Mysterious disappearance of UFO-linked Air Force general sparks search

[NorCal Dave]

Just out of curiosity, would you please include some link to that McCasland's statement about ZPE? Thanks!

This is the problem with UFO stories like this. Christopher Sharp and other UFO media people suggest McCasland's disappearance may have been somehow tied to something nefarious because the guys at TTSA suggested he may have known about alien technology form Roswell, like ZPE. When in fact nobody has produced anything yet indicating he did. Same as Sharp bringing up that the FBI and the local AFB involvement is "suspicious". It's not, it's common, but that doesn't make for a good story.

It's all inference, speculation, and hype, likely tied to DeLong's attempt to get TTSA up and running.

Which brings us to your other post:

I think it's worth highlighting the email from Wikileaks that allegedly involves McCasland in the early stages of TTSA:

Lot's of people were involved with TTSA at the beginning. Let's look at what the email actually says. First, it's from Tom DeLong to John Podesta in January of 2016:

From:t.delonge@me.com
To: john.podesta@gmail.com
Date: 2016-01-25 16:04

Subject: General McCasland

This is a year before DeLong, Puthoff and Jim Semivan founded To The Stars Academy (TTSA):

The company was founded in 2017 as a public benefit corporation by Jim Semivan, Harold E. Puthoff, and Tom DeLonge.[2]​[4]​ The Entertainment Division was created by acquiring DeLonge's previous media company, To the Stars, Inc.[4]​[5]​

In September 2017, the company began offering $50 million worth of public stock through a Regulation A+ equity crowdfunding campaign.[4]​[6]​

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_The_Stars_Inc.

It's certainly possible this email, and others, were attempts by DeLong to get more people involved in the project and McCasland or maby even Podesta, seemed to be a targets. But I think DeLong had a glaring problem in this the email as relates to McCasland's views:

He mentioned he's a "skeptic", he's not. I've been working with him for four months. I just got done giving him
a four hour presentation on the entire project a few weeks ago.

Trust me, the advice is already been happening on how to do all this. He just has to say that out loud, but he
is very, very aware- as he was in charge of all of the stuff.

When Roswell crashed, they shipped it to the
laboratory at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. General McCasland was in charge of that exact laboratory up to a
couple years ago.
He not only knows what I'm trying to achieve, he helped assemble my advisory team. He's a very important man.
Best,
Tom DeLonge
TOM DELONGE FOUNDER
TOM@TOTHESTARSINC.COM | (760) 518-7801 | TO THE STARS MEDIA
SAN DIEGO
1053 S Coast Hwy 101 Encinitas, CA 92024

This not McCasland, it's DeLong talking and it's all filtered through DeLong at the time he was trying to put TTSA together. He states about McCasland, "He mentioned he's a "skeptic". So, McCasland had apparently said he was a skeptic either to Podesta or publicly. It's DeLong that says he's not a skeptic, not McCasland himself.

DeLong is trying to convince Podesta that McCasland's likely public mention of his skepticism, is not true. DeLong is insinuating that McCasland is a believer and onboard with the plans for TTSA.

Again, DeLong was trying to set up TTSA at this time and a lot of people showed some interest, at first, but I've yet to see anything indicating McCasland ever had much to do with TTSA. He may have met with DeLong a few times, but it doesn't appear he was involved beyond that.

He's a retired General with some apparent health issues that has gone missing. All this UFO nonsense is hyped up by UFOlogist that believe an alien flying saucer crashed at Roswell, was taken to WPAFB and 60 some year later, McCasland headed the AFRL at WPAFB that still had the crashed UFO. Having established, at least for UFO people, that McCasland knows all about this flying saucer and the alien technology associated with it, they now suggest his life is endangered, possibly by someone like the MiBs.

Even if his disappearance was tied to his knowledge of UFOs and alien technology, why wait till now? Why have him disappear when he's living a quiet retired life with some serious health issues? Why didn't the MiBs go after him when he was supposedly running his mouth about secret alien stuff to DeLong?

 

[deirdre]

Just out of curiosity, would you please include some link to that McCasland's statement about ZPE? Thanks!

it seems to be DeLonge's statement. this is about Ross Coultharts book:

Article:

A punk rocker called DeLonge who claims that one his tracks was "about aliens that come to Earth and 'fly up your butt. And it's true'" gets several chapters. "The idea that a punk-pop rock star could achieve what decades of UAP conspiracy whistleblowers have tried to do and failed – forcing the whole purported US government UAP conspiracy out into the open – is surely ridiculous." It may be, but the author is still enthralled by it. "DeLonge also claimed the US already knew the secrets of free energy, so-called zero-point energy. 'One inch of air could power the US for hundreds of years,'" (Ch 16)

Source: https://davesbookblog-daja.blogspot.com/2022/06/in-plain-sight-by-ross-coulthart.html

this site says DeLonge said it on a podcast

Article:

DeLonge later suggested on a podcast[/B] that he was being guided by McCasland and others in a slow disclosure effort regarding unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP).

He also claimed that government or contractor groups possessed advanced "free energy" or zero-point energy technology, stating:

"One inch of air could power the U.S. for hundreds of years."

Source: https://slaynews.com/news/former-head-military-base-linked-ufo-rumors-missing/[B

this site page 151 says the quote was on joe rogan experience ( i cut off beginning of quote because its on a prior page and i cant screenshot both pages at once.. it is the quote though

october 26, 2017

add: oops forgot to post the link https://studylib.net/doc/26311151/abductions-by-country?p=150

 

[Ann K]

I admit that deeply cynical thoughts follow here. But if anyone has a serious professional position in his earlier career yet switches to UFOlogy later in life, my first thoughts are to ask if his cognitive functions are in decline. The same goes for those who become obsessed with conspiracy theories. A person's mind at forty is sharper ( or more focused on reality) than that same mind in old age.
(Edited to correct! Yes, I got that backwards. Mea culpa.)

Yes, I realize that the General was not excessively old, but having lived with a husband who was a scientific professional, then exhibited his dementia in his early sixties, I know very well that there's no set age for cognitive decline.

 

[deirdre]

A person's mind at forty is not necessarily as sharp (or as focused on reality) as that same mind in old age

wouldnt this be backwards for McCasland?

But if anyone has a serious professional position in his earlier career yet switches to UFOlogy later in life, my first thoughts are to ask if his cognitive functions are in decline.

i have the same thoughts about people who dont switch to "conservative" later in life.

 

[Todd Feinman]

There was good old Roscoe Hillenkoeter.
"Roscoe Henry Hillenkoetter (May 8, 1897 – June 18, 1982) was the third director of the post–World War II United States Central Intelligence Group (CIG), the third Director of Central Intelligence (DCI), and the first director of the Central Intelligence Agency created by the National Security Act of 1947. He served as DCI and director of the CIG and the CIA from May 1, 1947, to October 7, 1950, and, after his retirement from the United States Navy, was a member of the board of governors of National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) from 1957 to 1962."

Wikipedia link

UFO-related shocking statements from him (A-Z Quotes)

 

[Todd Feinman]

Nathan Twining?

 

[Mendel]

If Sharp's claim is (roughly) correct, he might be referring to Kirtland Air Force Base to the southeast of Albuquerque.

Kirtland AFB is probably providing Search And Rescue services.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/512th_Rescue_Squadron

The 512th Rescue Squadron is part of the 58th Special Operations Wing based at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico.

https://www.kirtland.af.mil/News/Tag/887/search-and-rescue/

June 29, 2023
58 Special Operations Wing at Kirtland assists Colorado authorities missing hiker search

Helicopters with IR and trained operators are invaluable when searching for missing, possibly immobilized persons in rough terrain.

 

[NorCal Dave]

to the question of his possible dementia.

Something pertinent to the discussion. Although it's hard to suggest someone has declining mental faculties, the criteria New Mexico seems to use for a Silver Alert does indicate something like that. If he were just diabetic or had needed medication for hyper-tension (I know about that), it doesn't seem like a Silver Alert would be issued, at least not right away.

At least we're not speculating that his possible cognitive issues have resulted in his UFO claims, as most of those are so far, attributed to people other than him.

 

[Todd Feinman]

McCasland seems like he has been pretty functional recently. Google AI:

"In 2025,
Applied Technology Associates (ATA) continues to focus on providing high-performance technical services and custom solutions for space, air, and ground applications. Key developments involving leadership and the organization in 2025 and early 2026 include:
PR Newswire

• Dr. Neil McCasland
  :
  • As of early 2026, he remains the Director of Technology at ATA, a role he has held since 2014.
  • In February 2026, he was welcomed to the Riverside Research Board of Trustees."

• Safety Concerns: The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office cited unspecified medical issues as the reason they believe he may be in danger.
• Silver Alert: The alert indicates that McCasland may be confused, disoriented, or unable to seek help independently.

 

[Gary C]

McCasland seems like he has been pretty functional recently. Google AI:

"In 2025,
Applied Technology Associates (ATA) continues to focus on providing high-performance technical services and custom solutions for space, air, and ground applications. Key developments involving leadership and the organization in 2025 and early 2026 include:
PR Newswire

• Dr. Neil McCasland
  :
  • As of early 2026, he remains the Director of Technology at ATA, a role he has held since 2014.
  • In February 2026, he was welcomed to the Riverside Research Board of Trustees."
• Safety Concerns: The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office cited unspecified medical issues as the reason they believe he may be in danger.
• Silver Alert: The alert indicates that McCasland may be confused, disoriented, or unable to seek help independently.

But it only takes one stroke to change all that. Seeing that in family.

 

[Todd Feinman]

But it only takes one stroke to change all that. Seeing that in family.

Ah.. Right. Hadn't thought of that.

 

[Mick West]

McCasland seems like he has been pretty functional recently.

Being in a nominally high position in some organization is not a guarantee of mental acuity. Woodrow Wilson, FDR, and arguably Reagan and Biden were all mentally impaired while being President of the United States.

But we really know nothing about McCasland's capabilities or state of mind on the day he went missing.

 

[Rick Robson]

McCasland seems like he has been pretty functional recently. Google AI:

"In 2025,
Applied Technology Associates (ATA) continues to focus on providing high-performance technical services and custom solutions for space, air, and ground applications. Key developments involving leadership and the organization in 2025 and early 2026 include:
PR Newswire

• Dr. Neil McCasland
  :
  • As of early 2026, he remains the Director of Technology at ATA, a role he has held since 2014.
  • In February 2026, he was welcomed to the Riverside Research Board of Trustees."
• Safety Concerns: The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office cited unspecified medical issues as the reason they believe he may be in danger.
• Silver Alert: The alert indicates that McCasland may be confused, disoriented, or unable to seek help independently.

But it only takes one stroke to change all that. Seeing that in family.

Given the lack of information (for quite a few days now) about McCasland's supposed health issues, I think we can only speculate about it. But, even if some day his family comes forward clarifying he has had dementia or any other related mental health issue for X period of time, it's not a well-informed posture to give any kind of specifics about the general time it takes to become easily recognisable and/or compromise the person's basic cognitive functions to any degree.

I have direct experience of Alzheimer's disease in my family, my mother fought it for almost twenty years. At first none of us could feel anything abnormal in her behaviour and daily life activities. The first signs began to appear at an occasional rate for almost two years, we thought it could be dementia beginning to manifest and took her to a neurologist. He unfortunately detected she was suffering from Alzheimer's disease for at least three years. You can imagine the atomic bomb it was to my mother and my father, and then to me and my sister when he told us.

Sorry for getting a bit off-topic this time, in fact I very rarely talk about these really sad private/personal episodes.
My Dad immediately put her on a music class for keyboard playing, ironically my Mom was the only elderly (almost seventy years old) among all young students, mind you...
She had actually hard times trying to learn the musical theory, but at least managed to learn something about the left hand accompaniment.
The good part of all this though, was that to our surprise, she had an innate capability of (easily) playing music by ear.

 

[Todd Feinman]

Thanks for sharing that, Rick.

 

[deirdre]

Something pertinent to the discussion. Although it's hard to suggest someone has declining mental faculties, the criteria New Mexico seems to use for a Silver Alert does indicate something like that. If he were just diabetic or had needed medication for hyper-tension (I know about that), it doesn't seem like a Silver Alert would be issued, at least not right away.

At least we're not speculating that his possible cognitive issues have resulted in his UFO claims, as most of those are so far, attributed to people other than him.

I couldnt really believe the wording on the official government page for silver alerts could be true, so googled a bit. (they should probably change the website wording a bit)

if my mom went missing i'd say she showed signs of cognitive impairment. I mean she has finally mastered using different tabs on her browser, but 10 years and she still can't remember how to copy and paste.

I'm not making light of the seriousness of his missing, i'm just saying we dont know anything yet. and we probably never will.

Article:

New Mexico lifts diagnostic criteria for Silver Alerts

Mar 28, 2025

received unanimous approval by all three legislative committees that heard it, along with both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
.......
Previously, state law excluded from Silver Alerts people with general cognitive decline or impairment, limiting their access to emergency response resources for missing people without a formal Alzheimer's or dementia diagnosis.

....
HB197 relaxes the criteria for the alerts so that the reporting party only needs to indicate they believe the missing person shows signs or symptoms of Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia, cognitive decline or impairment, regardless of age.

The law previously gave the police the final say on whether or not an alert was issued, based on whether they found "clear indication that the individual suffers from Alzheimer's."

Almost all people who have gone missing in the last three years were found after Silver Alerts were issued, according to data compiled by the New Mexico Department of Public Safety. DPS reported in its analysis of the bill that between 2022 and Jan. 31, 2025, nearly 95% of people who went missing were found after police issued a Silver Alert.

"The revised criteria may enhance the responsiveness of law enforcement agencies to missing persons cases involving cognitive decline," the DPS analyst wrote. "This could lead to quicker recoveries, reducing risks to vulnerable individuals and improving public safety."

Source: https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/new-mexico-lifts-diagnostic-criteria-silver-alerts

 

[John J.]

There's been a possible sighting of McCasland. The claimant did the responsible thing and notified the authorities posted about it on Facebook

A woman on Facebook who said she had reported the information to authorities claimed she may have seen someone matching McCasland's description around the same time he went missing on Friday near the Whitewash trailhead in Piedra Lisa Canyon.

In a post shared with the Albuquerque Trail Running Crew group, the woman named Mj Davis said the man was standing off to the side near a bridge over the arroyo at the start of the trail.

The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office (BCSO), which is leading the search, later responded in the same thread, reminding users to report tips directly to investigators, but did not publicly dispute the sighting.

"UFO-linked Air Force general's disappearance takes new twist amid 'sighting' in New Mexico", Daily Mail 04 March 2026, Stacy Liberatore
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/science...neil-mccasland-disappearance-albuquerque.html

Re. "UFO-linked Air Force general", the Daily Mail has a reputation for sensationalist reporting,

The Daily Mail has been criticised for its unreliability, its printing of sensationalist and inaccurate scare stories about science and medical research, and for instances of plagiarism and copyright infringement. In February 2017, the English Wikipedia banned the use of the Daily Mail as a reliable source.

Wikipedia, Daily Mail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Mail

 

[deirdre]

the Daily Mail has a reputation for sensationalist reporting,

well this might be true and if so is useful info.

Article:

Friends say McCasland left home without his watch or phone, unusual for the avid hiker and cyclist. They noted he recently completed a 60-mile bike ride and is known to frequent La Luz and nearby trail systems.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-15610785/ufo-william-neil-mccasland-disappearance-albuquerque.html

 

[Rick Robson]

well this might be true and if so is useful info.

Article:

Friends say McCasland left home without his watch or phone, unusual for the avid hiker and cyclist. They noted he recently completed a 60-mile bike ride and is known to frequent La Luz and nearby trail systems.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-15610785/ufo-william-neil-mccasland-disappearance-albuquerque.html

I just find interesting they say "watch or phone". Would it make more sense if they said "watch and phone"? Or else just either one thing or the other?
Or else sorry if I'm being too opinionated here, it might just be an English language's way of expression.

 

[deirdre]

I just find interesting they say "watch or phone". Would it make more sense if they said "watch and phone"? Or else just either one thing or the other?
Or else sorry if I'm being too opinionated here, it might just be an English language's way of expression.

he left home without either his watch or his phone. would be the proper way to say it i think.? but i knew they meant that.

if you use "and" it kinda suggests he always has both with him. to my ear anyway.

 

[NorCal Dave]

I just find interesting they say "watch or phone". Would it make more sense if they said "watch and phone"? Or else just either one thing or the other?
Or else sorry if I'm being too opinionated here, it might just be an English language's way of expression.

I think what they mean is he didn't take his cell phone or something like an Apple Watch. Depending on the model, an Apple Watch or similar smart watches like Garmin, can have cellular data plans. Some hikers and trail runners don't want to take a bulky cell phone with them, so they just use a connected watch of some kind.

So, by saying he took neither, they're implying he went out with no form of communication or ability to stay connected. The suggestion is that he might have headed out for a hike but may have not been thinking clearly as he neglected to take his cell phone or a smart watch for communication.

Learn what you can do with your Apple Watch when your iPhone isn't with you.

When your iPhone is off or out of range, your Apple Watch can use a Wi-Fi network to send and receive data. Your watch can also connect to a cellular network if it's a cellular model. And if you've set up an Apple Watch for a family member, they can use a cellular or Wi-Fi connection with their watch.

When your Apple Watch is connected to Wi-Fi, the Wi-Fi icon

appears in Control Center. When it's connected to cellular, the cellular icon

appears.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/108300#:~:text=Wi-Fi and cellular data are,might take longer to make.

 

[NoParty]

I won't lie: The mention of a bridge has me checking out on this one...at least for now...

 

[deirdre]

I won't lie: The mention of a bridge has me checking out on this one...at least for now...

he seems very physically active which usually helps indicate.. not that. we have little bridges over tiny tiny streams on some of our pathway heads.

 

[Mick West]

I think what they mean is he didn't take his cell phone or something like an Apple Watch. Depending on the model, an Apple Watch or similar smart watches like Garmin, can have cellular data plans. Some hikers and trail runners don't want to take a bulky cell phone with them, so they just use a connected watch of some kind.

The newer Apple Watch Ultra 3, marketed to outdoorsy and sporty people, has satellite texting, emergency SOS via satellite, higher accuracy GPS, and trail backtracking. A good choice for solo hikers.

I think more ot the point is that it would be unusual for him to go on a hike without any comms device, so that indicates either a deliberate unusual choice, or a mental lapse.

Whatever way this resolves, it's sadly not going to stop the UFO speculation

 

[NoParty]

The newer Apple Watch Ultra 3, marketed to outdoorsy and sporty people, has satellite texting, emergency SOS via satellite, higher accuracy GPS, and trail backtracking. A good choice for solo hikers.

I appreciate you sharing this...I'm off to Costco...

 

[Mick West]

The mention of a bridge

A woman on Facebook who said she had reported the information to authorities claimed she may have seen someone matching McCasland's description around the same time he went missing on Friday near the Whitewash trailhead in Piedra Lisa Canyon.

In a post shared with the Albuquerque Trail Running Crew group, the woman named Mj Davis said the man was standing off to the side near a bridge over the arroyo at the start of the trail.

It's barely more than a walkway. Basically, they saw him near the road and the parking lot, and presumably within walking distance of his house.

https://www.google.com/maps/search/...try=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDMwMi4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw==

 

[beku-mant]

IMO, because of who he was, speculating about extraordinary reasons he might be missing is what a competent investigator should do. Because:

• If he did indeed have access to UFO programs, then right before he may be cleared to reveal it is a suspicious time for him to go missing. I personally don't believe Trump's declassification will produce much if any trustworthy data, but for someone protecting ultra-sensitive data it can be a risk management situation.
  
  
• If he didn't have access to UFO programs, it is still purported by a former senior advisor. That would naturally put him at a high risk of being targeted by nation states, or even just ordinary conspiracy theorists, who so much as think he might.

Hypothetically, even if he weren't rumored to have access to those programs, he still was in a position to know other state secrets that people would want their hands on.

I also find it tentatively suspicious he hasn't been found yet. Seven days is a pretty long time to search the extent of an elderly person's walking distance.

 

[deirdre]

then right before he may be cleared

why would he may be cleared?

 

[NorCal Dave]

Hypothetically, even if he weren't rumored to have access to those programs, he still was in a position to know other state secrets that people would want their hands on.

ALL of this UFO mystery mongering is so far based on 2 things:

1. The unsubstantiated claims of Tom DeLong in some emails when he was trying to launch TTSA. In addition to the Skinwalker Ranch paranormal/Psy/werewolf crowd like co-founder Hal Puthoff and his side-kick Efic Davis, DeLong was attempting to get other high ranking former government people enlisted. Likely to make his sale of stock in the company more appealing. He managed to bring the likes of Christopher Mellon, Lue Elizondo and Steve Justice from Lockheed's Skunk Works, among others, along for the ride. I have yet to see any indication McCasland had anything to do with TTSA. If DeLong's email detailed in post #41 is to be believed, McCasland MAY have met with DeLong a few times, but that seems to be it. I can find no mention of McCasland's involvement with TTSA. And if the email is to be believed, DeLong appears to be making an aggressive attempt to convince John Podesta, whom the email was written to, that McCasland was NOT a skeptic, because a it seems McCasland had "mentioned" that he was in fact a skeptic. TTSA was founded in 2017 with the promise of UFOs, entertainment and things like Zero Point Energy. By 2022 what was left of it was folded back into DeLong's original entertainment company, To The Stars and most of the high profile participants had moved on. Likely because most realized DeLong was using TTSA for his own financial ends, such as charging TTSA $35k for some of Art's Parts, bits of junk believers think came from the Roswell UFO. DeLong's emails aren't a great source to confirm McCasland knew all about UFOs, free energy or any other nonsense.
2. McCasland ran the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) based at WPAFB from 2011-2013. The AFRL was created in 1997:

The Laboratory was formed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, on 31 October 1997 as a consolidation of four Air Force laboratory facilities (Wright, Phillips, Rome, and Armstrong) and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research under a unified command.

The AFRL can trace some history back to various programs beginning around WW2 and the ensuing Cold War:

In 1945, the Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories were established. These laboratories were active from 1945 to 2011, following consolidation to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Kirtland Air Force Base under the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission.[7]​ The labs were founded as the Air Force Cambridge Research Center (AFCRC), a Cold War systems development organization which developed telephone modem communications for a Digital Radar Relay in 1949.[8]​ Created by General Henry H. Arnold in 1945,[9]​ AFCRC participated in Project Space Track and Semi-Automatic Ground Environment development.

There was further consolidation in the early '90s, but note that these various Laboratories were scattered all over the place with different commanders:

Prior to 1990, the Air Force laboratory system spread research out into 13 different laboratories and the Rome Air Development Center which each reported up two separate chains of command: a product center for personnel, and the Air Force Systems Command Director of Science & Technology for budgetary purposes.[12]​ Bowing to the constraints of a reduced budget and personnel, the Air Force merged the existing research laboratories into four "superlabs" in December 1990.[13]​ During this same time period, the Air Force Systems Command and Air Force Logistics Command merged to form Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) in July 1992.[14]​

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Force_Research_Laboratory

These various labs were eventually folded into one central command as the AFRL in 1997. But even with the '97 consolidation, many of the AFRL research takes place at various locals. The more UFO related ones include:

The Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, located at Wright-Patterson AFB and Tyndall AFB, develops materials, processes, and advanced manufacturing technologies for aerospace systems and their components to improve Air Force capabilities in these areas.[1]​ The current director is Mr. Darrell K. Phillipson.[59]​

The mission of the Propulsion Directorate, located at Wright-Patterson AFB and Edwards Air Force Base, is "to create and transition propulsion and power technology for military dominance of air and space."[1]​ The current director of the Propulsion Directorate is Douglas L. Bowers.[66]​​

The mission of the Space Vehicles Directorate is to develop and transition space technologies for more effective, more affordable warfighter missions.[1]​ In addition to the Directorate headquarters at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico and an additional research facility at Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts, the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) located near Gakona, Alaska is also jointly operated by the Space Vehicles Directorate as well as DARPA, the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and universities to conduct ionospheric research.[79]​ The current director is Col David Goldstein.[80​

​​

]​ ​​

Finally we have the list of AFRL commanders:​​

Main article: List of Commanders of Air Force Research Laboratory

• Maj Gen Ellen M. Pawlikowski, February 2010 – May 2011.
• Maj Gen William N. McCasland, May 2011 – July 2013.[95]​
• Maj Gen Thomas J. Masiello, July 2013 – May 2016.[96]​
• Maj Gen Robert D. McMurry Jr., May 2016 – May 2017.[97]​
• Maj Gen William T. Cooley, May 2017 – January 2020.[98]​
• Brig Gen Evan Dertien, January 2020 – June 2020.[99]​
• Maj Gen Heather L. Pringle, June 2020 – June 2023[100]​
• Maj Gen Scott A. Cain, June 2023 – July 2024
• Brig Gen Jason E. Bartolomei, July 2024 – present[101]​

Of which, McCasland is just one of 9, nevermind all the various commander for all the other various research labs and agencies that pre-dated the creation of the AFRL.

All of that to say, why go after one retired commander? A commander that may have mental issues? Why now? Why not go after any other former commanders of the AFRL or any other AF lab?

This is all speculation based on the unproven stories that a flying saucer, or several depending on the story, crashed at Roswell in 1947 and it along with the NHI occupants, either dead or alive or both, depending which version of the story, were taken to WPAFB. Often, again depending on the version of the story, specifically to the non-existent "Hanger 18". Having established as fact that there is a crashed UFO and aliens at WPAFB, it follows on that McCasland, and every other similar commander of the last 79 years knows all about this UFO, the aliens and cool things like Zero Point Energy.

Given that the list above shows commanders at the AFRL lasted about 1-3 years and that prior to the creation of the AFRL, there were multiple commanders at multiple AF Laboratories and research agencies over the past nearly 80 years, there may have been as many as several hundred guys with McCaslnad's knowledge, at least some of which are still alive today. But for some reason, whatever nefarious cabal that's behind his disappearance, chose to go after him and just him.

Like most UFO stories, there is a lot of speculation and little evidence.

 

[Ron Soye]

Here's a statement from his wife:

r/UFOs: New update on Neil McCasland's disappearance, message from his wife: "Neil worked with Tom after his Air Force retirement as an unpaid (Neil's choice) consultant on military and technical/scientific matters...Neil does not have any special knowledge about the ET bodies and debris from the Roswell"

Neil McCasland has now been missing for one week. There has been no indication whatsoever of where he might be. There have been dozens of searchers on foot, both official and friends and neighbors of Neil's, who coordinate with the official sources. There have also been horseback searchers, drones with different capabilities, helicopters, three different types of search dogs, neighborhood canvassing and looking for Ring or wildlife videos. Organizations involved are Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office (BCSO) which is the lead organization, Albuquerque field office of the FBI, NM State Search and Rescue, Albuquerque Mountain Rescue, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Albuquerque Police Department, and maybe others of which I am unaware. I am so grateful to one and all for their unflagging dedicated efforts and support.

I would like to take this opportunity to dispel some of the misinformation circulating about Neil and his disappearance, mostly from uninformed media sources.

1. The initial Silver Alert from BCSO mentioned medical conditions, which some have taken to mean Alzheimer's. Neil is at some risk, but not from dementia. He was not confused and disoriented.
2. There was no concerning Friday-morning telephone call to a close relative. I have been in contact with all of his close relatives and some not-so-close ones. This is a complete fabrication.
3. It is true that when Neil was in the Air Force, he had access to home highly classified programs and information. He retired from the AF almost 13 years ago and has had only very commonly held clearances since. It seems quite unlikely that he was taken to extract very dated secrets from him.
4. It is true that Neil had a brief association with the UFO community through Tom DeLonge, former frontman for Blink-182 and founder of the organization To The Stars. Neil worked with Tom for a bit shortly after his Air Force retirement as an unpaid (Neil's choice) consultant on military and technical/scientific matters to lend verisimilitude to Tom's fiction book and media activities. After the Russians hacked John Podesta's emails (see Neil's Wikipedia page), there was less contact with Tom and the community pushing for release of UFO information. This connection is not a reason for someone to abduct Neil. Neil does not have any special knowledge about the ET bodies and debris from the Roswell crash stored at Wright-Patt. Though at this point with absolutely no sign of him, maybe the best hypothesis is that aliens beamed him up to the mothership. However, no sightings of a mothership hovering above the Sandia Mountains have been reported.

All the thoughts and prayers from around the country are much appreciated. I will update if/when any real information comes in.

I don't use Facebook, but if you want the exact URL, it should be a post on this account: https://www.facebook.com/susanmccasland.wilkerson/

 

[beku-mant]

Like most UFO stories, there is a lot of speculation and little evidence.

Including the speculation that he had mental issues, or that he got lost on a hike. Neither of which are a good fit to the evidence we do have.

 

[Gary C]

Even less mysterious., according to Google Gemini, I asked "how many people are currently identified as missing in New Mexico?"

As of early 2026, there are approximately 250 open missing persons cases in New Mexico. This number represents a portion of the thousands of active cases nationwide. Additionally, a specific, high-priority list maintained by the FBI and state partners includes over 180 to nearly 200 missing Indigenous persons in the New Mexico and Navajo Nation area.
FBI (.gov) +3

• Total Missing (General): Roughly 250 open cases were reported for 2026.
• Missing Indigenous Persons: According to the New Mexico Department of Justice and FBI, there are over 180 (specifically, 186-192 in recent reports) active missing Indigenous cases.
• Data Updates: The FBI provides monthly updates on the Missing Indigenous Persons (MMIP) list in New Mexico.
  FBI (.gov) +2

These figures are dynamic, with cases being opened and resolved regularly.

 

[beku-mant]

why would he may be cleared?

May is the keyword here. There is talk, maybe empty talk, about identifying and releasing any and all information about UFOs and aliens. The prior information we have suggests a likelihood that McCastland is someone with both access to UFO information, and a willingness to cooperate on disclosure. In this hypothetical, he would be a go to person for people looking to locate and identify information.

That might not be true, he might not actually have key UFO information, but even the perception is enough to put him at risk of being a target.

 

[deirdre]

May is the keyword here. There is talk, maybe empty talk, about identifying and releasing any and all information about UFOs and aliens. The information we have suggests a likelihood that McCastland is someone with both access to UFO information, and a willingness to disclose it. In this hypothetical, he would be a go to person for people looking to locate and identify information.

That might not be true, he might not actually have key UFO information, but even the perception is enough to put him at risk of being a target.

i kinda doubt that would include clearing people of their ndas. (but im not a military nda expert). My guess is if the government is willing to release stuff, then they would want to continue to control what gets released.

 

[John J.]

If he did indeed have access to UFO programs

There's no evidence of "UFO programs" anywhere in the world, ever, if "UFO program" means the examination of actual alien artefacts.
There's no testable, convincing evidence that the Earth has ever been visited by ETI, or indeed that ETI exists.
Wright-Patterson AFB was the home location of Project Sign/ Grudge/ Bluebook, whose findings are well-known. Bluebook was wound up over 30 years before McCasland worked at WPAFB.

If he didn't have access to UFO programs, it is still purported by a former senior advisor. That would naturally put him at a high risk of being targeted by nation states

If McCasland had (supposedly) been purported by a former senior advisor (John Podesta?*) to have had access to "UFO programs", that isn't evidence that UFO programs exist.
It must be unlikely that another nation would sponsor the abduction of someone within the US because someone else said something that might be interpreted to mean that the subject was involved in an almost certainly non-existent field of research 13 years ago.

The governments of e.g. Russia, China might be more interested in US strategic planning, cyber capabilities and weaknesses, encryption/ communications technologies, disposition/ patrol routes of SSBNs, AI, anti-missile technologies etc. etc. etc. than they are in (almost certainly fictitious) UFO programs.
But AFAIK there have been no Ipcress File-style abductions of anyone working in any of these fields.

We don't know why William Neil McCasland went missing. But adults do go missing, many thousands each year, rarely due to foul play:

According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), a database funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, over 600,000 people are reported missing annually. In 2023, the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) recorded 563,389 missing person entries.
... ...
Adults comprise approximately 60 percent of all missing persons at any given time.

(The majority of child disappearances are "runaways", thankfully almost always quickly resolved; there are also a substantial number of abductions by non-custodial parents), "How Many People Go Missing in the USA?", Legal Clarity website 24 January 2026
https://legalclarity.org/how-many-people-go-missing-in-the-usa/

Someone presumably close to McCasland advised the Sheriff's Department of his disappearance, and they initiated a Silver Alert.
The Silver Alert

[Quoting New Mexico Ageing Services] ...is a notification that gets sent out statewide, similar to that of an Amber Alert. It relates to an endangered person (in imminent danger of causing harm to one's self or others or being harmed by another) who is confirmed to be a missing person.

This person is fifty (50) years or older and has an irreversible deterioration of intellectual faculties.

The subject doesn't have to have a diagnosed psychiatric/ degenerative condition,

HB197 relaxes the criteria for the alerts so that the reporting party only needs to indicate they believe the missing person shows signs or symptoms of Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia, cognitive decline or impairment, regardless of age

...but whoever reported McCasland's disappearance must have expressed concerns for about his cognitive abilities and/ or mental state, and the Sheriff's Department concurred.
It must be unlikely that the notifying person took the decision to state their concerns- effectively bringing them into the public domain- lightly.
Equally, it's hard to see why someone close to McCasland would fabricate concerns about his mental state/ acuity.

All the evidence we have so far (which is admittedly very little) is that William Neil McCasland disappeared from near his home, and that the person reporting this, probably someone close to him, is concerned about his mental state.
It must be unlikely that his disappearance has any direct connection to his career, and as there are zero precedents (AFAIK) it must be extremely unlikely- I'd say fanciful- that he has been abducted by agents of a foreign nation.


*Podesta's hacked e-mails have also been cited as "evidence" for the "Pizzagate" conspiracy theory, Wikipedia "Podesta emails" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podesta_emails

 

[deirdre]

...but whoever reported McCasland's disappearance must have expressed concerns for about his cognitive abilities and/ or mental state, and the Sheriff's Department concurred.

i'm not disagreeing with you, but the black and white wording of your sentence might come off a bit harsh to some readers.

I think "he didnt take his apple watch or his phone with him, and he has never done that before. I'm worried. " would quite likely qualify to trigger a silver alert esp for a General. (high profile person, ie. the "thin blue line" type thing)

 

[beku-mant]

...but whoever reported McCasland's disappearance must have expressed concerns for about his cognitive abilities and/ or mental state

His wife debunked this rumor on Facebook recently.

 

[Ann K]

I also find it tentatively suspicious he hasn't been found yet. Seven days is a pretty long time to search the extent of an elderly person's walking distance.

He was, I believe, only 68. He went hiking every day, in a place where keeping fit is a way of life, especially for military men. My experiences of New Mexico (when we were MUCH younger) were of hiking high up a mountain until we were huffing and puffing, then being passed by octogenarians walking twice as fast.

Edit to add: his own Facebook page shows him skiing and hiking high in the mountains.

 

[Ann K]

@NorCal Dave

The Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, located at Wright-Patterson AFB and Tyndall AFB, develops materials, processes, and advanced manufacturing technologies for aerospace systems and their components to improve Air Force capabilities in these areas.[1]​ The current director is Mr. Darrell K. Phillipson.

OT: my late husband once worked at Wright-Pat in that department. The metallurgical engineering program at U. Cincinnati was a co-op program, so as a student he was in school for eight weeks (or nine? I forget), then alternated school with working at Wright-Pat.

 

[beku-mant]

He was, I believe, only 68. He went hiking every day, in a place where keeping fit is a way of life, especially for military men. My experience of New Mexico (when we were MUCH younger) were of hiking high up a mountain until we were huffing and puffing, then being passed by octogenarians walking twice as fast.

But they've been conducting an extraordinarily extensive search. People are searching on horseback, with dogs, helicopters, drones, local FBI, search and rescue, police and sheriffs department, and Air Force Special Investigations.

Some people brought up how many people, especially indigenous women, go missing in New Mexico, but there are also allegations of systemic neglect to investigate those disappearances. And foul play is suspected in many of those case as well.

 

[deirdre]

He was, I believe, only 68. He went hiking every day, in a place where keeping fit is a way of life, especially for military men. My experience of New Mexico (when we were MUCH younger) were of hiking high up a mountain until we were huffing and puffing, then being passed by octogenarians walking twice as fast.

like the boston marathon. they say the second half is pretty hilly and we have people in their 80s running that.