Expected 1974 disclosure rumor
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🗓️ Event
Contents 5

| Date | 1974 |
|---|---|
| Topics | Crashes & retrievals (topic), Beings & bodies (topic), Secrecy & cover-up (topic) |
| People | Leonard Stringfield, Gerald Ford |
| Testimony | Shellenberger testimony, p. 78 |
| Year | 1974 in UFO history |
| Timeline | 1974 on the UAP Timeline |
| Sources | 6 |
Expected 1974 disclosure rumor — A sergeant says a retired Army official told him crash and occupant information would soon be released.
In the mid-1970s, Leonard Stringfield heard from several sources, including an anonymous sergeant, that the U.S. government was about to announce that it had recovered crashed saucers and alien bodies. According to the sergeant, a retired Army official had told him the information would soon be released.
Some versions of the rumour said the announcement would come at the December 1974 meeting in Martinique between President Gerald Ford and French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. Earlier in 1974, French defence minister Robert Galley had given a well-publicized radio interview acknowledging that France was studying UFOs, which fuelled speculation.
No such announcement came. The White House pool report of the Ford–Giscard meeting, held at the Ford Library, makes no mention of UFOs. The episode is one of many predicted "disclosures" that failed to happen, and Stringfield himself described his disappointment.
In the testimony
The testimony cites: Retrievals of the Third Kind presented at MUFON 1978, Leon Stringfield, p153.
People and topics
- Leonard Stringfield — Former Air Force intelligence officer and NICAP researcher who collected anonymous crash-retrieval accounts from 1978 to 1994.
- Gerald Ford — U.S. congressman and later president who called for UFO hearings in 1966.
- Unidentified flying object — An object in the sky that can't be identified; the older term for UAP.
On the Timeline
- Barry Goldwater and the Wright-Patterson room (28 December 1973) — Sen. Barry Goldwater says he was refused access to a UAP 'room' at Wright-Patterson.
- Livermore scientists' paranormal experiences (1974) — Kit Green says he worked with scientists who reported orbs and entities in their homes.
See every 1974 event on the UAP Timeline →
References
- Leonard H. Stringfield — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- Leonard Stringfield's status report at the 1978 MUFON symposium — Podcast UFO · podcastufo.com · archived copy
- Retrobituaries: Leonard Stringfield — Mental Floss · mentalfloss.com · archived copy
- White House pool report on the Ford–Giscard meeting, 16 Dec 1974 (PDF) — Ford Library · fordlibrarymuseum.gov · archived copy
- Stringfield's 1978 report — Patrick Gross · ufology.patrickgross.org · archived copy
- UFO Crash Retrievals: Status Report I — Goodreads · goodreads.com · archived copy
Further reading
- J. Allen Hynek — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- Mutual UFO Network — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
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.
No discussion yet.