Official position · S-012
The Pentagon reiterated that Elizondo had no assigned responsibilities for AATIP at OUSD(I), that the program was run by the DIA, to which Elizondo was never assigned, and that he had interacted with the program's DIA office without directing it. It also confirmed the authenticity of Reid's 2009 letter, specifying that it did not change its earlier statements.
Pentagon (Department of Defense) · Susan Gough, spokeswoman · Jun 13, 2019
AATIP and AAWSAP
What it denies and what it leaves open
It denies a formal assignment and the directorship of the program, not Elizondo's contacts with AATIP: internal emails of June 5, 2019, made public in 2025, say that he briefly supported the DIA office until early 2010 and, according to a Navy official, he facilitated contacts between DoD offices without dedicated funds. The DoD says it replied to Reid's letter, but the reply has not been found.
- Original words
Mr. Elizondo had no assigned responsibilities for AATIP while he was in OUSD(I)
- Who disputes it
- Elizondo maintains that he led AATIP until his resignation, and former Senator Harry Reid wrote in 2021 that he could attest to his leadership role.
- Concerns
- Luis Elizondo, Harry Reid
Sources
- DoD FOIA release 25-F-2554: documents on Elizondo 2017–2019 (PDF) (primary source)
- The Black Vault, June 14, 2019: the Pentagon's statements on Elizondo and on Reid's letter (analysis)
- The Black Vault, May 28, 2025: DoD emails on Elizondo's role (analysis)
- The Black Vault: the DoD's reply to Reid's letter still cannot be found (Dec. 2025, updated May 2026) (analysis)
On this site
People 2
Documents 2
- Senator Reid's letter asking to protect AATIP with a special access program Original available
- The Pentagon's emails on Elizondo and AATIP (2017–2019), released in 2025 Original available
Open in the interactive archive The whole section: Denials and official positions
UAPgrade's entries are compiled with artificial intelligence (three verifiers with opposing roles) and checked against the sources listed above: how we work. Have a document that changes this entry? Bring it to the Investigations Unit.