After an effort of many years, I have prepared a comprehensive timeline of UFO history that will be useful to UFO researchers and historians. “UFOs and Intelligence” is an up-to-date retrospective of UFO history (from the airship of Clonmacnoise to the newly appointed US investigation agency AARO), intertwined with events in US and world history concerning military and civilian intelligence agencies and the cult of secrecy. It is now more than 1,000 pages and more than 910,000 words (including a substantial “Sources and Further Reading” appendix). Readers will discover or rediscover many events, people, and UFO cases they may not be familiar with. Some will find it useful for current or planned research projects. Military cases, those involving commercial aircraft, close encounters involving physical traces and other evidence, reports involving occupants or entities, and events surrounding military and sensitive nuclear sites are emphasized, but this timeline covers the full spectrum of UFO history, from contactee experiences to misidentifications of mundane phenomena and notorious hoaxes. Links to online sources are given, and links to biographical information are provided when available. A timeline like this allows us to view events from a different perspective, letting us make connections we might not otherwise see. It forces us to view the big picture, amid the grand flow of UFO cases, military security decisions, a vast swathe of personalities, and world history. As of 2022, all references have proper bibliographical citations with embedded links; if you have a version with raw URL links, it is an earlier version. Dead links will be repaired as quickly as possible. All times given are local. Measurements are given in miles, feet, and inches for consistency. For best results, open all links in a new tab or window. A special note of thanks to Jeff Knox, a UFO researcher in Washington State who has been helping me improve this document with corrections, additions, and amplifications.
Note: This timeline is updated at least once a week. —George M. Eberhart
UFOs and Intelligence — a full timeline of UFO events and relevant military intelligence activities.
PURSUE chronology — a special subset of this timeline that is devoted entirely to the information contained in the various releases under the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE) by the US Department of Defense/War in 2026.