Many Americans are aware of the famous retired Air Force Major General William Neil McCasland who mysteriously went missing during a supposed hike from his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico. McCasland is, or was, an astronautical engineer who allegedly knows/knew a lot about space exploration both American and alien. His disappearance made national news.
But while his story is odd in and of itself, it gets weirder. His disappearance follows 8 previous odd disappearances and deaths of some truly brainy Americans! That’s right, 9 people connected with NASA, Los Alamos missile lab, MIT, and the Air Force are either dead or missing in the last 33 months! These people, either dead or missing were some of the best and brightest America had. They didn’t work on small scale projects, but on projects such as defensive/offensive missiles, asteroid deflection from earth, nuclear fusion, and UFO encounters. Some say they were reverse engineering an alien space craft found on American soil.
“William McCasland’s ex-colleague went missing months before him | Elizabeth Vargas Reports” – NewsNation
That former colleague of General McCasland was a lady named Monica Reza. She was an aerospace engineer who was a co‑inventor of the Mondaloy alloy used in rocket engines today. She went missing while hiking in Angeles National Forest (California) in June 2025, only her beanie and lip balm were found.
Another American woman to go missing was Melissa Casias. She was an Administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory. She disappeared mysteriously near Highway 518 (New Mexico) in late June 2025.
Here is a rundown of who has gone missing or been found dead:
1. Michael D. Hicks (NASA JPL): DART asteroid deflection, comets/NEAT/Dawn/Deep Space 1. (age 59, died July 30, 2023 cause undisclosed).
2. Monica Reza (JPL): advanced rocket materials. (age 60, missing June 22, 2025 on a hike).
3. Frank Maiwald (JPL): planetary detection/life signs, (age 61, died July 4, 2024 cause undisclosed).
4. Nuno Loureiro (MIT fusion): nuclear fusion, (age 47 shot dead December 15, 2025).
5. Carl Grillmair (Caltech/NASA): asteroid tracking, NEOWISE/NEO Surveyor, (age 67, murdered February 16, 2026).
6. William McCasland (Ret. AF Gen): space/rocket programs., (age 68, missing Feb 27, 2026 on a hike).
7. Anthony Chavez (Los Alamos): retired staff. Missing 2025, (age 78, went missing May 8, 2025).
8. Melissa Casias (Los Alamos): administration top clearance, (age 53, missing June 26, 2025).
9. Jason Thomas (Novartis): investigator, (age 45, missing December 12, 2025, body recovered from Lake Quannapowitt March 17, 2026).
CONCLUSION:
There are all kinds of stories ranging from alien space craft being reverse engineered by these individuals, to classified information being leaked, to enemy nations wanting their work stopped.
We do not know the motives for their deaths and disappearances, but we do know law enforcement, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have expressed concern over the what seems to be the targeted loss of America’s brain trust and how it seems to be more than a coincidence.
“UFO mystery: Stable of deceased, missing scientists grows | Jesse Weber Live” – NewsNation
What I find most disturbing is the timeline of these events and how highly accomplished every single one of these missing American men and women were.
The chart below was offered from an unidentified source on social media platforms. It shows relationships between the individuals in this story.
© 2026 by Mark S. Schwendau
Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Thinking Conservative.
