Thank you, Mr.Chairman. Mr. Graves, you reported UAP encounters during training flights, I think, and have since come forward to warn the Pentagon that these encounters may be putting pilots at risk. My first question is, you've identified these as taking place on the East Coast. Is it just on the East Coast where these encounters have been reported?
No. Since the events initially occurred, I've learned that the objects have been detected essentially where all operations, navy operations, are being conducted across the world. And that's from the Altima Anomaly Resolutions office reporting.
Can you describe your experience after you decided to come forward and go public with your experience?
Certainly, like many others in 2017, I saw The New York Times article come out as well. And for me, it was special because I recognized the voices on the video. I recognized the video itself. I had seen it when it was taken. I'd seen it when it was debriefed. And so that was kind of shook me because I realized that this problem was still ongoing. And so I reached out to colleagues back on the East Coast and realized that this was still a safety risk that they were dealing with, that they had essentially hit a wall with how they could move forward on this conversation. It was at that point when I decided to try to move the conversation forward myself.
Are there common characteristics to the UAPs that have been cited by different pilots? And can you describe what the convergence of descriptions is?
Certainly we were primarily seeing dark gray or black cubes inside of a clear sphere...
I'm sorry? Dark gray or black cubes?
Yes, inside of a clear sphere where the apex or tips of the cube were touching the inside of that sphere. And that was primarily what was being reported when we were able to gain a visual tally of these objects that occurred over almost eight years. And as. Far as I know, it's still occurring.
So I take it that you're arguing what we need is real transparency in a reporting system so we can get some clarity on what's going on out there, because there are many pilots in your situation, but we should have a way of developing a systematic inventory of all of such encounters, is that right?
Yes. And I think we need both transparency and the reporting. We have the reporting, but we need to make sure that information can be promulgated to commercial aviation as well as the rest of the populace.
Mr. Grusch. What about you? What was your experience after you came forward?
Well, it's only been about two months or so, so I guess my experience has been overwhelming support from former colleagues of mine that have privately messaged me. And I do appreciate that. But I do have knowledge of active, planned reprisal activity against myself and other colleagues. And it's very upsetting to me
Coming from where?
Certain senior leadership at previous agencies I was associated with. And that's all I'll say publicly, but I can provide more details in a closed environment.
Okay, well, I hope you understand that there would be bipartisan rejection of any attempt to vilify, demonize or engage in other reprisals against our witnesses and people who are telling the truth from their perspective.
Yeah, there were certain colleagues of mine that were brutally administratively attacked, and it actually makes me very upset as a leader, to see that happen to other coworkers and actually superiors of mine over the last three years.
How do you account for that response? That seems like a bizarre response.
I call it administrative terrorism. That's their quiver, their tool in the toolbox to silence people, especially the career government service cares about their career, cares about their clearance, their reputation to climb the ladder. And when you threaten that flow career path, a lot of people back off. But I'm here to represent those people.
Mr. Fravor. What about you? What has your experience been since you've come forward with your perspective on this?
Actually, I've been treated very well, and the six people that were involved, myself included, all of them have or will be retiring from the military as five s or six s. And all my friends that are very senior, three and four stars, I've talked to them. They believe they understand there's a problem. But no, I was actually treated really well.
And what is your general interpretation of these phenomena? What is your current thinking of trying to make sense of them?
Well, I'll say I'm not like a UFO fanatic. It's not me. But I will tell you that what we saw with four sets of eyes over a five minute period, still there's nothing. We have nothing close to it. It was amazing to see. I told my budy I wanted to fly it, but it's just an incredible technology.
All right, Mr. Chairman, thank you very much, I'll yield back to you.