Simulcast on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter & Rumble | Thursday, October 09, 2025 @ 8:00 PM EDT (-5GMT) | Friday on KGRA Digital Broadcasting @ 6:00 PM ET
Is the famous “Tic Tac” a home-grown technology? In this deep-dive, Martin Willis sits down with mathematician and technologist Joshua Bertrand to explore the cutting edge—and century-long history—of America’s lighter-than-air programs, vacuum-based aerogels, and the black-budget pathways that may intersect with the Nimitz Incident. Bertrand (B.Math, University of Waterloo; Computer Science honors; former EA/industry engineer) has spent nearly a decade cross-referencing open sources, defense programs, and material-science breakthroughs.
We cover:
Aerogel & laser-induced graphene: printing electronics into polyimide hulls; rigid “vacuum balloons”; station-keeping swarms; multi-medium propulsion via thermal pumping; stealth & low-drag profiles.
Nimitz (2004): training range context, multiple simultaneous objects, the speed “assumption,” and a test-range scenario including LASH (Littoral Airborne Sensor, Hyperspectral) tethered balloons launched from subs.
Project Walrus & cargo airships: how DARPA’s hybrid UL lighter-than-air efforts evolved into modern platforms—and why Congress lost oversight.
Materials & provenance: Kistler, Monsanto, Los Alamos; tektites; and a MUFON-handled Russian aerogel sample with intriguing lab notes.
We also discuss technology leakage, Five Eyes contractor pipelines, and why transparent congressional oversight matters.
BIO: Joshua Bertrand is a Canadian technology researcher. Joshua graduated with a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo in 2002. He spent 20 years working as a database storage expert for Reuters, Cisco Systems, Electronic Arts, and SAP Canada. In his retirement, he researches Aerogels, Lighter-than-Air technologies and their intersections with the UAP/UFO Phenomenon. He can be reached on X/Twitter at the account korea_ufo
“LASH” : https://x.com/korea_ufo/status/1811627408757252509
Archived article describing the testing in San Diego: https://web.archive.org/web/20040216005217/https://www.signonsandiego.com/news/military/20030910-9999_1m10blimp.html
LA Times article corroborating the program: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-sep-13-me-blimp13-story.html
DoD paper on the hyperspectral sensor: https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA434124.pdf
CIA & DoD deploying balloons from submarines as far back as 1955: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP78-03639A001200020001-9.pdf
