What is the verification status of this claim?

This claim is currently marked as "CONFIRMED". The verification is based on 0 primary sources and 2 total sources reviewed by the They Knew community.

Who originally made this claim?

This claim was made by Robert Bigelow, Aerospace Entrepreneur / Bigelow Aerospace Founder, on or around 2008-01-01.

How many sources support this claim?

There are 2 total sources associated with this claim, of which 0 are primary sources (court documents, FOIA releases, official records).

The DIA secretly funded a $22M paranormal investigation program (AAWSAP) based at Skinwalker Ranch — documented evidence

🟢 CONFIRMED

In 2008, the Defense Intelligence Agency launched the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP) after a senior DIA scientist visited Skinwalker Ranch in Utah and reportedly had a profound encounter with an unknown intelligence. Senators Harry Reid, Daniel Inouye, and Ted Stevens secured $22 million in black budget funding. The contract went to Robert Bigelow's BAASS, which deployed scientists with thermal imaging, radar, and surveillance systems to the ranch. The program investigated not just UFOs but a range of paranormal phenomena including poltergeist activity, cattle mutilations, and dimensional portals. AAWSAP was cancelled after two years, but its existence was confirmed through declassified documents and the book 'Skinwalkers at the Pentagon.'

The DIA secretly funded a $22M paranormal investigation program (AAWSAP) based at Skinwalker Ranch

UFO·January 1, 2008·By Robert Bigelow·3.1K upvotes·109 comments

What They Said Was Crazy

“What we encountered at the ranch goes beyond conventional understanding. The phenomena are real, measurable, and connected to UAP activity in ways we are only beginning to understand.”

— Robert BigelowJanuary 1, 2008Source

📄 The Receipts

Skinwalkers at the Pentagon: An Insiders' Account of the Secret Government UFO Program

www.amazon.com/Skinwalkers-Pentagon-Insiders-Accou...

BOOKOpen

How Believers in the Paranormal Birthed the Pentagon's New Hunt for UFOs (Military.com)

www.military.com/daily-news/2022/03/07/how-believe...

ARTICLEOpen

⚖️ The Record, Side by Side

What they said vs. what the evidence shows

What They Said

“AAWSAP was a misuse of taxpayer money — a program born from the personal beliefs of a billionaire and three senators, not from scientific evidence of paranormal activity.”

— Scientific skeptics · Dec 2017

What Actually Happened

BOOK

Skinwalkers at the Pentagon: An Insiders' Account of the Secret Government UFO Program

View

ARTICLE

How Believers in the Paranormal Birthed the Pentagon's New Hunt for UFOs (Military.com)

View

🙈 They Laughed At Us

“AAWSAP was a misuse of taxpayer money — a program born from the personal beliefs of a billionaire and three senators, not from scientific evidence of paranormal activity.”

— Scientific skeptics, 2017