Nick Pope ran the British Government’s UFO project. From 1991 to 1994 he researched and investigated UFOs, alien abductions, crop circles and other strange phenomena, leading the media to call him the real Fox Mulder. His government background and his level-headed views have made him the media, film and TV industry’s go-to guy when it comes to UFOs, the unexplained and conspiracy theories.

Nick Pope has consulted on and helped to promote a number of alien-themed movies, TV shows and video games. He has hosted, consulted on and contributed to numerous TV shows, has written six best-selling books, and lectures all around the world.

Nick Pope lives in the United States, splitting his time between San Jose and Tucson.

How did you get assigned to the MoD’s UFO project and what else did you do in your MoD career?

I worked for the MoD for 21 years, from 1985 to 2006. My postings included being assigned to the Joint Operations Center during the Persian Gulf War, where I was a briefer in the Air Force Operations Room. After that, I was assigned to the UFO project, where I worked from 1991 to 1994. I left the MoD in 2006 after my final posting, in which I served as an acting Deputy Director in the Directorate of Defense Security.

What were your views on the UFO phenomenon before you were assigned to the MoD’s UFO project?

I knew little about the subject and was broadly skeptical, but always conducted my research and investigations in an open-minded way.

How were MoD investigations undertaken?

We received 200 – 300 sighting reports each year. The methodology of an investigation was fairly standard. Firstly, we interviewed the witness to obtain as much information as possible about the sighting: date, time, location, description of the object, its speed, its height, etc. Then we attempted to correlate the sighting with known aerial activity such as civil aircraft flights, military exercises or weather balloon launches. We could check with the Royal Greenwich Observatory to see if astronomical phenomena such as meteors or fireballs might explain what was seen. We could check to see whether any UFO sightings were corroborated by radar evidence. If we had a photograph or a film, we could obtain an analysis from air force imagery analysis staffs. We could also liaise with staff at the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System at RAF Fylingdales, a military base that houses space-tracking radar. Finally, on various scientific and technical issues, we could liaise with the Defense Intelligence Staff, though this is an area that I can’t discuss, as many of the details remain classified.

What were the results of these MoD investigations?

I concluded that around 80% of UFO sightings were misidentifications of ordinary objects or phenomena: aircraft, aircraft lights, weather balloons, meteors, satellites, bright stars and planets, fire lanterns, etc. Some sightings were caused by people seeing secret prototype spy planes or drones. Other cases were hoaxes, or the result of a hallucination or psychological delusion. In around 15% of cases there was insufficient data to make a firm assessment. Finally, around 5% of cases appeared to have no conventional explanation, even after a thorough investigation. Of course, it’s important to stress that just because a UFO sighting was categorized as unexplained, it doesn’t follow that what was seen was extraterrestrial. Unexplained means unexplained – nothing more and nothing less.

In relation to the MoD’s research and investigation into UFOs the terms “UFO Project” and “UFO Desk” have been variously used – which is correct?

Either is correct. When I had responsibility for this work I was posted to a division called Secretariat (Air Staff) – Sec(AS) for short. At other times over the years the UFO work was embedded in other MoD divisions with titles that included S4, S6, DS8 and DAS. On the basis that such ‘alphabet soup’ terms would be meaningless to most people, the media tend to use either “UFO Project”, “UFO Program” or “UFO Desk” as a ‘does what it says on the tin’ description of the work. The confusion could have been avoided had the MoD given the research a formal designation (as the United States Air Force did with its equivalent, Project Blue Book), but such a move would have run counter to the MoD’s longstanding policy of downplaying the true extent of its interest and involvement in this subject.

What security clearance did you hold?

I held a TS/SCI security clearance, but I’m not permitted to discuss the specifics.

What constraints does your security oath place upon your being able to discuss your MoD work?

The UK’s Official Secrets Act is binding for life, so the fact that I no longer work for the MoD has no bearing here. However, the MoD has itself declassified and released most of its UFO files as a result of the UK’s Freedom of Information Act, so I’m free to discuss most of my work on this subject. I cannot, of course, disclose any information that remains classified.

Are you the author of the intelligence assessment on UFOs known as Project Condign?

No. While I was involved in the work that led to the commissioning of this study, I’d been posted to another MoD division by the time work started. I’m aware of the identity of the individual concerned, but I’m not at liberty to disclose the name.

Do you believe that there’s life elsewhere in the universe?

I strongly suspect there’s life elsewhere in the cosmos, because from observational data, the laws of physics and the laws of chemistry appear to be constant throughout the observable universe. So unless you believe there’s something almost literally magical about Earth, the same factors that gave rise to life here are likely to have arisen elsewhere.

Do you believe we’re being visited by extraterrestrials?

I haven’t seen any definitive ‘you can take that to the bank’ proof, but I remain open-minded about the possibilities, so I certainly can’t rule it out. We should always bear in mind that the skeptics need to be right every day, but the believers only need to be right once!

Have you ever seen a UFO yourself?

Sadly, despite having investigated thousands of UFO sightings, I’ve never seen one myself.