The unexplained disappearance of a retired Air Force major general who worked at a military base closely linked with UFO research has been branded a ‘grave national security crisis’, after a massive search effort has failed to locate him.
William “Neil” McCasland, 68, was last seen leaving his home on Quail Run Court in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at around 11am on February 27. Investigators say he walked out the front door and then seemingly vanished, with no clear indication yet of where he went or what happened next.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI have continued working the case, but authorities have not announced any confirmed trail beyond his departure from the house. Officials say they have expanded their efforts substantially—including the use of undisclosed “advanced technologies”—but have not identified any sign of foul play.
Detectives and federal agents have described McCasland as an “avid outdoorsman,” and one working theory is that he may have headed into nearby terrain. Authorities have asked anyone who was in the Northeast Heights area or around the Sandia foothills on February 27 or 28 to report anything they noticed, particularly sightings or relevant recordings.
“Our priority is finding Mr. McCasland safely,” said Sheriff John Allen. “Our investigators and search teams are working continuously, and we’re coordinating closely with our local, state, and federal partners.
“We’re asking the public to help by checking and preserving any security camera footage from the area and reporting any information immediately. We will share confirmed updates as soon as we can while protecting the integrity of the investigation.”
Even with hiking considered a possibility, the sheriff’s office has said it is not narrowing the inquiry too quickly, emphasizing that investigators are reviewing every reasonable explanation for how McCasland could have disappeared.
Concern has also grown because of McCasland’s past work. Investigative journalist Ross Coulthart has argued the case has serious national security implications, pointing to the retired general’s decades-long career in highly classified programs and the breadth of sensitive knowledge he would have accumulated.
Speaking on his Reality Check podcast, Coulthard added: “If you were Russia, or you were China, God forbid, General Neil McCasland would be one of your targets. So I sincerely hope that’s not the case.”
McCasland’s resume places him among a small circle of people with deep insight into advanced military systems. After earning a doctorate from MIT, he became assistant director of the Office of Special Projects-13 in California and went on to hold a series of senior roles tied to cutting-edge defense technology.
Across later assignments, he worked on programs that helped convert once-speculative capabilities into operational tools. One project he oversaw eventually helped shape advanced satellite imagery used to observe the planet’s surface in extensive detail.
In the late 1990s, he was selected as chief engineer for the Global Positioning System (GPS), a Department of Defense initiative that would go on to reshape both modern warfare and everyday consumer life.
His career then moved into even more specialized territory, including leadership of the Space Based Laser Project Office, followed by command of the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate—based in New Mexico, a state long associated in popular culture with UFO lore.
Near the end of his service, he was promoted to director of special programs at the Pentagon, a role associated with access to some of the government’s most sensitive research portfolios.
Coulthart has said McCasland’s final assignment was particularly sensitive: a move to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, where he led the Air Force Research Laboratory and oversaw future weapons work valued in the billions.
Wright-Patterson has also long been the subject of rumors involving alleged extraterrestrial materials—claims often tied to stories about the Roswell incident. Coulthart suggested that amid signals during President Trump’s time in office that more information could be revealed, McCasland supported declassification efforts.
“The timing is screechingly relevant,” Coulthart said. “The fact that Gen. Neil McCasland has disappeared off the face of the earth is a grave national security crisis for the United States of America. This is a man with some of the most sensitive secrets of the United States in his head.”
In a separate public request for assistance, local sheriffs urged anyone who may have seen McCasland—or unknowingly recorded him—to come forward, stressing that even small details can matter in a missing-person investigation.
In an appeal to the public for help in their search, local sheriffs said: “We are asking for your help in finding him. We believe there are people who have information valuable to locating Neil who have not yet spoken to law enforcement.
“This could include people who have been in the Sandia mountains and may have seen Neil or captured him on a GoPro or other recording device, specifically on Friday, February 27 or Saturday, February 28.
“Sometimes people have information but do not come forward because they feel it may not be important. Regardless of how insignificant you think your information might be, or whether you think we are already aware of it, please contact us and allow us to make that determination.
“If you have any information, text BCSO to 847411 or call our Missing Persons Unit at (505) 468-7070.”