The Disappearance of Maj. Gen. Neil McCasland

William 'Neil' McCasland (68), retired U.S. Air Force Major General. Former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson AFB, former commander of the Phillips Research Site at Kirtland AFB, and former Director of Special Programs in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (AT&L). 5'11", 160 lbs, blue eyes, white hair. Last seen at his Albuquerque, NM home on the morning of February 27, 2026.

Albuquerque sits in the middle of America's most concentrated aerospace and nuclear-weapons research corridor — Kirtland AFB, Sandia and Los Alamos National Labs, the Air Force Research Laboratory's directed-energy directorate, and the Phillips Research Site are all within a short drive. McCasland disappeared in early 2026 as the U.S. government was deep into its post-AARO push around UAP transparency and as several former senior officers were publicly speaking about classified aerospace programs.

No suspect has been publicly named. Investigators are working three broad scenarios: (1) Medical/cognitive event — a colleague reported McCasland had been 'foggy' in the weeks beforehand, raising the possibility of a wandering or self-harm event in the desert terrain around Albuquerque. (2) Targeted disappearance — the missing handgun, wallet, and continued absence have fueled speculation that he left deliberately. (3) Third-party involvement — given his career portfolio, online communities have raised the possibility of foul play tied to classified work; law enforcement has not endorsed this.

If the disappearance is voluntary or self-directed, motives could include declining health, depression, or a desire to step away. If involuntary, the speculative motives advanced online focus on his access to classified aerospace and special-access programs — including the 2016 WikiLeaks emails in which Tom DeLonge described McCasland as 'very, very aware' of UFO-related material and as the former commander of 'the laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base where the Roswell wreckage was shipped.' McCasland never publicly confirmed or denied DeLonge's characterization.

The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office issued a Silver Alert the day of the disappearance and opened a Missing Persons Unit case. Within two weeks the FBI joined the investigation, citing McCasland's former clearances and the unusual evidentiary profile. Searches were expanded from the Quail Run Court NE neighborhood in Albuquerque to a McCasland family property in Colorado. Sheriff John Allen and FBI Special Agent Justin Garris have held joint press conferences but have declined to characterize the case as either voluntary or criminal.

Cell phone and prescription glasses left in the home — atypical for a planned departure. A personal handgun and wallet missing — atypical for a wander-off. No vehicle taken; he left on foot within a roughly one-hour window while his wife was at an appointment. Doorbell, neighborhood, and traffic-camera footage along plausible walking routes is being analyzed. No body, blood, or scene evidence has been disclosed.

Disciplined career officer with an astronautical-engineering background and a 33-year service record. Known to colleagues as methodical and security-conscious. The reported pre-disappearance 'mental fog' is the single biggest divergence from his lifelong baseline and is the anchor for the medical-event scenario.

McCasland's name surfaced publicly in the 2016 WikiLeaks release of John Podesta's emails, in correspondence with Blink-182 guitarist and UAP advocate Tom DeLonge. DeLonge described the general as a key adviser on his disclosure project and credited him with helping assemble its advisory board. Earlier, in a 2014 documentary clip, McCasland was asked about Bob Lazar's S-4/Area 51 claims and offered a famously ambiguous reply. His command of AFRL at Wright-Patterson — long the center of 'Hangar 18' folklore — is the reason this thread persists in the public conversation around his disappearance.