Dan Sherman and the telepathy breeding claim
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🗓️ Event
Contents 9
| Claimant | Dan Sherman (born about 1964), former USAF ELINT specialist |
|---|---|
| Book | Above Black: Project Preserve Destiny (1997) |
| Claim | His mother was genetically altered before his birth so he could receive messages from the "Greys" |
| Told | 1992, by an unnamed captain at the NSA, Fort Meade |
| Claimed program history | Contact in 1947; "genetic management" from 1960; in-utero changes by 1963 |
| Role | "Intuitive communicator" |
| Status | Uncorroborated |
| Date | January 1963 |
| Topics | Beings & bodies (topic), Government programs (topic), Remote viewing & psi (topic) |
| People | Dan Sherman |
| Testimony | Shellenberger testimony, p. 66 |
| Year | 1963 in UFO history |
| Timeline | 1963 on the UAP Timeline |
| Sources | 11 |
The former Air Force electronic intelligence specialist Dan Sherman says in his 1997 book Above Black that he was told he had been bred for telepathic contact with aliens. In his account, his mother had been genetically altered before his birth so that he could receive messages from the "Greys".[1][3] He says the purpose was to create "intuitive communicators" for a program he calls Project Preserve Destiny.[1][4] Sherman is the only source for the claim, and no document or other participant has confirmed it.[1][2]
The claim
According to a summary of the book by the military writer Blake Stilwell, Sherman reported to the National Security Agency at Fort Meade, Maryland, in 1992 for an intermediate ELINT course. On his first day he was ordered to report for what he thought would be a quick introduction.[1] On Art Bell's Coast to Coast AM in November 1997, he said an unnamed captain took him through extra security into his office and told him he was part of a genetic experiment.[6] Sherman says he was told the following:[1][6]
- The United States first encountered the Greys in 1947.
- That contact led to a "genetic management" program starting in 1960.
- By 1963 the program was altering human DNA in the womb.
- His mother had been "visited" before he was born and genetically manipulated so that her child would be more receptive to the Greys' way of communicating.
The stated aim was a set of intuitive communicators who could provide a worldwide link if all electromagnetic communication failed.[6] In his 1997 interview with the Colorado Daily, Sherman described the purpose as surviving an impending electromagnetic pulse (EMP) event, which the aliens said would make electronic communication useless.[10] Elsewhere he said the goal was a link between human organizations "via the aliens", not a link with the aliens themselves.[11]
"Destiny"
Sherman says his mother had not been expected to be able to have children, and that he had not been expected to survive long as a baby.[1] People throughout his life had encouraged him toward the Air Force, which he came to see as part of a plan. "The Air Force had been waiting for Sherman his entire life", as Stilwell summarized it.[1] He said he was not "selected" for the program: "My abilities had been given to me before birth while in the womb."[11]
Training
After his regular NSA courses, Sherman says, he was taken in a blue Air Force van with blacked-out windows to an unknown location, given two pills, and taught to move waves on electronic screens with his mind.[1] On Coast to Coast AM he described a secret night school at the NSA. The terminal showed ten sine-wave boxes with tones in headphones. Trainees mentally "clicked" onto each tone and flattened its wave, then progressed to numbers, text and "video concepts".[6] He says that once proficient he was given orders as part of the program and no longer needed the pills.[1]
Criticism
In 1997 the former intelligence instructor Mark Louttit published a critique of Sherman's story. Sherman replied on the Area 51 mailing list, and Louttit answered him there.[11] Louttit raised several objections:[11]
- Career path. Why would a genetically engineered "empath" be allowed to enlist as a security policeman, a field requiring lower aptitude scores, instead of going straight into intelligence? Sherman replied that his abilities "could not be uncovered (as I was told) until my mid 20's", so "there was no rush", and that the program could have retrained him at any time.
- Recruitment. Why not recruit such people directly as civilians, as the CIA, FBI and NSA do?
- Security. Would an officer really escort a newly arrived airman, whose clearance had not been confirmed, into a secure facility? Sherman called this "VERY normal". Louttit said he could accept that point.
- Classification. Louttit doubted there could be programs "so highly classified that they are in effect not classified". Sherman had written that the program's "classification relies upon its invisibility within the system... It's above classified.... ABOVE BLACK."
Sherman's service
Sherman joined the Air Force in 1982 and served until 1994.[1][4] He told an interviewer in December 1997 that he was 33, placing his birth around 1964, the period when he says in-utero manipulation was under way.[4][6][10] His claims about Project Preserve Destiny cover roughly 1992 to 1994; some summaries give 1991 as the start, but the book places his briefing in 1992.[1][2] The book, about 147 pages, was self-published.[5][7][9][10] His story has drawn renewed attention since the 2020s, including on the podcast American Alchemy.[4][8]
Assessment
The 1963 date sometimes attached to this item reflects the claimed start of in-utero work, not anything Sherman witnessed.[6] Everything he knows of it he says he learned from one unnamed captain.[1][6] Sherman is the only source, and no document or other participant has confirmed the claim.[1][2]
People and topics
- U.S. Air Force — The U.S. military service that ran the official UFO projects from 1947 to 1969.
- Dan Sherman — Former Air Force sergeant who claimed in Above Black that he was trained to communicate with aliens.
- Above Black — Dan Sherman's 1997 book.
- Project Preserve Destiny — The alleged NSA program Dan Sherman says trained him to communicate with aliens.
- National Security Agency — The U.S. signals intelligence agency, which holds UFO-related intercepts.
- Grey alien — The popular image of a small being with a large head and dark eyes.
- Alien abduction — The claimed taking of people by non-human beings.
- Coast to Coast AM — The late-night radio show known for paranormal topics.
On the Timeline
- Arthur Sylvester's "right to lie" remarks (29 October 1962) — A Pentagon spokesman defends withholding information when it's in the public interest.
- Jerome Nelson's Atlas missile site sighting (Late 1963) — An Atlas missile launch officer's affidavit describes a glowing round UAP over his site in New Mexico.
See every 1963 event on the UAP Timeline →
References
- Blake Stilwell, "This airman claims his top secret official duty was to talk to aliens", We Are The Mighty (updated Apr 2021) · wearethemighty.com · archived copy
- Michael Salla, "NSA document supports whistleblower claim of alien UFO communication program", Exo News (Oct 2014) · exonews.org · archived copy
- This airman claims his secret duty was to talk to aliens — We Are The Mighty · wearethemighty.com · archived copy
- Dan Sherman collection — Anomaly Archives · anomalyarchives.org · archived copy
- Dan Sherman, Above Black: Project Preserve Destiny (1997) · barnesandnoble.com · archived copy
- Dan Sherman on Coast to Coast AM, Nov 1997 · artbellarchive-org.pages.dev · archived copy
- Above Black: Project Preserve Destiny (Dan Sherman) — Goodreads · goodreads.com · archived copy
- 'The NSA hired me to speak to aliens': Sgt. Dan Sherman — American Alchemy · podcastrex.com · archived copy
- amazon.com · amazon.com · archived copy
- David Kirby, "Dan Sherman interview and book review", Colorado Daily (18 Dec 1997), via Rense · rense.com
- Mark Louttit, "Louttit rebuttal to Sherman on PPD" (1 Dec 1997), Area 51 mailing list, Ufomind (archived) · web.archive.org
This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.
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