US officials, have profound implications for governmental accountability and transparency, as well as for national and international security.

1, Does the Commission have any knowledge or documentation about UAPs that has been collected by Member States or EU agencies, such as the European Union Agency for the Space Program?

2. Does the European Defence Agency (EDA) have any reports about UAPs and does the EDA have internal protocols for receiving reports about UAPs from Member States in a transparent and accountable way?

3. With regard to civil aviation, does the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have any reports about USAPs and does the EASA have internal protocols for receiving reports about UAPs from pilots and radar operators in a transparent and accountable way?"

The answer 

The answer in writing, came dated 9 November 2023, from Mr. Breton on behalf of the European Commission.

"The European Space Program implements space activities in the fields such as Earth Observation, Satellite Navigation and Space Situational Awareness.

Th EU Space Programme is implemented in close cooperation with the EU Member States, the European Space Agency for the Space programme (EUSPA), the European Space Agency (ESA) and many other stakeholders.

Regulation (EU) 2021/696 which sets up the EU Space programme for 2021-2027 and EUSPA lays down the components and objectives of that programmer. Gathering knowledge or documentation about unidentified anomalous phenomena is however not one of these objectives. 

The European Defence Agency (EDA) does not hold any documents that would correspond to the topic of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs).

Given that EDA has never worked on UAP issues, it neither holds nor receives documents corresponding to the description given. Furthermore, EDA does not have specific protocols on this matter as it falls outside the remit of EDA's engagement with the Member States.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and EU civil aviation authorities may receive safety reports on unidentified airborne objects that may endanger civil aviation safety.

The collected safety occurrence reports are stored in a central repository and analysed for safety purposes only. Reporting storing and analysis of civil aviation occurrences are governed by Regulation (EU) No 376/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 April 2014 on the reporting, analysis and follow-up of occurrences in civil aviation."

European Parliament question E-000318/2024

On 31 January 2024, another question E-000318/2024, titled "UAP monitoring and reporting in the EU Space Law" was asked by Francisco Guerreiro. The question was:

"In September 2023, in her State of the Union address, President von dee Leyen set out the Commision's priorities for 2024. This included the intention to create an EU Space Law.

This important initiative 'envisages common EU rules addressing the safety, resilience and sustainability of space activities and operations' has, however, a gap that needs to be filled in the pillar of security. Specifically the EU currently lacks a harmonised and scientific system for the reporting of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).

This raises security concerns, which some other countries, notably he United States, have addressed. Considering this omission we would like to ask the Commission:

1. Why the preparatory work for the EU Space Law (EUSL) does not include a UAP monitoring and reporting system, given that UAP may pose a potential security threat, and such phenomena have been observed in space by trained personnel using precision instruments?

2. Whether it considers that UAP should be explicitly addressed in the space surveillance and tracking (SST) service, the SST research and development and the near-earth objects (NEO) service?

3. If the EUSL will envisage (in a similar way to NASA) an EU UAP Space Research program headed by a research director?"

As at 18 March 2024, there has not been a formal response.  

5 February 2024 

On 5 February 2024, Francisco Guerreiro spoke in the European Parliament during part of a full session "...dedicated to one-minute speeches on matters of public importance." A transcript reads:

"Thank you, Chair, dear Commissioner.

The European Commission is currently finalizing its upcoming proposal for an EU space law. This important initiative advises common rules to address safety, resilience, and sustainability of space activities and operations. However, in the security pillar there's a gap that needs to be filled. Currently, the EU doesn't have a harmonized scientific system to report unidentified anomalous phenomena. This topic that needs to be a serious issue needs to be addressed and is being dealt with the utmost importance in other countries. For example, in the United States, the data collection and analysis of UAP activities in space, civil and military locations is considered as a national security priority. This security concern also led to the creation of a space research program inside NASA. Therefore, it is fundamental that the EU Commission includes in the European Space Law a program to collect data on UAPs, as well as a scientific body to analyze these events in a transparent and public way. Thank you very much." Therefore, it is fundamental that the EU Commision includes in the European Space Law a program to collect data on UAPs, as well as a scientific body to analyze these events in a transparent and public way. Thank you very much." 

11 March 2024 Plenary session

During a Plenary session on 11 March 2024, Member Francisco Guerreiro criticized the recent US government All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) report on UAP. 

Also, on 11 March 2024 Francisco Guerreiro moved a motion for a resolution B9-0194/2024 titled "on updating the EU regulation on the reporting, analysis and follow-up of occurrences in civil aviation to include UAP reporting." The motion stated:

"Having regard to Rule 143 of its rules of Procedure,

A. whereas unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs) remain a stigmatised subject, which often inhibits methodical data collection and analysis by the scientific community;

B. whereas a significant number of UAP occurrences, including many first-hand sightings by airline pilots and their crews, remains unexplained or unreported;

C. whereas Regulation (EU) 376/2014 only allows aviation professionals to report on safety-related matters;

D. whereas bipartisan lawmakers in the United States have proposed new legislation (Bill HR6967, the Safe Airspace for Americans Act) to protect civilian pilots and aviation personnel who report UAP sightings;

1. Considers that the EU should propose guidelines for a common methodology for reporting and analysing UAP sightings, which could result in a harmonised EU database and repository and thus allow a technical exchange of information between Member States.

2. Calls on the Commission to propose updating the current legislation, namely Regulation (EU) 376/2014 to include a mechanism for consistent, transparent and stigma-free reporting and data analysis regarding UAPs in EU airspace, including where such occurrences do not pose any apparent and immediate safety risk to the aircraft concerned. "

Event being hosted 

On 15 March 2024, Francisco Guerreiro, on Twitter (X) announced that:

"Next Wednesday, 20 March, from 4pm to 6pm CET, I will be hosting an event on the need for a scientific assessment on reporting of UAPs in the European Union. "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: EU Airspace: Reporting and scientific assessment." Speakers will be Joachim Dekkers "Unidentified anomalous phenomena: an introduction." Edoardo Russo "Historical EU Context." Dr Beatriz Villarroel "Scientific perspective on UAP.' Ryan Graves "US government developments." Christiaan Van Heust "Expert testimonies."

Update: 24 March 2024

For a summary of the 20 March 2024 event, click here.