Pentagon: Luis Elizondo joins AATIP program
In June 2008, Luis Elizondo began his role as a key figure in the Pentagon's AATIP, focusing on unidentified aerial threats reported by military personnel. The initiative operated informally without dedicated funding until his 2017 resignation.
Background
Background
In June 2008 Luis Elizondo took up his post as a director in the office for information sharing and foreign intelligence within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence. He acted as an adviser on counterintelligence and security in connection with the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP). This small team at the Pentagon was devoted to the analysis of unidentified flying objects reported by military pilots.
Program Structure
AATIP shared its name with a cover name for the Defense Intelligence Agency project AAWSAP, which ran from 2008 to 2010, and this has caused confusion. The group operated with the knowledge of superiors, but had no budget, no office, and no official name. Despite DoD statements, the programme did not end in 2012 — that date referred to AAWSAP.
Significance
The core members later formed the basis for the UAP Task Force created by Congress in 2020. Elizondo led it until his resignation in 2017 out of frustration at the lack of support. This marked a turning point in official UAP research, brought to light by media reporting.