UFO’s and Alien sightings are nothing new, with some of the first sightings going back to the 2nd millennium BC in ancient Egypt under Pharaoh Thutmose the III. The sightings have continued all through recorded history. The most famous of these being the UFO crash in Roswell New Mexico. Over the years there has been many who have tried to prove the claims that earth has been visited by aliens, and that governments of the world have kept the crashes and visitations secret from the public. Recently I had the privilege of speaking with Dr. Kevin Randle, Randle is a prominent researcher in the field of UFO’s and is regarded as one of the foremost authorities on the Roswell crash and other UFO sightings. Dr. Randle is known for being a keen researcher who followers the evidence to where it leads not just to where it is wanted to lead. I was introduced to Dr. Randle’s work when I picked up a copy of his book “Case MJ-12: The True Story Behind the Government’s UFO Conspiracies” I was impressed at the level of scholarly work and deep research that he applied to the field of UFO study. I truly hope you enjoy the following interview with Dr. Randle.
I am a retired military officer with more than 22 years of service in the Army, Air Force, Air Force Reserve and the Iowa National Guard. I have two combat tours, one in Vietnam as a helicopter pilot and the second in Iraq as an Intelligence officer. I have four college degrees including a Master of Art in Military Science, Master of Science in Psychology and a Ph.D in Psychology.
I have written more than 120 books including science fiction, action/adventure and nonfiction. I have written 25 books about UFOs including the latest, Roswell in the 21st Century and UFO Government Files, to name two.
What made you first get interested in UFO research?
I have always blamed my mother who had an interest in science fiction which is often about alien civilizations, interstellar space travel, and first contact. It is not a huge step from there into UFOs because this is about alien civilizations and interstellar flight. We talk about first contact, and while there are suggestions in the UFO research to suggest that has already happened, the scientific evidence of it is wanting.
Do you think that all of the information that has been published regarding UFOs has made people get more interested in the phenomenon?
The interest runs in cycles. The last large cycle ended in 1997 with the festival in Roswell. It is beginning to come back. I believe that TV shows about aliens and UFOs do well in the ratings regardless of the point of view of the show, though those suggesting visitation is going on are more popular. It just seems to me that people become more interested if there is a big sighting reported by the MSM. I think that more information is published because people are interested rather than people are interested by the publication of the information, though they do seem to drive one another to some extent.
Have you ever been witness to a UFO sighting yourself?
Not really. The best is a light moving across the sky, at great altitude, that stopped once directly overhead and flashed once before moving on. It was in a polar orbit at a time when there wasn’t anything in a polar orbit. But remember it was just a light moving across the sky and nothing more.
Why do you think the study, research and documentation of UFO sightings is important?
Because we have the possibility of learning something. What if we do make contact with a space traveling race? Then the possibility of us being able to do it increases exponentially. We don’t have to go through the trial and tragic error of learning all about it ourselves.
If there is nothing more than some sort of psychological manifestation, then we learn something about the human mind.
If there is nothing more than a series of different natural phenomena involved, then we learn something about the world around us.
If it is a combination of all that, then we learn a great deal about other sentient races, our own psychological makeup and our natural environment. It just teaches us something we did not know.
It’s been said that as a researcher you place a lot more importance on interviews and personal testimonies then other researchers do, why is that?
Who says that? What is their basis for saying it? I do place importance on the testimonies of first-hand witnesses, but if you look at the body of my work, you see research into the corroboration of that testimony, a search for documentation and physical evidence, and a constant call for cases that have multiple chains of evidence.
Testimony is important because we are dealing with an observational phenomenon and without testimony you don’t have much to work with. Testimony tells us that an unidentified phenomenon was observed in a certain place at a certain time and research tells us that photographs exist, or radar tracks or landing traces or sometimes bit of metallic debris. All of it is important to build a solid case. You cannot ignore testimony that you don’t like or evidence that tells us exactly what was seen.
They also claim that because I write science fiction, this somehow disqualifies me from UFO research, but only me. This same allegation is not leveled at Bruce Maccabee, Nick Pope or Don Ecker, all of whom have written science fiction.
Are you working on any new books to release in the future?
Naturally. Always in some fashion. Currently I’m putting together a book about the history of the phenomenon beginning in 1947 and working through this year that provides a glimpse into “official” investigations and the “official” answers that seem to suggest that those in positions of authority have been less than candid in their responses to UFO sightings and investigations using documentation obtained through FOIA and other sources, not to mention the testimony of those who participated in some of that.
How does it feel to be known as one of the foremost authorities on Roswell and UFO sightings?
I don’t worry about such things. I worry about getting the facts right.
Many has said that as a PhD holder and former military officer you have added a sense of legitimacy to the hunt for UFO documentation. Can you expound a little on why UFO research and data collection has been given a “non-scientific” or worse a “crazy” stigma?
Because we are always lumped into the fringe element who have been in contact with the space brethren, because we have episodes in which there is a promise of the proof of visitation and it ends up badly. The alien autopsy received worldwide attention only to blow up when it was proven to be a hoax. But talk of alien bodies and alien creatures is more exciting than to find a document such as the Hippler letter that proves the cover up exists.
The Hippler letter was from an Air Force officer to Dr. Edward U. Condon explaining what the Air Force expected in its grant to the University of Colorado, which was to say something positive about the Air Force investigation, that UFOs were no threat to national security and that the Air Force should end project Blue Book. That is exactly what happened but it just isn’t as exciting as a UFO landing and the creatures from inside walking about outside.
Do you think the popularity of the X-Files helped to reignite the idea that the government was/is working with extraterrestrial forces?
No. The popularity had been growing prior to the first episode and it peaked in 1997 and dropped off from there.
Do you have a favorite Alien/UFO movie?
Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, The Thing from Another World, The Day the Earth Stood Still (the original and not the lousy remake), and Star Gate SG1.
Do you have any advice for anyone wanting to get into the world of UFO research?
Don’t expect to make any money. Expect to be ridiculed. Find a good day job.
For more information on Dr. Randles work check out
A Different Perspective (Randle’s Blog)
here http://kevinrandle.blogspot.com/
Also, for a list of his books to buy at this link