Department of War PURSUE File
DOW-UAP-D10, Mission Report, Middle East, May 2022
Iraq·5/6/22
Editorial summary
On May 6, 2022, a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance asset operating in Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve observed five unidentified objects crossing its field of view between 1514Z and 1934Z local time. According to the file, the first object, sighted at 1514Z near grid coordinates in the target area, was characterized by the operator as having the visual appearance of a possible missile. The four remaining objects observed over the following four hours were assessed by the operator as fitting a profile more consistent with possible birds. The observations were recorded in full motion video by the aircraft's sensor suite.
The mission was a planned reconnaissance and close air support tasking conducted by a single aircraft that launched from its operating location at 0246Z on May 6 and remained on station from 0958Z through 2036Z. The primary objective was target development, with the operator tasked to identify and report personnel, vehicles, weapons, footpaths, communications equipment, and occupied structures. The aircraft was equipped with full motion video and signals intelligence sensors, both reported as fully mission capable at the start of the sortie. Full motion video from the flight was later exploited by the Defense General Service Station (DGS1).
Weather conditions during the mission, characterized as dust-hindered, affected most of the full motion video collection of ground activity throughout the operation. The aircraft returned to base at 2036Z, with final engine shutdown at 0014Z on May 7. The report notes that one observation was recorded, marked as sensitive compartmented information. All descriptive language in the file reflects the operator's subjective interpretation of the phenomena at the time of observation, according to the military's standard MISREP format used to document events that cannot be immediately identified.
This document was declassified on October 7, 2025, and has been approved for release by USCENTCOM as part of official government records now available to the public.
Editorial summary written by govweird from the declassified document text. The official government description follows below.
Government description
This document is a Mission Report (MISREP), a standardized reporting form the U.S. Military uses to record the circumstances surrounding its operations. U.S. military services often use MISREPs to report Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) to AARO. The GENTEXT, or “general text” section of these reports often contains important qualitative, contextual information, distinguishing it from the more quantitative, or numerical, data found elsewhere in the report. A U.S. military operator reported observing “5x UAP fly across the screen.” The report continues by describing one of those observations as a “possible missile” and the remaining four as “possible birds.” All descriptive and estimative language contained in this report reflects the reporter’s subjective interpretation at the time of the event. Such characterizations should not be interpreted as a conclusive indication of the presence or absence of any intrinsic object features or performance characteristics.
Caption issued by the U.S. Department of War on war.gov/ufo. Verbatim, unedited.
Originating agency
Department of War
Record type
Incident date
5/6/22
Incident location
Iraq
Release tranche
Release 01 (May 8, 2026)
Distribution
Cleared for public release