Within To the Stars
Was the Army Agreement Proof of UFO Technology?
The Army research agreement allowed exploratory cooperation, but it was not a contract, endorsement or confirmation of anomalous materials.
On this page
- What the cooperative agreement covered
- Why the Army connection carried symbolic weight
- How supporters and critics interpreted it differently
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Introduction
The 2019 agreement between To the Stars Academy (TTSA) and the U.S. Army became one of the most widely misunderstood episodes in the modern UFO debate. To supporters, it appeared to show that the U.S. military had effectively endorsed TTSA’s claims about exotic materials and advanced technology. To sceptics, it was simply a publicity victory for a company already skilled at attracting attention. The reality lies between those extremes.
The agreement was a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Ground Vehicle Systems Center. A CRADA is a standard legal framework that allows government laboratories and outside organisations to collaborate on research. It is not a procurement contract, does not represent government endorsement of a partner’s scientific claims, and does not imply that the Army had verified TTSA’s alleged anomalous materials or theories.[army.mil]erdc.usace.army.milOpen source on army.mil.
What the cooperative agreement covered
The announced five-year CRADA focused on whether TTSA’s materials and technology concepts might have practical military applications rather than on proving extraordinary UFO claims.
According to TTSA’s announcement, the collaboration involved sharing research related to advanced materials, active camouflage, beamed energy propulsion, quantum physics concepts and so-called “space-time metric engineering” with the Army’s Ground Vehicle Systems Center. The stated objective was to explore technologies that could improve the survivability and performance of Army ground vehicles.[PR Newswire]prnewswire.comPR NewswireTo The Stars Academy of Arts & Science Announces CRADA with The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command to Advance M…
Just as importantly, a CRADA defines how research partners work together rather than promising any particular scientific outcome. Under U.S. technology-transfer law:
- federal laboratories may contribute personnel, facilities and technical expertise;
- private partners may contribute materials, data, funding or equipment;
- the government does not provide research grants through the CRADA itself;
- collaboration does not constitute certification that a partner’s claims are correct.[army.mil]erdc.usace.army.milOpen source on army.mil.
In other words, the Army agreed that TTSA’s materials and ideas were worth examining—not that they had already been validated.
Why the Army connection carried symbolic weight
Although CRADAs are common throughout the U.S. research system, this particular agreement attracted exceptional attention because of TTSA’s unusual public identity.
Unlike a conventional defence contractor, TTSA was widely known for promoting investigations into unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), with founder Tom DeLonge and former intelligence and defence officials arguing that unusual materials might exist outside conventional aerospace knowledge. Against that backdrop, an official agreement with an Army laboratory was easily interpreted by many observers as implicit confirmation that the government considered TTSA’s more extraordinary claims credible.
The symbolism was strengthened by the status of the participating Army organisation. The Ground Vehicle Systems Center forms part of the Combat Capabilities Development Command, the Army’s principal technology development organisation responsible for researching future military capabilities. Its participation inevitably gave the announcement greater visibility than an equivalent partnership with a university or private laboratory would have received.[Army]army.milCombat Capabilities Development CommandCombat Capabilities Development Command - Overview | Article | The United States ArmyFebruary 28, 2019…
However, government laboratories routinely collaborate with universities, start-ups and private firms through CRADAs to investigate uncertain or experimental technologies. Entering such an agreement is not unusual in itself and does not indicate that the government accepts every premise advanced by its partner.[ERDC]erdc.usace.army.milOpen source on army.mil.
Why the agreement was not proof of UFO technology
One of the most persistent misconceptions is that the Army agreement confirmed TTSA possessed recovered UFO materials or revolutionary technology.
Nothing in the publicly announced CRADA said this. The agreement authorised collaborative research into materials and technology concepts that TTSA proposed could have defence applications. It did not state that the materials originated from non-human craft, that they displayed impossible physical properties or that the Army had independently verified any extraordinary performance claims.[PR Newswire]prnewswire.comPR NewswireTo The Stars Academy of Arts & Science Announces CRADA with The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command to Advance M…
This distinction matters because research organisations frequently investigate uncertain hypotheses. Testing an unusual sample or unconventional engineering concept is part of normal scientific practice. A decision to investigate reflects the possibility that useful knowledge might emerge—not a conclusion that the underlying claims are already established.
Subsequent reporting has reinforced this distinction. Publicly released information has not demonstrated that the collaboration produced evidence confirming exotic origins for the materials supplied by TTSA, nor has the Army announced that the research validated claims of non-human technology. Later analyses associated with the programme instead pointed toward conventional manufacturing explanations for the examined specimens rather than evidence of anomalous origin.[Reddit]reddit.comWhat the U.S. Military Now Says About TTSA’s Anomalous ArtifactWhat the U.S. Military Now Says About TTSA’s Anomalous ArtifactMay 29, 2025…
How supporters and critics interpreted it differently
The CRADA quickly became a focal point for competing interpretations of TTSA’s broader mission.
Supporters argued that:
- the Army would not devote resources to obviously frivolous claims;
- military researchers must have seen sufficient technical promise to justify collaboration;
- the agreement suggested TTSA possessed materials or data unavailable elsewhere.
Critics responded that:
- CRADAs are designed precisely to allow exploratory research into uncertain ideas;
- the agreement represented an opportunity to evaluate claims rather than endorse them;
- no public evidence showed the Army had accepted TTSA’s interpretations of its materials.
Both perspectives recognised the agreement as unusual. The disagreement centred on what the unusual partnership actually implied. One side viewed it as indirect validation; the other saw it as evidence only that the Army considered the proposed research worth testing.
What the agreement ultimately meant for TTSA’s public impact
Within TTSA’s broader public influence, the Army agreement was significant less because of its scientific findings than because of its symbolic value.
The partnership reinforced TTSA’s image as an organisation operating closer to official institutions than most civilian UFO groups. Combined with its leadership team of former intelligence and defence officials, the agreement strengthened public perceptions that TTSA occupied a unique position between government, industry and public advocacy.
At the same time, the episode illustrates an important distinction in evaluating government involvement with controversial subjects. Official collaboration is not the same as official endorsement. The Army agreed to investigate proposed technologies under an established research framework, but the available evidence does not show that it confirmed TTSA’s claims about anomalous materials or UFO-derived technology. That nuance is essential to understanding why the agreement attracted so much attention while providing far less evidential weight than many observers initially assumed.
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Endnotes
1.
Source: erdc.usace.army.mil
Link:https://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/Business-With-Us/Partnering-Mechanisms/Cooperative-Research-and-Development-Agreements/
2.
Source: nist.gov
Title: Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) | NIST
Link:https://www.nist.gov/tpo/cooperative-research-and-development-agreement-crada
Source snippet
Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) | NIST...
3.
Source: usace.army.mil
Link:https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Interagency-International-Support/Research-and-Development/
Source snippet
U.S. Army Corps of EngineersU.S. Army Corps of Engineers Headquarters > Missions > Interagency & International Support > Research and Dev...
4.
Source: army.mil
Title: Combat Capabilities Development Command
Link:https://www.army.mil/article/217033/combat_capabilities_development_command_overview
Source snippet
Combat Capabilities Development Command - Overview | Article | The United States ArmyFebruary 28, 2019...
Published: February 28, 2019
5.
Source: army.mil
Title: RDECOM transitioning to Army Futures Command | Article | The United States Army
Link:https://www.army.mil/article/216908/rdecom_transitioning_to_army_futures_command
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RDECOM transitioning to Army Futures Command | Article | The United States Army...
6.
Source: reddit.com
Title: What the U.S. Military Now Says About TTSA’s Anomalous Artifact
Link:https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1kyc1cd
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What the U.S. Military Now Says About TTSA’s Anomalous ArtifactMay 29, 2025...
Published: May 29, 2025
7.
Source: europeafrica.army.mil
Title: mil Justified Accord
Link:https://www.europeafrica.army.mil/JustifiedAccord/?dvpTag=CyberBlitz2019&dvpmoduleid=62908&videoid=724125
8.
Source: army.mil
Link:https://www.army.mil/article/228589/futures_command_forges_academia_partnerships_breaks_ground_on_new_research_hub
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Source: army.mil
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Source: army.mil
Link:https://www.army.mil/article/219575/ccdc_support_to_army_modernization_keeping_pace_with_the_changing_character_of_war
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Source: army.mil
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Source: erdc.usace.army.mil
Link:https://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/Business-With-Us/Old-Partnering-Mechanisms/Testing-Services-Agreements/
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Source: gvsc.devcom.army.mil
Title: mil Collaborate with GVSC
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Link:https://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/Business-With-Us/Technology-Transfer/Partnering-Mechanisms/
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Link:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/to-the-stars-academy-of-arts–science-announces-crada-with-the-us-army-combat-capabilities-development-command-to-advance-materiel-and-technology-innovations-300940211.html
Source snippet
PR NewswireTo The Stars Academy of Arts & Science Announces CRADA with The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command to Advance M...
Additional References
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Source: filtron.co
Title: To The Stars Academy: What Really Happened to [Tom De Longe]({{ ‘tom-de-longe/’ | relative_url }})’s UFO Project
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THE METAMATERIALS MYSTERY One of the most controversial things To The Stars Academy ever did was acquire what th...
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Source: uapedia.ai
Title: dr harold hal puthoff and the arc of uap inquiry
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Harold “Hal” Puthoff and the Arc of UAP Inquiry - UAPediaNovember 29, 2025 — Army to evaluate potential defense applications of any unusu...
Published: November 29, 2025
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Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh0vT6ZEJPQ
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To The Stars Academy US Army CRADA agreement materials Uncovering the Military's Interest in Exotic Materials...
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Title: The Army’s Alien Metal | Art’s Parts, Terahertz Waveguides & The CRADA Audit
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Observations On Potential UAP/UFO Material In Possession for The ADAM Research Project...
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Title: US Army signs deal with UFO researchers to develop incredible new technologies
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The Army's Alien Metal | Art's Parts, Terahertz Waveguides & The CRADA Audit...
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