DOW-UAP-D056, Range Fouler Debrief, Arabian Sea, August 2020
This file is a standardized U.S. Navy Range Fouler Debrief Form used to record circumstances of an unauthorized intrusion into controlled airspace during military operations. According to the releasing agency, a U.S. military operator (crew position: pilot, rank O-3, squadron redacted) reported observing three 'unidentified small air contacts' over the North Arabian Sea at 00:04:30Z on 24 August 2020. The reporter described the objects as having a 'wings/airframe' structure and initially bearing on a westerly heading. The narrative states the operator tracked one contact before losing sight of it behind a cloud, then upon regaining contact observed two additional contacts due east of the first, with all three appearing to maintain their relative course, speed, and altitude. The form notes negative ES, radar track, and IFF track; distance, speed, and precise course of the contacts were unknown. The releasing agency emphasizes that all descriptive and estimative language reflects the reporter's subjective interpretation and should not be treated as conclusive evidence of any object's features or performance. The document contains redactions and references USCENTCOM MOR 26-0038 to 26-0046, approved for release.
Description
A declassified U.S. Navy Range Fouler Debrief Form documenting a military operator's encounter with three unidentified small air contacts over the North Arabian Sea on 24 August 2020, released by the U.S. Department of War with identifying information redacted.
Claims
A U.S. military operator observed three unidentified small air contacts over the North Arabian Sea on 24 August 2020.
85%There was negative electronic support, radar track, and IFF track on the contacts; distance, speed, and precise course were unknown.
70%The reporter described the objects as having 'wings/airframe' structure and moving on a westerly heading.
70%There was negative ES, radar track, and IFF track; distance, speed, and precise course were unknown.
70%After losing sight of one contact behind a cloud, the operator regained contact and observed two additional contacts due east, all maintaining relative course, speed, and altitude.
70%After losing sight of one contact behind a cloud, two additional contacts were observed to the east, and all three maintained relative course, speed, and altitude.
65%The contacts had a 'wings/airframe' structure and round shape and appeared to be on a westerly heading.
60%
Events
Aug 23, 2020
UAP encounter over North Arabian Sea
A U.S. military pilot reported observing three unidentified small air contacts with wings/airframe structure on a westerly heading; negative ES, radar, and IFF track.
May 7, 2026
Document release
Department of War released the redacted debrief form.
May 7, 2026
Document release by Department of War
File released/declassified as part of a UAP data release with redactions.
Dates mentioned
Keywords
Entities
Phenomena
Programs
Events
Extracted text (OCR)
Deel S&Sli&i!lllll lfUI · Form Range FOU Ier De b ne L d 11 ,1son u.. purple Deel; ,Ge. ve and manually (see below). Please complete this form to the best of your ability. If you do have the requested informafion, please leave the field blank. If there was more than one "group " please report each on a separate form for data collection purposes. You should receive a response within ·5 business days. Rank Last Name, First Name Squadron 0-3 Crew Position S/PR Email Address Pilot IHSM-73 This information is for contact only. SPEAR sanitizes all reports of identifying information. Absolutely no identifying information for aircrew or squadrJn will be recorded for analysis. 08/24/20 00:04:30 Date (mmlddlyy) Time of detection (hh:mm:ss Z) Night 705 Day I Night 21440 21440 Contact Working Area (Ex: W-72 1A) Contact Latitute (0D:MM:SS) Side No. 168122 SSC Buno 1.4a N/S Contact Longitude (DD.MM:SS) Contact Aftitude ( ' · : 22000) Please attempt to determine a Lat I Long for the contact at initial detection. We recommend µsing JMPS to reference the sensor-derived bearing and range relative to the bullseye yo u had in use. If that method is not available, any reasonable derivation of location will wolk, but please be as specnic as possible and make a note in the comments section. The.se locations may be used to cue other means of tracking. Radar Equipped: Other AIM-9x Self-Track: Stable Trackfile?: No A TFLIR Autotrack: # of Contacts in "Group": 3 Tally Achieved: ECM Art' □ Letter Identifier □ False Trackfiles 310 5 Altitude Constant? WtndDir at Contact An (From) Wind Speed Direction/Speed (Ex. 090/15) □ □ □ LFE? Yes Was the contact moving? Yes 2 ?0/UNK Please check all that apply: Round: [Z] □ Markings: Wings/A irframe: [Z] Translucen t: Other Shape:O Apparent Propuls io n:□ Other/ Ambiguous 0 Metallic: 0 Moving Parts: D Bafloon-shapeq: D SQuare: EA Indications (Check all that apply): □ No Mission Description (CAS, BFM. etc) D 0 Opaque: O Reflective! 0 Please use the field below to describe the contact and any inte action in your own words with as much detail as possible. Please be sure to include any detail not inclilided in questions above. I 1.4a !observed 3x possible unidentified small air contact while conducting routine operations in the North Arabian Sea. Negative ES, radar track, and IFF track. Distf nce to contact was unknown . Speed of contact was unknown. Precise course of contact was unknown, but appeared to be on a westerly heading . No interact~on took place betwee~I 1.4a . la~d the ~nknowp ai_r contacts. Initially observed 1x unknown air contact and tracked It before losing sight as 1t went 9ehInd a cloud. When contact on the unknown air contact was regained , 2x additional unknown air corytacts were seen due east of the location of the initial contact. All 3x unknown air contacts appeared to maintain their relative course, speed, and altitude. J I Don't use the purple "submit" button! Save this form with filename "Date_Squadron_RF.pdf' and email it t~ 1•>1•> J (Also in the global)j For troubleshooting, cal~ 1•>1•> I Thank you for your time. Please ensure all display tapes are ripAed for the entire time of interaction and saved as a .wmv (Example: 4 May VFA-106 HUD. wmv). Squadron intel personnel shall upload those files to the repository located at this link. I (b)(6) I USCENTCOM MOR 26-0038 to 26-0046 IIIRl ■ :1112 5771 I I Approved for Release to MR9 03/27126 000001
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