2022 House UAP hearing

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Contents 9
2022 House UAP hearing
Vice Admiral Thomas R. Wilson USN
Vice Admiral Thomas R. Wilson USN Photo: U.S. Navy · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons
Date17 May 2022
TopicsCrashes & retrievals (topic), Secrecy & cover-up (topic), Congress & law (topic)
PeopleMike Gallagher, Ronald Moultrie, Scott Bray
TestimonyShellenberger testimony, p. 206
Year2022 in UFO history
Timeline2022 on the UAP Timeline
Sources10

On 17 May 2022 the House Intelligence Committee's Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Counterintelligence and Counterproliferation, chaired by Representative André Carson of Indiana, held an open hearing on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), the first public congressional hearing on the subject in more than 50 years.[1][2]

Witnesses

Scott Bray (deputy director of naval intelligence) and Ronald Moultrie (Defense Department’s under secretary for intelligence) testify to House…
Scott Bray (deputy director of naval intelligence) and Ronald Moultrie (Defense Department’s under secretary for intelligence) testify to House… Photo: U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

The witnesses were Ronald Moultrie, Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security, and Scott Bray, Deputy Director of Naval Intelligence. The public session lasted under 90 minutes and was followed by a classified session in the afternoon.[1]

Opening

Defense Intelligence Agency Badge
Defense Intelligence Agency Badge Photo: Rgbrownii · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Carson argued that UAP could pose a national security threat and that stigma had hindered intelligence analysis. He criticised the Pentagon for not yet naming a director for its new Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group and pledged to bring it "out of the shadows".[1]

Testimony

Illustration of a jet meeting an unknown object
Illustration: a jet meeting an unknown object. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.
  • Bray said reports had grown to about 400 since the 2021 preliminary assessment, and that there had been at least 11 near misses but no collisions with U.S. aircraft.[1]
  • Bray said there was no organic or inorganic material or unexplained wreckage suggesting a non-terrestrial origin, and that no attempts at communication had occurred.[1]
  • Moultrie said most UAP could be identified through rigorous analysis, and called for cooperation with the FAA and other agencies.[1]
  • Bray showed new footage, including a 2021 Navy video of a spherical object passing a fighter's cockpit, and night-vision footage of triangular lights off the coast, which were described as probably drones.[1][3]

Questions

US Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI)
US Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) Photo: U.S. House Office of Photography · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Representative Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin asked about the "Admiral Wilson memo", disputed notes from 2002 describing a contractor-held program, and both officials said they were not familiar with it. He also asked about the 1967 Malmstrom missile incident, on which the officials said they had no information. Representative Rick Crawford raised concerns about Russian or Chinese hypersonic weapons.[1][3][4]

Reaction

Official portrait of Congressman Tim Burchett of Tennessee during the 119th Congress.
Official portrait of Congressman Tim Burchett of Tennessee during the 119th Congress. Photo: House Creative Services · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Representative Tim Burchett, who attended though not a committee member, criticised the Pentagon's lack of transparency. Skeptic Robert Sheaffer said the footage shown was unimpressive. The hearing was seen as a milestone, though many observers felt it raised more questions than it answered.[1][3]

People and topics

A UH-1N Huey helicopter prepares to land at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. A crew assigned to the 40th Helicopter Squadron from Malmstrom AFB…
A UH-1N Huey helicopter prepares to land at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. A crew assigned to the 40th Helicopter Squadron from Malmstrom AFB… Photo: U.S. Air Force photo · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

On the Timeline

Illustration of a military base at night
Illustration: a military base at night. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.

See every 2022 event on the UAP Timeline →

References

Further reading

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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