Editing Milton William Cooper (section)

==Early life, military service, education, and employment==
Little is known about Cooper's background beyond his own accounts. He recounted being raised in a [[military family]] and graduating from [[Yamato High School]] in Japan in 1961.<ref>Cooper, Milton William. ''[[Behold a Pale Horse]]''. Light Technology Publishing, 1991, pp. 13–14.</ref> He claimed to have enlisted in the [[United States Air Force]] that fall, receiving training at [[Lackland Air Force Base]] and the Aircraft & Missile Pneudraulics School at [[Amarillo Air Force Base]].<ref>Cooper, pp. 14–15.</ref> He was assigned to the [[Strategic Air Command]], working with [[B-52 bombers]], [[KC-135 refueling aircraft]], and [[Minuteman missiles]] under a [[Security clearance|Secret-level clearance]].<ref>Cooper, p. 14.</ref> While stationed at [[Sheppard Air Force Base]] with the 495th Bomb Wing, Cooper socialized off-duty with sergeants who, he claimed, told him about being attached to a [[UFO retrieval program|special unit]] that [[UFO retrieval|recovered]] [[UFO crash landing|crashed]] [[flying saucers]]. He stated that he did not believe these stories at the time.

Cooper described witnessing the [[assassination of John F. Kennedy]] on live television while on duty as [[Charge of Quarters]] (CQ) for the Field Maintenance Squadron. He detailed the tense three days that followed, including the triggering of a [[DEFCON|DEFCON Two]] alert.<ref>Cooper, pp. 15–16.</ref> He left the Air Force with an honorable discharge in 1965.

He then joined the [[United States Navy]] and was assigned to the [[USS Tiru (SS-416)]], a [[submarine]] stationed at [[Pearl Harbor]]. During a test dive off the coast of [[Oahu]], Cooper and the crew allegedly [[USS Tiru UFO sighting|witnessed]] a [[List of sightings of UFOs claimed to be more than 100 meters long|massive]] UFO [[transmedium UFO|emerging from the ocean]], tumbling, and ascending into the clouds.<ref>Cooper, pp. 18–20.</ref> Following his submarine service, Cooper was transferred to the [[USS Tombigbee (AOG-11)]], a gasoline tanker. Later, he attended the [[Naval Security and Intelligence School]] and trained as an Internal Security Specialist.<ref>Cooper, pp. 21–22.</ref>

During his deployment to [[Vietnam]], Cooper claimed to have commanded a patrol boat and alleged witnessing significant [[UFO activity]], including reports of [[UFO light attack|mysterious blue light attacks]], [[Mass abduction#Vietnam War|village disappearances]], and [[Human mutilation using exotic technology|mutilations of soldiers]].<ref>Cooper, pp. 25–26.</ref> At the end of the war, while working in [[Naval Intelligence]], Cooper served on a briefing team for Admiral [[Bernard A. Clarey]].<ref name="Barkun2006">{{cite book|author=Michael Barkun|title=A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LiwjVsNBw-cC&pg=PA60|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|year=2006|isbn=978-0520248120|page=60}}</ref> His final assignment was at the headquarters of the [[Commander in Chief of the Pacific Fleet]] (CINCPACFLT) in Hawaii, where he claimed to have received a Top Secret, [[Q clearance|Q]], [[Sensitive Compartmented Information]] clearance.<ref>Cooper, pp. 26–27.</ref> Cooper stated that during this time, while serving on the CINCPACFLT Intelligence Briefing Team, he learned details implicating the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] in the Kennedy assassination, alleging that a [[William Greer|Secret Service agent]] in the presidential limousine fired the fatal shot.

Public records confirm only a period of service in the Navy, where he held the rank of [[Petty officer second class]] and participated in a tour of duty in [[Vietnam]], during which he received two service medals.<ref>{{cite web|title=Milton William Cooper|url=https://aad.archives.gov/aad/display-partial-records.jsp?f=4254&mtch=2&q=milton+william+cooper&cat=all&dt=1784&tf=F|website=AAD Archives|access-date=November 24, 2014}}</ref>

According to his account in the foreword of ''Behold a Pale Horse'', after his military career, Cooper attended a junior college in California, earning a degree in photography.<ref>Cooper, p. 28.</ref> He worked at technical and vocational schools, including serving as Chief Instructor at the [[Coastal School of Deep Sea Diving]] and leading the Mixed Gas Deep Saturation Diving Department. He also taught underwater photography at the [[College of Oceaneering]]. Cooper later held administrative roles at several institutions, including [[Airco Technical Institute]], [[Adelphi Business College]], [[Pacific Coast Technical Institute]], and [[National Technical College]].

{{Infobox insider account
| name = Milton William Cooper <!-- Full name of the alleged insider, if known. -->
| image = <!-- No confirmed image available. -->
| caption = Author of ''Behold a Pale Horse'' and alleged Naval Intelligence insider <!-- A brief caption describing the image or role of the subject. -->
| other_names = Bill Cooper <!-- Any known aliases or other names the subject goes by. -->
| role = Naval Intelligence specialist <!-- The role or title most associated with the subject's alleged activities. -->
| affiliation = [[United States Navy]] <!-- Organizations the subject was officially involved with, i.e., the "cover" role or affiliation. -->
| affiliation_in_practice = Intelligence briefing on alleged classified extraterrestrial programs <!-- Actual or de facto (alleged) role or affiliation. -->
| bureaucratic_obfuscation = Classified intelligence roles <!-- Mechanisms used to obscure their true role, such as how it was ensured that their salary would be paid without the true source of the money being traceable. -->
| status = Deceased <!-- Current or last known status of the subject (e.g., Active, Retired, Deceased). -->
| status_date = 2001 <!-- Date of the stated status, if known. -->
| experience_date = 1965–1975 <!-- Timeframe during which the subject's alleged experiences occurred. -->
| experience_location = [[USS Tiru (SS-416)]], [[CINCPACFLT headquarters]], Hawaii <!-- Known or suspected locations where experiences took place. -->
| experience_type = Naval Intelligence briefing, UFO sightings <!-- Type or nature of experiences that give them "insider" credibility. -->
| technology_encountered = <!-- Technologies the subject claims to have encountered, if applicable. -->
| beings_encountered =  <!-- Types of beings allegedly encountered by the subject, if applicable. -->
| alleged_activities = Briefing on classified programs <!-- Activities the subject is alleged to have engaged in. -->
| claims = Government involvement in cover-ups of [[Agreements between NHIBs and terrestrial human organizations|agreements with aliens]]<!-- Notable claims made by or attributed to the subject. -->
| physical_evidence = <!-- Physical evidence the subject has presented, if any. -->
| disclosure_type = <!-- Type of disclosure (e.g., whistleblower, leak, voluntary or coerced, controlled disclosure, other, etc.). -->
| retaliation = Alleged attempts on his life <!-- Alleged retaliatory actions taken against in response to the subject's attempted or actual disclosure. -->
| first_public_account_date = 1988, [[Paranet]]; 1991, ''[[Behold a Pale Horse]]''<!-- Date of the first public account by the subject regarding their inside knowledge. -->
| suppression_of_evidence = Classified naval records <!-- Alleged suppression of evidence related to the subject's claims, including evidence of the subject's insider status. -->
| suppression_of_testimony = Alleged intimidation and murder attempts <!-- Alleged suppression of the subject's personal account, i.e., attempts to discourage from speaking publicly, e.g., threats, attempts to discredit, unfair criminal charges. -->
| suppression_of_corroborative_testimony = Unknown <!-- Alleged suppression or attempts to discourage corroborative witnesses' testimony, attempts to silence. -->
| public_accounts = ''Behold a Pale Horse'' (1991); public lectures <!-- Publications, interviews, or public accounts related to the subject. -->
| known_for = Allegations of UFO cover-ups and secret government programs <!-- What the subject is notably recognized for. -->
| notable_contributions = [[grand conspiracy]] theories regarding [[NHIB|alien]]s controlling the [[Illuminati]] (who in turn control much of everything through [[secret societies]]) <!-- Key contributions to public disclosure/understanding of paranormal, unverified concepts/ technologies, corruption/major wrongdoing of public concern, etc., that the subject is recognized for. -->
| notable_works = ''[[Behold a Pale Horse]]'' (1991) <!-- Significant works or publications attributed to the subject. -->
| attempts_to_debunk = Unknown <!-- Known attempts to debunk the subject's claims. -->
| website = <!-- No confirmed website. -->
| signature = <!-- No confirmed signature available. -->
| footnotes = <!-- Cooper’s claims remain controversial and lack corroborative evidence. Additional notes or relevant references specific to the subject. -->
}}