Lyndon B Johnson

Interest in UFOs

As U.S. Senator

During his time in the U.S. Senate, Johnson publicly called for the establishment of a military subcommittee to report UFO sightings directly to him. He corresponded with ufologist Major Donald Keyhoe, thanking Keyhoe for providing documented evidence on UFO cases. This early interest suggests Johnson viewed the subject as a matter of national security rather than fringe speculation.

December 10, 1965 Meetings at Texas Residence

The day after the 1965 Kecksburg UFO Crash, President Johnson held extensive high-level meetings at his Texas residence. According to Johnson's schedule (compiled by researcher Grant Cameron), these meetings began at 9:50 AM — shortly after the president woke — and continued throughout the day. Attendees included:

• The Joint Chiefs of Staff:
  • Admiral Donald L. McDonald, Chief of Naval Operations
  • General Wallace M. Greene, Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps
  • General John P. McConnell, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff (who had succeeded Curtis LeMay in February 1965)
  • General Earl Wheeler, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • General Harold K. Johnson, U.S. Army Chief of Staff (commander of the Eighth Cavalry Regiment)
• Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara
• Deputy Secretary of Defense Cyrus Vance
• Special Assistant Joe Califano, a member of the Federal Radiation Council who had recently overseen responses to aerial collisions requiring Atomic Energy Commission involvement
• NASA Director James Webb
• Presidential Science Adviser Dr. Donald Hornig
• Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Dr. Glenn Seaborg
• Aide Bill Moyers

The first session ran from 10:10 AM to 12:51 PM and included the Joint Chiefs, McNamara, Vance, Califano, and Moyers. While no meeting agenda explicitly mentions Kecksburg, the roster of attendees — including the JCS, Defense leadership, NASA, the AEC chairman, and the presidential science adviser — is consistent with a briefing on a significant UAP event requiring coordinated military, scientific, and intelligence response.

Four days after the Kecksburg crash, on December 13, 1965, Califano held an off-record meeting with Buford Ellington, Director of the Office of Emergency Planning. The subject of this meeting is unknown.

Relationship with Dr. Eric A. Walker

Johnson maintained a close personal and professional relationship with Dr. Eric A. Walker, president of Penn State University and a figure repeatedly identified as central to U.S. UAP crash retrieval programs. Walker was the only university president invited to attend the signing of the Clean Air Act at the White House in 1967. The two exchanged multiple letters throughout Johnson's presidency.

In one letter dated May 18, 1966 — several months after the Kecksburg incident — Johnson profusely thanked Walker for his service on the National Science Board and the Defense Science Board, adding cryptically: "I should also like to thank you for the unstinting manner in which you served your government in other areas." Walker had confirmed to researchers that he attended the Kecksburg crash site with off-duty military personnel and a colleague from Penn State, though he refused to comment on whether the object was a UAP.

Other Connections

On July 9, 1947 — two days after the Roswell crash — James Webb, then Director of the Bureau of the Budget under President Truman, placed late-evening calls to Norris E. Dodd, Under Secretary of Agriculture. Whether these calls related to Roswell is unknown, but the parallel is notable: at Johnson's December 10, 1965 meetings, Webb (now NASA Director) was joined by Under Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman, raising questions about why agricultural officials would attend meetings with Defense, NASA, and Joint Chiefs leadership.

Legacy in UAP Disclosure

Johnson's documented interest in UFOs as a Senator, his meetings the day after Kecksburg, and his relationship with Dr. Eric A. Walker position him as a significant figure in the history of presidential involvement in the UAP phenomenon. Lou Elizondo named Johnson alongside Truman, Eisenhower, JFK, Carter, Reagan, H.W. Bush, and Trump as presidents who were briefed into the subject.

Sources

• Video - The 1965 Kecksburg, Pennsylvania UFO Crash
• Grant Cameron, Kecksburg case files and LBJ meeting schedules
• Lou Elizondo, Imminent (2024)