The disclosure of UAP information to the US public and Congress has not been a continuous process — it has been a series of enforced concessions, each smaller than the one demanded, separated by decades of active suppression. Understanding where we are in May 2026 requires understanding the full arc of what has been released, what has been buried, and who forced each step.
1947-1969: The Containment Era
1947: Roswell recovery. MJ-12 established by Truman executive order September 24. Project Sign established to investigate the phenomenon publicly while classifying actual findings.
1948: Project Sign’s “Estimate of the Situation” — the classified assessment that UAPs were extraterrestrial — completed and suppressed by USAF Chief Vandenberg. Public version replaced by debunking framework.
1952: Eisenhower briefing document. Washington DC UFO wave generates mass public attention — leads to Robertson Panel.
1953: Robertson Panel (CIA). Recommends public debunking campaign. MJ-12 member Berkner sits on the panel — same people running the secret programme publicly advising dismissal.
1969: Project Blue Book closes. Official US government UAP investigation formally ended. Unofficial investigation continues under classification.
1994-2004: The FOIA Era
1994: GAO investigation of Roswell at request of NM Representative Steve Schiff. Air Force publishes “The Roswell Report” — attributing the debris to Project Mogul balloons. GAO finds destruction of Roswell-era records, calls it unusual. No explanation for who authorised the destruction.
1997: Air Force publishes “The Roswell Report: Case Closed” — attributing humanoid body accounts to crash test dummies. Crash test dummy programme did not begin until 1953 — six years after the 1947 incident. The timeline contradiction is explicit in the public record.
2007-2017: The AATIP/AAWSAP Era
2007: AAWSAP funded by DIA — $22 million, Bigelow/BAASS. Classified research into warp drive, wormholes, and UAP physics begins.
2012: AAWSAP ends. AATIP — its public-facing successor — continues under Elizondo.
2017: Elizondo resigns from AATIP and joins To The Stars Academy. New York Times publishes “Glowing Auras and Black Money” — the article that triggers the modern disclosure movement. Tic Tac, Gimbal, and Go Fast videos released. The US government formally acknowledges UAPs are real.
2020: Pentagon officially releases the three videos. Japan MoD issues UAP protocols for Self-Defence Force pilots.
2021-2026: The Congressional Era
2021: ODNI preliminary assessment released — 144 UAP reports, 143 unexplained, 1 attributed to US technology. Grusch begins providing classified testimony to congressional oversight committees.
2022: NDAA FY2023 — formal UAP legislation, AARO established, submerged objects included in definition, mandatory reporting enacted.
2023: Grusch public testimony before Congress, July 26 — describes active crash retrieval programme, non-human biologics, and illegal suppression. UAPDA introduced by Schumer/Rounds, weakened in conference by private contractor exemption.
2025-2026: Missing scientists investigation begins. 13 researchers dead or missing.
January 2026: Trump UAP executive order signed — phased disclosure with December 2026 deadline.
April 27, 2026: Congressional agency briefing deadline — missing scientists investigation.
May 8, 2026: 162 classified UAP files released — first tranche under Trump EO.
December 2026: Full programme disclosure deadline — active.
Sources: UAP Oracle Intelligence Dossier. Congressional record. New York Times reporting 2017. ODNI preliminary assessment 2021. Grusch testimony transcript July 2023. Trump EO documentation.