1986 · São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goiás and Brasília airspace, Brazil
Brazil's "Night of the UFOs"
FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan) · page 1 of 134 · war.gov file, via the ufotransparency.com mirror
When19-20 May 1986, about 20:15 to 00:30 local (2315Z to 0330Z)
WhereSão Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goiás and Brasília airspace, Brazil
Backing6 independent
Witnesses3 named
Evidenceofficial records, sensor data
On the night of 19 May 1986, Brazilian air traffic radar in the south-east and centre of the country picked up unidentified echoes. Tower controllers and the crew of a civil aircraft saw lights. The Brazilian Air Force (FAB) scrambled F-5E fighters from Santa Cruz (Rio) and Mirage F-103 fighters from Anápolis (Goiás). Several pilots got radar contacts. One F-103 pilot reported a radar lock on a target that pulled away even when he was supersonic. Most pilots saw no object, or saw only lights. The Air Minister, Brig. Octávio Moreira Lima, held a televised press conference with the pilots and controllers on 23 May. The Air Defence Command (COMDA) sent an occurrence report dated 2 June 1986 to the Armed Forces General Staff. It concluded that the phenomena were "solid" and reflected "a certain intelligence". That report has been public since 2009 at the Arquivo Nacional. A more cautious CINDACTA I report of 27 May 1986 said the radar returns were only "plots" that never formed tracks. No explanation has been demonstrated.
Evidence, in date order (6)
- May 1986Cap. Armindo Souza Viriato de Freitas (F-103 pilot)witnessradar lock on a target that pulled away at supersonic speed FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan)
- 19 May 19862S Sergio Mota da Silva (SJC tower)witnesstower operator saw the lights FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan)
- 23 May 1986Brig. Octávio Moreira Lima (Air Minister)officialtelevised press conference with the pilots and controllers FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan)
- 27 May 1986CINDACTA I (Ten. Francisco Hugo Nunes Freitas)sensor datacontrollers' report of about 20 radar plots FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan)
- 28 May 1986Ten. Kleber Caldas Marinho (F-5E pilot)witnessradar contact at 10-12 NM and coloured lights FAB CENDOC Envelope 08 – 1986 (mirror of the AN/FAB scan)
- 2 Jun 1986COMDA (Brazilian Air Defence Command)officialofficial report concluding the phenomena were 'solid' and showed 'a certain intelligence' Arquivo Nacional, ARX.0.0.249 (COMDA report, 2 June 1986)
How plausible · Very high
Named fighter pilots, controllers and the Air Minister went on record; the Air Defence report concluded the objects were solid and showed intelligence.
- ●●Access Direct observation or instruments.
- ●●Cost of speaking Named on record.
- ●●No gain sought Nothing to gain.
- ●●Consistent over time Stable over time.
- ●●Character record Trained professionals.
- ●●Independent convergence Independent sources agree.
Plausibility weighs how well an account fits where secrecy hides the documents by design, so missing records never count against it. Strength measures what is documented. Assessed 2026-10-23.
On the record
- COMDA occurrence report (ARX.0.0.249, 2 June 1986). It notes the radar system was oriented to air traffic control, with manual track initiation, and was deficient for air defence. Timeline, roughly: 2315Z: São José dos Campos (SJC) tower sees lights. 0008Z: PT-MBZ, the EMBRAER aircraft, reports. 0039Z: Santa Cruz aircraft alerted. 0110Z: APP-AN (Anápolis) echoes. Then further alerts. The Anápolis aircraft had 5 radar presentations, the closest at 2 NM, with zigzag movement, and the target pulled away even at supersonic speed. "13 plots" behind the second Santa Cruz aircraft. Landings between 0237Z and 0330Z. "Final considerations" list characteristics a-f: echoes seen at the same time by ground radar and by the interceptors' radar; speeds from subsonic to supersonic, and hovering; altitudes from below FL050 to above FL400; white, green or red lights, or none; abrupt acceleration; turns of constant or indefinite radius. Conclusion (quoted): "os fenômenos são sólidos e refletem de certa forma inteligência, pela capacidade de acompanhar e manter distância dos observadores como também voar em formação, não forçosamente tripulados."
- CINDACTA I report (CENDOC Env. 08, pp. 131-134), 27 May 1986, by 1º Ten. Francisco Hugo Nunes Freitas (chief controller, COpM) to the COpM I information section. Witnesses include the SJC tower operator, 2S Sergio Mota da Silva. Aircraft involved: JB17, JB07 (13 plots), JG116 (5 presentations, "JUDITE" radar lock, 2 miles), JG98 and JG107. Its conclusion is more cautious. The ground radar returns were all "PLOTS", which "não chegaram a constituir pistas" (never became tracks). Anápolis's data did not match the Gama radars. About 20 plots in total.
- Pilot reports (firsthand, written; CENDOC Env. 08): Ten. Kleber Caldas Marinho (1st F-5E, Santa Cruz), report of 28 May 1986, pp. 35-36. Radar contact at 10-12 NM. The target moved from 1-2 o'clock low to 12 o'clock high, between FL170 and FL330. He saw green, red and white lights, and noted anomalies on his HSI, ADF and DME. Cap. Márcio Brisolla Jordão (2nd F-5E), p. 37. Clear sky, "lua cheia" (full moon). No visual on the radar contacts; he later saw a red light toward the sea. Cap. Armindo Souza Viriato de Freitas (1st F-103, call sign JG116), Anápolis report, pp. 38-42. Radar lock ("JUDITH") at 13 NM, with the target in zigzag. At 6 NM, while flying at Mach 1.05, the range opened rapidly. The closest approach was 2 NM. No visual contact; he notes the moon's brightness. The other Anápolis pilots found nothing.
- Press conference, 23 May 1986 (CENDOC Env. 08, p. 34, participant list). Participants: Cel. Av. Sidney Obino Azambuja; Maj. Av. Ney Antunes Cerqueira (CODA chief); Cap. Rodolfo da Silva Souza and Cap. Julio Cezar Rozenberg (F-103); Cap. Márcio Brisolla Jordão; Cap. Armindo Souza Viriato de Freitas; Ten. Kleber Caldas Marinho; Ten. Francisco Hugo Nunes Freitas; Ten. Valdecir Fernando Coelho; Cmte. Alcir Pereira da Silva (pilot of EMBRAER's PT-MBZ).
- Air Minister Brig. Octávio Moreira Lima was quoted in the press (clipping, Env. 08 p. 50) beginning "Dezenas de contatos…". The clipping also records President Sarney joking about the event, and Brig. Murillo Santos describing the lights as the "cores da bandeira da Itália". The clipping says Ozires Silva (EMBRAER president, aboard PT-MBZ) was the first witness. These are press reports of official statements (secondhand).
- Cockpit audio (AN, ARX.0.0.692). The AN article quotes a pilot at 6'10'': "Pô, eu não posso estar vendo coisas (...) Ainda bem que tem uma testemunha voando aqui." I have not heard the tape; the quote is via the AN article.
Claims
Ozires Silva and Alcir Pereira da Silva in PT-MBZ chased or approached lights near São José dos Campos (firsthand (to press))firsthandSourced, unconfirmedOzires Silva; press clippings, Env. 08 p. 50 (secondhand as preserved).
Dozens" of radar contacts were madesecondhandSourced, unconfirmedpress report of the Air Minister's words ("Dezenas de contatos…", Env. 08 p. 50). The CINDACTA report counts about 20 plots, which never became tracks (record).
The FAB holds further material, including radar tapes, that has not been releasedspeculationSourced, unconfirmedBrazilian researchers (e.g. the fenomenum.com.br document list, which also cites Ofício 07/OOP/C-130 of 29 May 1986, 11 pp, and Ofício 11/OOP/C-199 of 14 July 1
The Air Force press office called the case 'encerrado', without a conclusion.firsthandOn the recordCECOMSAER Carta 669/DRP, 17 Jul 1996 (quoted in ARX.0.0.499)
Where
São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goiás and Brasília airspace, Brazil
20.0°S 46.0°W · region only
In The picture
On the recordThe firmest layer is the one trained observers and instruments wrote down. Belgian gendarmes watched silent lit triangles in 1989-90 and ground radars tracked the wave; the Air Force sent F-16s and released its own data, though a radar study it released in 2025 puts the fighters' lock-ons down to their tracking softw…
‹ Previous in Latin America official filesPeru's OIFAA and the La Joya interception4 of 10Next in Latin America official files ›Uruguay's CRIDOVNI and the Palmar dam chase
Similar cases · sharing people, threads, topics or era
Trindade Island: Almiro Baraúna's photographs 1958Varginha: the "ET de Varginha" and the Army inquiry 1996Uruguay's CRIDOVNI and the Palmar dam chase 1986Peru's OIFAA and the La Joya interception 1980Papuda, Brasília: police watched, CINDACTA tracked 1991Bariloche: flight AR 674 and the light over Lake Nahuel Huapi 1995
People and organizations
Octávio Moreira Lima personBrazil's secret UFO register: the 1978 and 1989 orders, and the air-defence statistics document