Interviews:

29 September 2001.

Hello all

I interviewed ground crew astronaut Clark McClelland on June 24th-28th 2001 in Orlando Florida (He took me to Kennedy Space Center) and with his help, here are the comments we put together. His website is Stargate-Chronicles.org.

This will be on WEBSITE SOON WITH PHOTOS Paola Harris http://utenti.tripod.it/paolaharris

Paola Harris

A Legend emerges from the Shadows - The incredible unknown story of Clark C. McClelland.

It took me about six months to finally decide to attempt and tackle this very special story of an extraordinary man, Clark C. McClelland. Who's Clark C. McClelland you may be asking yourself? That's a good question. Why is it? Because he was snuggled inside the Top Secret Gates of Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center for most of his life and practically obscure except to those who worked with and respected him for his various talents. He's one of the most unique human beings I have yet met in my life. And I've met quite a few.

I arrived in Orlando, Florida and contacted Clark immediately. He drove to my hotel and we went to a local restaurant for a late dinner. The next day, he invited me to a tour of the world-renowned Kennedy Space Center. I must admit that and this tour was one of the most enjoyable He was being told the history of a place that has made astounding history so many times by one who actually created that history.

We viewed the rockets on display and went to the I-Max theatre. There we viewed an excellent movie that seemed to send the audience into space. The sound was awesome. As it viewed a space shuttle crew in orbit, Clark told a young boy sitting with his parents that he knew the astronaut that was on the screen. It was Judy Resnik who had died in the Challenger Explosion in 1986. Clark had tears in his eyes as he talked with the inspired young boy. Clark later admitted that he was a personal friend of Judy and members of the ill-fated crew. It was evident that seeing this impressive movie brought back memories that he had of being at the launch pad when it happened. He was still feeling remorse many years later.

We then went to have a bit to eat at the LunchPad Restaurant nearby. There, I began to question Clark about his life and involvement in the mysteries of the UFO phenomena, alien visits to earth and associated topics. As he began pouring out knowledge, I knew that this man was a vast storehouse of information and most was hair raising. He told his story as follows:

Clark arrived at Cape Canaveral in the 1950s at the very start of the space race with the former Soviet Union. His father Clyde, mother Betty and Brother Robert had been at the spaceport area for several months before and his father was already working at the Cape.

He was educated as a structural designer in the former steel capital of the USA, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This profession made him a much sought after person in the fledgling space program. His first assignments were to assist in the design and erection of the important steel missile service towers. Rockets are not launched without these towers and the Cold War was actually hot and heavy in the development of IRBMs and ICBMs by the Soviet Union and the USA. So each missile under development required a service tower.

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As we discussed his early history, I asked him point blank, "What about UFOs and the rockets that were launched? What do you know about this? He looked across the table and stared for a moment. "Well, Paola, upon my arrival here, I was more than a steel designer. My associates were oblivious concerning my US Navy ONI (Office of Naval Intelligence) background and my connection with the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) in Washington, DC. I'm certain you realize that it was the leading scientific civilian investigations agency concerned with alien visits to earth at that time" I interrupted him and said, "Were you a friend with its Director, Major Donald E. Keyhoe? Did he assign you to the Cape?" Clark again hesitated and said, "Yes, I was an associate of the Major, his Associate Director, Dick Hall, Stuart Nixon and others. Yes, he assigned me the responsibility to create the first (and only) NICAP Subcommittee at Cape Canaveral. He did not send me to the launch base.

"Paola, I also served a two year assignment as the Assistant Florida State Director of the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) and created and directed their investigations unit at Kennedy Space Center in the early 1990s. I don't believe anyone else has ever served as director of a NICAP or MUFON Unit at KSC since."

"At first, I was hesitant to accept such a NICAP responsibility because I realized it was possibly going to cause conflict with my aerospace assignments and the top secrecy level the other members of such a unit would be under regarding our various Cape assignments. The Cape was a highly secured USAF Base and in other areas, the US Navy and US Army had authority at their development launch pads."

"I did specifically ask that Major Keyhoe or his staff not disclose any of my Unit members in any documents, books, newsletters, reports, etc. He agreed and only mentioned our Unit-3 once in his book, Aliens from Space. The book was published in the early 1970s."

"The word, UFO was a no, no at the Cape. Later my NICAP, APRO and eventual MUFON Unit involvement did come back to haunt me."

I asked Clark, "It's obvious that you were taking a big chance that your career could be shortened by a connection with NICAP?" He stared, his brow wrinkled and said, "Absolutely, it eventually destroyed my career in 1992". I excitingly asked, "What happened?" Clark continued "I was at that time assigned to a top secret area on the fourth floor of the LCC (Launch Control Center) building and responsible with about six other team members in the monitoring of all activities with the space shuttle fleet and other special orbital activities. We heard and saw everything that happened on orbit. So, many "incidents." The world population must now be informed of the absolute fact that the earth is and has been since the origin of the human race visited, if not created by races from the stars. NASA and all advanced earth governments are aware of this fact. To continue to withhold such astounding information is a travesty of justice as we have been taught to accept by our so-called leaders.