Researcher Leonard Stringfield claimed that the UFO crash-retrieval narrative did not begin with the famous Roswell incident. Instead, he traced it back to a series of earlier events that looked remarkably similar, and forward to later cases that suggested a global recovery effort operating in secrecy.
Below are several significant cases and testimonies, from which it can be inferred that UFO crash incidents have been more frequent and widespread than the limited examples listed here.
Early reports before Roswell (1940–1945)
The 1940s produced multiple stories involving disc-shaped craft and recovered occupants, years before Roswell made headlines.
1941 – Cape Girardeau (USA): Disc-shaped craft recovers with nonhuman bodies (Charlotte Mann testimony).
1941 – Carolinas (USA): Army maneuvers interrupted by classified assignment involving metallic disc and bodies.
1942 – Georgia (USA): Small round craft allegedly retrieved with four small humanoids that later died.
Roswell and the formation of a retrieval system (1947–1954)
1947 – Roswell (USA): The Army first confirms the recovery of a “flying disc” before reversing the story.
1948 – Operational Pattern Identified: Stringfield believed a system was now in place:
crash → military lockdown → witness control → transport to Wright-Patterson AFB
1948 – Laredo/Mexico Border: Disc allegedly recovered with bodies; U.S. military reportedly involved.
By the early 1950s, Stringfield argued the retrieval program had matured into a highly coordinated operation.
The 1953 Southwest Cluster. Several 1953 reports appeared connected:
1953 - Fort Monmouth Film: Radar specialist shown footage of small disc + bodies, later told it was a “hoax.”
1953: Kingman, Arizona : 30-foot disc, small hatch, 4-foot occupant - eyewitness Arthur Stansel.
Blindfolded Metallurgist.
1953: Wright-Patterson expert flown to desert crash; says metal was non-terrestrial.
Crates at Wright-Patterson.
1953: Three crates reportedly contained small humanoid bodies.
Bodies at Wright-Patterson.
1953–1954: Technician claims thirteen bodies stored at the base.
The retrieval narrative goes global (1965–Present)
After the Cold War began, retrieval reports spread beyond U.S. borders:
1965 – Kecksburg (USA): Acorn-shaped craft; military cordon; rumored transport to Wright-Patterson.
1967 – Shag Harbour (Canada): Underwater UAP tracked by naval units.
1973 – Coyame (Mexico): Mid-air collision; U.S. team allegedly recovers craft.
1986 – Dalnegorsk (USSR): Metallic sphere crash; unusual material analysis.
1996 – Varginha (Brazil): Biological entities reported; military involvement.
1997 – Needles (USA): Crash near Colorado River; helicopter retrieval observed.
2002 – Mirny (Russia): Special units rumored to secure craft.
South African Kalahari/Lesotho crash stories re-emerged throughout the 1990s–2000s, often linked to U.S.–South African cooperation.
From UFOs to UAP: The Disclosure Era (2010s–2020s)
Recent whistleblower testimony shifted attention away from public crash sites and toward highly classified aerospace programs.
Eric Davis Notes (surfaced 2020): Mentions historical retrieval efforts and “off-world vehicles not made on Earth.”
David Grusch (2023): Alleges decades-long crash retrieval and reverse-engineering programs involving both craft and nonhuman bodies.
Transmedium Retrieval: Post-2017 UAP focus expands into underwater and multi-domain retrieval attempts.
Taken as a whole, the timeline suggests a persistent covert infrastructure capable of: locating, securing, transporting, and analyzing exotic craft and nonhuman occupants, while operating outside public view for more than 80 years.
If true, then the materials and propulsion recovered from these crashes would represent one of the biggest technological windfalls in modern history, yet remain compartmentalized within classified aerospace programs and Special Access Projects.
The modern disclosure wave suggests that some of that secrecy may now be cracking.