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2019 · Eastern United States

Range Fouler: small high-speed object, "rectangular" on review (Eastern U.S., 2019)

On the record
Strength C · 6/10 · 1 independent
Evidence 4/4 · Witnesses 1/3 · Backing 1/3

A veteran aviator's report is paired with released infrared footage, and experienced colleagues could not identify the object.

Plausibility High
Score 13 · 8 factors for, 0 against

A 28-year aviator's debrief describes a small high-speed object that looked rectangular on video; experienced colleagues could not identify it.

See the factors ↓

Unresolved
When2019 (date redacted)
WhereEastern United States
Backing1 independent
Evidencesensor data
war.gov video · file page ↗

Between sorties in 2019, an aviator with 28 years of USAF and Navy flying saw a small object pass below the aircraft at high speed, going the opposite way. The aviator tracked it for about 10-15 seconds before the crew started recording. The resulting infrared video was submitted to AARO and released as DOW-UAP-PR112. Its official description says it was recorded aboard a civilian aircraft and forwarded by the U.S. Navy. When the aviator zoomed in, the object left the field of view and could not be reacquired. Reviewing the video after the flight, the aviator thought it looked rectangular. No identification is given. Method note: war.gov blocks this server. File descriptions were read from the ufotransparency.com mirror, which reproduces or summarises the Department of War's official description; video and audio were not viewed or played. Quotation marks below are used only for wording the mirror presents as the release's own text. The two-page PDF was read directly.

Evidence, in date order (1)

  1. 2019U.S. military sensor (released by AARO)sensor data
    20 seconds of infrared video forwarded by the Navy DOW-UAP-PR112

How plausible · High

A 28-year aviator's debrief describes a small high-speed object that looked rectangular on video; experienced colleagues could not identify it.

  • ●●
    Access The ISR crew tracked it on their own sensor.
  • ●●
    No gain sought An official reporting form.
  • ●●
    Character record An aviator with 28 years of USAF and Navy flying.
  • ●●
    Checkable details check out Released in PURSUE.
  • ●●
    Physical traces or official reaction Sensor track with video confirmed.
  • ●○
    Restraint Describes motion and signature, no explanation.

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

  • Navy "Range Fouler Reporting Form"; name, rank, squadron, date, time, working area and coordinates are redacted. The form says identifying information is sanitized before analysis. (DOW-UAP-D090, p.1)
  • Narrative: "In between mission sorties, I noticed an object with flight characteristics unlike anything I had seen in my 28 years of performing for the USAF and Navy. A small object was below us and appeared to be traveling in a straight line opposite our direction at high speed. I tracked it for ~10-15 seconds before we turned on the recorder to provide the attached video. When I zoomed in to try and achieve more resolution, the object's speed took out of my FOV and I was unable to reacquire, even at a lower zoom. Upon analysis after the flight, the object appeared to be rectangular. Others with equal or more experience were also unsure as to what this object might be." (DOW-UAP-D090, p.2)
  • PR112, per the official description: 20 seconds of infrared sensor footage captured aboard a civilian aircraft in 2019 and forwarded by the U.S. Navy to AARO. An area of contrast near centre exits the field of view to the left; the sensor flashes white as it changes zoom and display mode. The description cross-references D090. (DOW-UAP-PR112, official description)

Claims

The object's flight characteristics were "unlike anything" the reporter had seen in 28 years.firsthandSourced, unconfirmedthe redacted aviator (anonymous).
It was small, below the aircraft, straight-line, opposite direction, high speed.firsthandSourced, unconfirmedsame.
It "appeared to be rectangular" on post-flight analysis.analysisSourced, unconfirmedsame aviator, from the video.
Colleagues "with equal or more experience" could not identify it.secondhandSourced, unconfirmedreported by the aviator; the colleagues are not named.

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Sources

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