David Grusch Testimony: The Complete Congressional Record
David Charles Grusch is a former US Air Force officer, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency representative to the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, and National Reconnaissance Office senior intelligence officer. On July 26, 2023, he testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability’s National Security subcommittee — the first sitting intelligence official to testify under oath that the United States government has recovered non-human craft and biological material.
What Grusch Said Under Oath
Grusch’s congressional testimony covered several specific claims, each made under oath before the House subcommittee:
On recovered craft: Grusch testified that the US government, including defence contractors, has been in possession of “non-human” technology and “partially intact” vehicles for decades. He stated this was not opinion but intelligence he collected during his tenure at the UAP Task Force.
On biological material: Grusch testified that “non-human biologics” have been recovered from crash sites. When pressed, he stated he could not go into further detail in open session but had provided classified information to the Intelligence Community Inspector General.
On the ICIG: The Intelligence Community Inspector General reviewed Grusch’s complaints and determined them “credible and urgent” — the highest classification available under the Inspector General Act. This is a documented fact, not a disputed claim.
On retaliation: Grusch testified that he personally experienced retaliation from unnamed DoD officials for bringing his concerns forward, and that colleagues who attempted to go through proper channels faced similar treatment.
On deaths: When asked whether people had been harmed to protect UAP secrecy, Grusch answered “yes” — he was personally aware of people who had been harmed and directed committee members to a classified setting for details.
The ICIG Classification: What It Means
The phrase “credible and urgent” has a precise legal meaning under the Inspector General Act of 1978. It is not a general endorsement. It triggers a mandatory notification process to congressional intelligence committees. The ICIG’s determination means a senior inspector general reviewed the substance of Grusch’s claims and concluded they met the legal threshold for urgent whistleblower protection and congressional notification.
The DoD’s response — that it has found “no verifiable evidence” — does not contradict the ICIG finding. The ICIG finding is about the credibility of the source and the urgency of the matter, not about whether the claims have been independently verified by DoD.
Corroborating Testimony
Grusch did not testify alone. David Fravor, the F/A-18 Super Hornet pilot who led the 2004 Nimitz intercept, testified about his encounter with the Tic Tac object — a craft exhibiting flight characteristics no known aircraft could match, observed by multiple pilots, tracked on multiple radar systems, and captured on the famous FLIR1 footage the Pentagon later authenticated. Ryan Graves, a former Navy F/A-18 pilot, testified that UAP encounters were “not rare or isolated” during his service and that pilots systematically under-reported sightings due to stigma and career consequences.
What Happened After the Testimony
Following the July 2023 hearing, Congress passed the UAP Disclosure Act as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act 2024. The Act established a Review Board modelled on the JFK Assassination Records Review Board and mandated declassification of UAP-related records. The provision was significantly weakened before final passage but the Review Board mechanism survived.
In December 2023, the Senate passed additional UAP provisions in the NDAA 2024. In January 2024, President Biden signed the NDAA. The DoD subsequently claimed compliance while releasing minimal new information. Congressional investigators continued pressing for full disclosure with a hard deadline of April 27, 2026 for agencies to respond to briefing demands.
Sources: House Committee on Oversight and Accountability hearing transcript, July 26 2023 | ICIG notification letters | NDAA 2024 UAP provisions