Secret Pentagon UAP investigation program (2007–2012)
Name widely used for a DIA-managed Pentagon UAP study (officially AAWSAP, 2009-2012), revealed in Dec. 2017; its funding, dates and leadership are disputed.
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What is Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP)?
AATIP is the name most often used for a Pentagon-funded effort to study unidentified aerial phenomena that was first publicly reported on December 16, 2017. The Defense Department said the program ended in 2012. Its 2024 historical review says the official program was the Defense Intelligence Agency's Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP), set up in 2009 with $22 million that Congress appropriated at Sen. Harry Reid's direction, and that 'AATIP' was never an official program. Former official Luis Elizondo has said he ran AATIP; the Pentagon has said he had no responsibilities for the program.
Key dates
- 2007 — According to The New York Times and The Washington Post, as summarized by NPR, the program began in some form in 2007. NPR
- 2009 — AARO says the Defense Intelligence Agency set up AAWSAP, also called AATIP, in 2009 with $22 million appropriated in the fiscal 2008 and 2010 defense appropriations acts, and hired a private contractor to run it. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
- 2009-06-24 — Sen. Harry Reid asked Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn to make the program a Special Access Program, and Lynn declined on the advice of then-Under Secretary James Clapper. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
- 2012 — A Pentagon spokesperson told Reuters the program ended in the 2012 timeframe because other, higher-priority issues merited funding. NBC News (Reuters)
- 2017-12-16 — The New York Times, Politico and The Washington Post revealed the program and said it had been run by Luis Elizondo, who resigned from the Defense Department in October 2017. NPR
- 2024-03-08 — AARO's historical report said AAWSAP/AATIP produced exploratory scientific papers that were never thoroughly peer reviewed, and that no other substantive UAP case work had been found. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
Last reviewed 2026-10-18. Statements are attributed to the linked sources; inclusion on this page does not imply wrongdoing.
Strongest Evidence
Harry Reid
Reid secured the initial $22 million in black budget funding for AATIP with support from Stevens and Inouye.
Project Blue Book
Blue Book was an early government UAP investigation program, preceding AATIP by decades. The gap between Blue Book's closure (1969) and AATIP's creation (2007) remains a period of disputed government UAP activity.
All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO)
AARO is the institutional successor to AATIP and the UAP Task Force, with broader mandate across all domains.
2004 USS Nimitz "Tic Tac" Encounter
AATIP investigated the 2004 USS Nimitz encounter as one of its primary cases.
Luis Elizondo
Elizondo says he led AATIP. In 2019 a Pentagon spokesperson said he had no AATIP responsibilities, and his role remains disputed.
Connections (6)
Reid secured the initial $22 million in black budget funding for AATIP with support from Stevens and Inouye.
Blue Book was an early government UAP investigation program, preceding AATIP by decades. The gap between Blue Book's closure (1969) and AATIP's creation (2007) remains a period of disputed government UAP activity.
AARO is the institutional successor to AATIP and the UAP Task Force, with broader mandate across all domains.
AATIP investigated the 2004 USS Nimitz encounter as one of its primary cases.
Elizondo says he led AATIP. In 2019 a Pentagon spokesperson said he had no AATIP responsibilities, and his role remains disputed.
AATIP funds were used to support research at Skinwalker Ranch through Bigelow Aerospace.
Frequently asked questions
How much money did AATIP get?+
The figure usually cited is $22 million, but sources describe it differently. AARO says Congress appropriated $22 million in the fiscal 2008 and 2010 defense appropriations acts for the DIA program, and NPR cited The Washington Post's figure of at least $22 million in total. A Reuters report carried by NBC News described the amount as about $22 million a year. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
Did Luis Elizondo run AATIP?+
Media reports in December 2017 described Elizondo as the program's director. In 2019 a Pentagon spokesperson told The Intercept that Elizondo had no responsibilities with regard to AATIP while he worked in the intelligence undersecretary's office, and said he could not confirm an earlier spokesperson's statement that Elizondo ran it. AARO later wrote that, after AAWSAP was cancelled, the AATIP name was used by an informal, unofficial group within the Defense Department that had no dedicated staff or budget. The Intercept
What is the difference between AATIP and AAWSAP?+
AARO says the official DIA-managed program was AAWSAP (2009-2012) and that the two names have been used interchangeably, including in official documents. According to AARO, AATIP was never an official Defense Department program. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
Did AATIP fund research at Skinwalker Ranch?+
AARO says the program's contractor investigated alleged UAP and paranormal activity at a Utah property then owned by the head of that contractor. AARO also says the DIA did not seek or specifically authorize that work. NPR, citing Politico, reported that Bigelow Aerospace received some of the research contracts and that Robert Bigelow had bought Skinwalker Ranch. All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, U.S. Department of Defense
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