Your Need to Know

The RAND Corporation and UFOs – Your Need to Know

In this next part of our Your Need to Know series, Antonio Huneeus examines RAND Corporation’s UFO document titled “UFO’s: What to do?” The RAND Corp. was originally an outgrowth project of World War II called Project RAND. In May of 1948 it separated from the Douglas Aircraft Company and became its own independent, nonprofit organization.

George Kocher of the RAND Corporation published this document in November of 1968, a few months after the University of Colorado completed its Condon Report. The RAND Corp. document is broken into five different essays: Historical Aspects, Astronomical Aspects, The Character of Reports, Phenomenological Aspects, and How to Proceed and Why. These essays explore the types of reports and sightings, how they are categorized, and a list of hypotheses that exist surrounding the phenomenon. The document also provides an example of a detailed UFO report form developed by the University of Colorado’s study group.

Jason McClellan

Jason McClellan is a UFO journalist and the producer/co-host of the web series Spacing Out! He is also the web content manager and staff writer for OpenMinds.tv, and a co-organizer and technical producer of the International UFO Congress. As a founding member of Open Minds, Jason served as a writer and editor for the now defunct Open Minds magazine. He has appeared on Syfy, NatGeo, and, most recently, he co-starred on H2's Hangar 1: The UFO Files. ------ Follow Jason on Twitter @acecentric and subscribe to Jason's updates on Facebook.

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5 Comments

  1. Most people do not know that for many years and maybe even now, The CEO of The RAND corp. was the son of Ben Rich the man responsible for the Blackbird spy plane.

  2. I believe Michael Rich is currently the President of RAND having worked his way up the ladder over the years. I know in the late 1990s he was a V.P., responsible for research on defense and security. He frequented the Skunk Works newsgroup at that time, after his father, Ben, passed. His purpose seems to have been the legacy of his father in a book written by Janos. Members of the newsgroup eventually learned the newsgroup was heavily monitored and it was subsequently discontinued. Some of those posts are archived on the internet and can still be found. Also on the newsgroup at the time was Nick Cook. Interesting days then.

  3. fascinating. Ben Rich’s son the Ceo of Rand? You learn something every day!
    Interesting about Nick Cook too. Connections…..

  4. Talk to people that worked in NORAD Air Defense Radar Operations. I worked in it for about 4 years at Luke AFB, 26th Air Division/NORAD Region, from July 1976 thru April 1980.

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