Roderick Castle

Military Service

Roderick John Castle served as a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps, assigned to VMA-513 (Marine Attack Squadron 513). In March 1997, he was participating in the Hunter Warrior Advanced Warfighting Experiment, a classified military exercise conducted in Southern California from February 14 to March 14, 1997.

The 1997 29 Palms Encounter

On March 13, 1997, during an overnight crash retrieval training mission near Emerson Dry Lake at the 29 Palms Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Castle and his fellow Marines were directed to investigate unidentified flare activity in the desert. When the team crested a hill in the early morning darkness, they encountered an enormous equilateral black triangular craft hovering only 150–200 feet above the ground. The structure was estimated at 200–300 feet on each side—far larger than any known military aircraft of the era.

Below the triangle, positioned on the desert floor approximately 150–200 feet from Castle's position, stood a coordinated contingent of roughly 30 heavily armed personnel in all-black tactical gear, accompanied by 5–6 military vehicles. These individuals bore no visible insignia, name tags, or identifying markings, and their commanding presence suggested a specialized response team that had been positioned to intercept the craft or its retrieval. Castle's observation suggests either a classified human-made craft test or a genuine non-human technological object already in U.S. government custody or awareness.

Decades of Silence

Following the encounter, Castle was reportedly forced into silence through military authority and classification protocols. He has described the psychological toll of this decades-long suppression as substantial, including PTSD symptoms related to the encounter itself and the inability to discuss or process the experience publicly. Like many military witnesses of unusual phenomena, Castle faced institutional pressure and the stigma surrounding UAP claims within defense establishments. For nearly three decades, he remained publicly silent despite holding detailed firsthand knowledge of an event inconsistent with known aerospace technology.

2026 Disclosure

In May 2026, Castle broke his silence by testifying at a major UAP disclosure press conference held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., organized by The Disclosure Project to mark the 25th anniversary of its historic 2001 briefing. This event gathered military, intelligence, and government whistleblowers to present testimony and evidence regarding UAP phenomena and alleged government cover-ups. Castle's account, delivered publicly and on the record, provided specific operational and technical details consistent with documented military UAP encounters but previously unavailable to researchers and the public.

Prior to his National Press Club appearance, Castle made contact with UAP whistleblower David Grusch, met with Congressman Eric Burlison (R-Missouri), a vocal advocate for UAP transparency, and collaborated with Steven Greer, founder of The Disclosure Project. These connections positioned Castle as part of the broader 2026 disclosure wave driven by government transparency initiatives and congressional pressure for declassification of UAP-related materials.

Significance

Castle's testimony carries the weight of military credentials, specific operational details, and contemporaneous corroboration from fellow VMA-513 Marines present at the incident. His 2026 public disclosure occurs within a documented wave of official government releases (the PURSUE program) and congressional hearings, lending institutional context to his claims. However, the 1997 incident itself remains officially unacknowledged by the Department of Defense or Marine Corps, and independent verification of the craft's origin and nature is not yet available. Castle's willingness to break nearly three decades of institutional silence despite personal risk establishes him as a significant voice in the modern disclosure movement.