Leonard Stringfield

Key Contributions

Stringfield's status reports, published between 1978 and 1994, compiled testimony from military personnel, intelligence operatives, and civilian witnesses who claimed direct knowledge of crash recovery operations. Notable cases documented in his work include:

• The 1953 Camp Polk, Louisiana egg-shaped craft incident, in which witness HJ described an ovoid UFO with a rotating fin-like protrusion on its equator, live occupants led out by medics, and a corpse transported to a medical center near Washington, D.C.
• Documentation of "Blue Boys" — rapid retrieval and transport helicopter units allegedly dedicated to UFO crash recovery operations.
• Numerous cases of specialized military teams in hazmat or containment gear arriving at crash sites with remarkable speed, establishing the concept of rapid reaction recovery units in the crash retrieval literature.

Stringfield's methodology of collecting and preserving witness testimony — often from sources who insisted on anonymity — laid the groundwork for the systematic investigation of crash retrieval claims that researchers continue today.

The Blue Berets

Stringfield extensively documented an alleged elite rapid-reaction military unit known as the Blue Berets, described as a Special Forces team tasked with responding to UFO crash retrievals. According to Stringfield's sources, the Blue Berets:

• Were housed at select military bases in a state of constant readiness
• Could operate covertly using diversionary tactics to secure crash sites
• Were deployed to prevent public interference with recovery operations

Stringfield met a former member of this unit, referred to as "Cam," during a lecture at the University of Dade City, Florida. Cam discussed the unit's structure and operations, including deployments in Vietnam, and stated that while he had never participated in a UFO retrieval himself, he knew a fellow Blue Beret who had recovered a "big head" from an alien craft.

Between 1985 and 1987, a man named Jeff Morse contacted Stringfield claiming to be a former Blue Beret. Morse described an incident at Fort Maguire Air Force Base (likely Fort Dix-McGuire) in which a non-human entity was shot to death by U.S. forces.

Investigation of the Kecksburg Case

Stringfield worked closely with Pennsylvania researcher Stan Gordon on the 1965 Kecksburg UFO Crash, one of the most thoroughly documented alleged UAP retrieval cases. Stringfield interviewed key witnesses and analyzed evidence over more than a decade, featuring the case extensively in his UFO Crash Retrieval: The Inner Sanctum status reports.

Key Witness Interviews

Stringfield personally interviewed trucker "Myron," who claimed to have delivered radiation-shielding bricks to Wright-Patterson AFB days after the Kecksburg crash and to have glimpsed the bell-shaped craft inside a warehouse. The interview was conducted on videotape at Myron's home with the assistance of medical researcher Dr. Brian Thompson. After extensive questioning, Stringfield stated: "I feel convinced of Myron's sincerity."

Stringfield also interviewed Myron's cousin "JS," who corroborated the brick delivery and confirmed seeing the craft on a lowboy trailer the day before the joint delivery. Between March 30 and April 1, 1991, Stringfield conducted follow-up interviews with JS, who provided additional details but remained reluctant to discuss the case extensively due to family concerns.

Balanced Analysis and Disinformation Concerns

Stringfield maintained a balanced approach to the Kecksburg case, noting both supporting and contradictory testimony. In his 1993 Status Report 3: Amassing the Evidence, he discussed testimony from an insider known as "Uncle," who spoke to Stringfield through an intermediary. Uncle claimed:

• Kecksburg involved a crashed spy plane, not a UAP
• The Fort Riley and Johannesburg, South Africa crash cases were genuine
• Disinformation was a significant concern in UAP research

Stringfield did not dismiss Uncle's claims but continued investigating the Kecksburg case for well over a decade, suggesting he found the witness testimony and physical evidence compelling despite alternative explanations.

Collaboration with Stan Gordon

Stringfield and Gordon cross-referenced witness accounts, shared documentation, and worked together to establish the credibility of the Kecksburg narrative. Gordon's FOIA work and Stringfield's witness interviews formed a complementary investigative approach that produced one of the most thoroughly documented crash retrieval cases in UFO history.

Underground Base Cases

In addition to surface crash retrieval documentation, Stringfield compiled testimony relating to alleged underground UAP storage and research facilities:

• An anonymous letter received on February 12, 1974, described a secret underground complex below Gray Army Airfield and Fort Hood, Texas, allegedly shared with ICBM silos built into a small mountain. The witness described a squadron of unmarked helicopters codenamed the "Blue Boys" dispatched to UFO encounter sites, and an electronic warfare system designed to disable UFOs under "controlled conditions."
• A USAF Lieutenant Colonel in 1975 described an underground project at Fort Hood. A man from McGregor, Texas, recounted secondhand that his father had worked below Fort Hood on a UFO program, describing technology "unbelievable" in its nature.
• From the late 1970s through the 1980s, Stringfield received multiple reports of an underground facility beneath Wright-Patterson Air Force Base housing preserved non-human biologics. One source, designated "JK," claimed to have personally seen nine alien bodies in glass cases below Wright-Patterson in 1966.
• An anonymous US Airman stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base related stories of UFOs stored in the Manzano Mountain storage area.
• An anonymous letter dated March 14, 1975, relayed testimony from a "Lieutenant Colonel Sims" (pseudonym) describing underground installations with sophisticated computer equipment and squadrons of unmarked helicopters dispatched to areas of UFO activity — strikingly similar to the 1974 Fort Hood account.

These accounts collectively form one of the earliest documented bodies of testimony specifically linking DUMBs to UAP storage and research programs.

Edwards AFB Cases in Stringfield Files

Michael Schratt gained access to Stringfield's unpublished files in MUFON, Ohio, and published cases that had never appeared in the formal Crash Retrieval Status Reports. Among these was the account of a Class A witness — a pilot given permission to cut across Edwards Air Force Base in a security vehicle — who stopped at open hangars to ask for directions and observed a large disc-shaped craft with a clear transparent dome. The witness was immediately ordered to vacate the area; the incident allegedly took place in the 1960s. A separate case in the Stringfield files involved a source at Bell Labs in the early 1950s who observed a UAP retrieval craft being brought into a California airbase and was also shown a cutaway of the craft. These cases were cited by Mark McCandlish as corroboration for Brad Sorenson's account of ARV craft being housed near Edwards.

Kingman, Arizona Witness Contacts

In 1997, following a lecture at Lunken Airport in Cincinnati, Ohio, Stringfield was approached by a pilot who claimed to have been present at the 1953 Kingman, Arizona Crash Retrieval. The pilot independently described the recovered biologics in terms consistent with Arthur Stansel Jr.'s 1973 sworn affidavit: approximately 4 feet tall, large eyes, brown-skinned face, and silvery metallic suits. The pilot's identity was not published.

In 1994, a separate individual, codenamed JLD, made similar claims about the Kingman crash to Stringfield. JLD died shortly afterward, preventing further investigation or documentation.

Legacy

Leonard Stringfield's meticulous documentation of crash retrieval testimony created a foundation for the field that researchers continue to build upon. His work on the Kecksburg case, in particular, demonstrates his commitment to preserving witness accounts, cross-referencing testimony, and maintaining intellectual honesty even when confronted with contradictory information. His collaboration with Stan Gordon produced one of the most credible and thoroughly researched alleged UAP retrieval cases in history.

The RB Case

In UFO Crash/Retrieval Status Report 5, Stringfield published a brief account titled "Marine Guards a Disc-Shaped Vehicle, 1963," based on information provided by UFO researcher Michael Johnstone, who arranged contact between Stringfield and the anonymous source known as "RB." RB was a former Marine Corporal who claimed in December 1963 to have guarded a 40-foot disc-shaped craft of non-human origin at an undisclosed military base. Stringfield's notes preserved correspondence between himself and Johnstone documenting the full account. After Stringfield's death, Michael Schratt was granted access to these personal archives at MUFON in Cincinnati and published a more complete reconstruction of the case, interviewing Johnstone in 2015. Stringfield also compiled a series of letters from Senator Barry Goldwater regarding his attempts to access a classified UFO storage facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base — letters that contextually support the RB account.

Sources

• Video - The 1965 Kecksburg, Pennsylvania UFO Crash
• Video - Alien Reproduction Vehicle - TR-3B and the Flying Triangles
• Video - 1997 Peru UFO Crash Retrieval - the Story of Jonathan Weygandt
• Video - Alien Reproduction Vehicle - the Testimony of Mark McCandlish
• Video - Deep Underground Military Bases (D.U.M.Bs.) - UFO Legacy Programs
• Video - UFO Whistleblowers Vol.2
• Leonard Stringfield, UFO Crash Retrievals: The Inner Sanctum series