Department of War PURSUE File
DOW-UAP-D23, Mission Report, United Arab Emirates, October 2023
Arabian Gulf·10/31/23
Editorial summary
On October 31, 2023, a U.S. Air Force intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft operating in the Arabian Gulf observed two unidentified objects during a routine mission supporting coalition operations. The aircraft, which took off from Oman early that morning and spent more than 17 hours on station, detected the first object at approximately 02:41 UTC and the second at 03:22 UTC while flying at 243 feet above mean sea level near the Iran-Iraq border region.
According to the file, the first object was assessed as solid and emitted cold thermal signatures. It was estimated to be traveling at 320 miles per hour in the vicinity where the aircraft was positioned. The second object, also assessed as solid, was estimated at a higher velocity of 440 miles per hour, detected at approximately the same altitude and location. In both cases, the observer marked the objects as posing no threat to the aircraft. The report indicates that neither object displayed maneuverability, responded to observer actions, or showed evidence of being under intelligent control. Neither object engaged the aircraft, and the aircraft made no attempt to interrogate or engage the objects.
The mission report contains limited descriptive information about the objects themselves. Key details including physical descriptions, size, shape, color, and other distinguishing features are recorded as unknown in the document. Similarly, the propulsion means, payload characteristics, and most other technical specifications could not be determined by the observer. The report notes that full-motion video was exploited by a Defense Intelligence Agency office following the mission. The document is heavily redacted in sections covering aircraft type, tail numbers, specific coordinates, and personnel information.
This report is among the declassified materials released publicly by the U.S. Department of War in 2026 through the PURSUE release of unidentified anomalous phenomena records.
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 one UAP. 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
10/31/23
Incident location
Arabian Gulf
Release tranche
Release 01 (May 8, 2026)
Distribution
Cleared for public release