Roscoe H. Hillenkoetter
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Roscoe Henry Hillenkoetter (May 8, 1897 - June 18, 1982), born in St. Louis, Missouri was the third director of the post-WWII U.S. Central Intelligence Group (CIG), and the first director of the Central Intelligence Agency, created by the National Security Act of 1947. He served as director of the CIG and the CIA from May 1, 1947 to October 7, 1950.
He was serving as director of the CIA at the time that North Korea invaded South Korea (June 25, 1950), initiating the Korean War, and was held responsible by some for the failure to predict the hostile intentions of North Korea.
Prior to joining the Central Intelligence Agency then-Captain Hillenkoetter served as the commanding officer of the USS Missouri (BB-63).
Hillenkoetter was a member of NICAP, and Donald E. Keyhoe writes in his book Aliens from Space that Hillenkoetter wanted public disclosure of UFO evidence. (page 28 in the Dutch translation of that book) Perhaps Hillenkoetter's best-known statement on the subject was in 1960 in a letter to Congress, as reported in the New York Times: "Behind the scenes, high-ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense."
He was also allegedly a member of a super-secret group called Majestic-12, supposedly created by Executive Order on September 24, 1947, by President Harry Truman. This group was supposed to be the main "umbrella group" overseeing UFO research in the aftermath of the Roswell UFO incident, the alleged recovery of a crashed flying saucer and alien bodies in July 1947.
 |
This biography of a person who has held a non-elected position in the Government of the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
| Preceded by Lt. Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg |
Director of Central Intelligence May 1, 1947-October 7, 1950 |
Succeeded by Gen. Walter Bedell Smith |
| Directors of the Central Intelligence Agency |  |
|---|---|
| Souers • Vandenberg • Hillenkoetter • Smith • Dulles • McCone • Raborn • Helms • Schlesinger • Colby • Bush • Turner • Casey • Webster • Gates • Woolsey • Deutch • Tenet • Goss • Hayden |
