From staging the moon landing to celebrity clones, many conspiracy theories are floating out there.
Some are more outlandish than others, but they all draw attention on the internet. As a result, most people believe in at least one conspiracy theory.
That theory is Philip (Phil) Schneider’s version of the Dulce base catastrophe for some people.
Who was Phil Schneider? What did he claim happened in Dulce? Is there any truth to his claims? Let’s find out!
Phil Schneider: Quick Bio
Before we get to the weird claims and conspiracy theories, let’s first cover some basic facts about Schneider and his family:
- Birthdate: April 23, 1947
- Birthplace: Bethesda, Montgomery County, Maryland
- Parents: Otto Oscar Schneider (1906–1993) and Sarah Dee “Sally” Waston
- Spouse: Cynthia Drayer (married in 1987 and divorced around 1990)
- Children: Marie
- Background: Structural engineer and self-taught metallurgist/geologist
- Date of Death: January 11, 1996
5 of Phil Schneider’s Most Controversial Claims
In the mid-1990s, Philip Schneider did a tour of lectures in the US as an alleged whistleblower involved in what he called “black budget” programs.
Schneider’s talks would cover more conspiracy theories/claims than you could count—underground military bases, stealth technology, weather control, alien treaties, and so on.
But perhaps the most popular claims that come to mind when you mention Phil Schneider are:
1. His Father Had Lots of Secrets
According to Phil Schneider, his father made a shocking deathbed confession.
Phil claims that Oscar Schneider was a German U-boat commander who was captured during WWII and turned to the US Third Army. He was then repatriated to the US Naval Intelligence.
Phil believes his father was an MD doctor and a “master machinist” who could turn pieces of metal into anything from guns to flying instruments. He firmly believes that his father was involved in building the USS Nautilus.
However, Phil also claims his father was involved in secret projects, from the Philadelphia experiment to thermonuclear weapons. Overall, the claims paint Oscar Schneider as a sort of Paperclip scientist.
Of course, these claims have some issues, but I’ll get to the counterclaims in a minute.
2. Phil Schneider Was Involved in Building/Expanding DUMBs
If you’ve read about conspiracy theories and gone down rabbit holes, odds are, you’ve heard about DUMBs before. But if you haven’t, let me give you a quick rundown.
DUMBs stand for Deep Underground Military Bases. Some people believe the government has secret bases underground for all sorts of reasons and “black projects.”
Phil Schneider believed DUMBs were real and claimed to have played a role in a construction project in one base in Dulce, New Mexico, back in the 70s.
Supposedly, the base goes seven levels underground. Yet, that’s hardly the weirdest and most unbelievable part about Schneider’s story.
3. Phil Schneider Saw, Fought, and Killed Aliens
Phil’s story covers the alleged Dulce base catastrophe, which is supposed to be a literal fight between humans and aliens.
He said he had to go down a hole to check rock samples, but things went incredibly wrong. He saw a 7-foot gray entity with a terrible stench as he was lowered.
Yes, Phil Schneider believes he saw a smelly, gray alien down there!
Then, as Phil’s story goes, he pulled out his gun and shot two aliens down. So, at least those ETs were mortal.
However, Phil doesn’t come out of this “fight” unscathed. He claimed that one of those aliens hit him with a blue beam radiating from his gray chest.
Side Note: During lectures, Phil Schneider sometimes showed the audience his wounds as proof that the Dule base catastrophe happened.
Phil Schneider says he was lucky to be one of the few survivors since more than 60 people lost their lives in Dulce.
4. Massive Budgets Go to Building DUMBs
Although Schneider’s main story revolves around the Dulce base, he believed the issue ran more profound than that. He claimed there were hundreds of city-sized bases in the US!
According to his estimates, trillions of dollars go to funding black budget programs like that every year.
5. Aliens Are Living Among Us
Schneider would usually bring photos and documents to his lectures to prove his statement was faithful to the audience.
One time, he produced a photograph that supposedly showed a human-looking alien who’s been working for the Pentagon for 58 years.
3 Counterclaims to Discredit Phil Schneider
Phil Schneider’s stories sound pretty far-fetched and outlandish. For some folks, these claims are enough to cast doubt on his sanity and mental faculties.
Others decided to take a closer look into Schneider’s life. As it happens, there were a few potential problems and discrepancies worth pointing out.
Here are the three most shocking counterclaims I came across:
1. Alleged Schizophrenia Diagnoses
Some documents about Schneider’s mental health came to light. In these documents, Schneider is said to be a former patient at Dammasch State Hospital.
His diagnoses? Schizophrenia.
He’s even said to have resorted to self-mutilating before. If true, that could explain the delusions and the wounds.
2. Radioactive Materials Report
The same documents also shed light on when Schneider was investigated for allegedly owning radioactive materials.
An acquaintance had reported him.
3. Timeline and Family Tree Inconsistencies
Some people took a deep dive into Schneider’s family, looking to confirm his claims about his father.
What is particularly surprising is that when people traced Phil’s family tree, they realized that his grandfather most likely came to the US long before the war.
Records on Geneanet also show that Oscar Schneider was born in San Francisco, California. If true, that alone could discredit the whole German U-boat commander claim.
Controversies About Phil Schneider’s Death
In January 1996, Phil Schneider was found dead in his apartment in Wilsonville, Oregon. The controversies didn’t stop after his death at all.
Many people (including Phil’s ex-wife) believed that he was killed and that there was an attempt to cover up his death, labeling it as a suicide.
Philip Schneider’s ex-wife wrote a lengthy rebuttal letter, listing the reasons why she firmly believes Schneider didn’t commit suicide.
For instance, she cites the lack of a suicide note and Phil being vocal about his fears of being murdered. She says the lecture materials might have been taken from his apartment.
Documenting Schneider’s Claims and Lectures After His Death
In 2021, Darcy Weir and Richard Dolan released a documentary titled The Underground about Schneider and DUMBs, using lots of archived footage from the lectures.
But this wasn’t the only time Schneinder’s claims were repeated after his death. His archived footage was also used in the following TV series:
| Year | Series Name | Episode Title |
| 2012–2014 | Unsealed: Conspiracy Files | “New World Order” |
| 2014 | Hangar 1: The UFO Files | “Underground Bases” |
| 2014 | Unsealed: Alien Files | “Alien Origins,” Alien Achilles Heel,” and “UFO Zones” |
| 2019 | Ancient Aliens | “The Reptilian Agenda” |
| 2020 | Proof | “Denver Airport Conspiracy” |
Final Thoughts
Years and years after Phil Schneider’s death, it’s still hard to say what his lectures were all about.
On the one hand, skeptics believe Schneider’s life and death create a sad story of a mentally ill man who was consumed by delusions and fabricated tales. On the other hand, there are actual believers in Schneider’s claims.
What do you think? Do you believe in the existence of gray aliens in underground military bases? If not, is there any conspiracy theory that sounds plausible to you?