Introduction This is not a typical book about UFOs. During the last 35 years, I have had ten books published about UFOs and related phenomena. I have written about sightings and cases of UFOs (or UAP) from around the world, with a focus on my home country, Canada. Most books on this topic tend to detail cases and reports in the USA, and most UFO experts on social media and on mainstream news stations tell audiences about "tic tacs," American military videos, Congressional meetings with "whistleblowers," and drones over US airbases. Those aren''t things I will focus upon here. I''ll mention them in passing as I explore the Canadian connections to the usual stories, but I think it will be more interesting to show what''s been happening north of the 49th parallel. Spoiler alert: Canada has been dealing with UFOs too. In fact, if anything, the Canadian government has been remarkably transparent about UFOs in the Great White North.

This book draws on my personal experiences of talking with UFO witnesses, researching cases, traveling across Canada on UFO "digs," and poring over Canadian government documents. I''ve found records of UFOs seen in Canada long before "flying saucers" were officially reported in 1947. I will present Canadian government documents that trace the politics of UFOs within Parliament and backroom caucus meetings. Often, UFO fans ask: "What does the government really know about UFOs?" and "Is there a cover-up?" My work over five decades has given me insight into how these and other questions can be answered. Since I began investigating UFO sightings in the mid-1970s, I have found myself immersed in the UFO subculture. Skeptics and debunkers have criticized me for being too much of a believer, and hardcore believers have accused me of being a debunker. The reality is that I am trying to be truly objective, listening to witnesses and assessing evidence rather than rejecting it outright, but also calling a spade a spade when an observed UFO is clearly explainable as a star, planet, or airplane. And yes, I know I''m calling them UFOs.

This is mostly because of a quite recent perceived impression among academics and politicians that UAP is a better and more objective term. But it''s not. Also, Transport Canada continues to use "UFO" in its incident reports for when pilots see strange lights in the sky or pass just off their wingtips. I''ve always liked a good story, but in ufology, stories are often accepted as fact without critical analysis. Many claims are made on UFO podcasts and tabloid TV by "insiders" who seem to know many secrets that can''t be shared because--well, they''re secret. ("I wish I could tell you where the intact alien craft is hidden, but.") Even so-called whistleblowers can''t offer any proof of their claims--but their stories are certainly entertaining. I''m not going to do that.

Everything in this book is supported by official records, many of them from government agencies. For many, I even provide full citations and links to where they can be found. I''m not just telling tales out of school. I''m presenting facts about UFOs and UAP, because there is far too much misinformation out there that is much more accessible than what''s here in black and white. There''s also very little mention of aliens (or the more popular term now: Non-Human Intelligence) in this book. My academic background is in astronomy education, so I could certainly talk about the possibility of extraterrestrial visitation with some authority, but I won''t. There''s no incontrovertible proof that aliens are visiting Earth, but there''s a lot of proof that the Canadian government has been taking the subject of UFOs very seriously for many years. Furthermore, the Canadian government has been doing all the things that private organizations and governments in other countries are getting kudos for doing today, like scientific studies and monitoring the sky for anomalous objects.

I know this, because I have been asked by official agencies, police, politicians, and scientists to help understand what UFOs really are, and what to do about them. Few have known my true involvement until now. What''s been going on about UFOs in Canada? Read on.