Department of War PURSUE File
DOW-UAP-D23, Mission Report, United Arab Emirates, October 2023
Arabian Gulf·10/31/23
Editorial summary
A U.S. Air Force aircraft on an intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission over the Arabian Gulf observed two unidentified aerial phenomena on October 31, 2023, according to a declassified mission report released by the Department of War. The aircraft, which took off from Al Dhafra in Oman at 0015 UTC and conducted operations in support of Operation Spartan Shield in international airspace, detected the first object at 0241 UTC near coordinates 39RYJ7 while flying at 24,300 feet. The second object was observed at 0322 UTC near coordinates 39RXL6, also while the aircraft maintained an altitude of 24,300 feet on a heading of 280 degrees.
According to the file, the observer assessed both objects as benign and reported neither displayed signs of intelligent control nor posed a threat to the aircraft. The first object was characterized as solid in physical state and generated thermal signatures described as cold. Its velocity was estimated at 320 miles per hour. The second object was also logged as solid, with an estimated velocity of 440 miles per hour. However, the vast majority of descriptive details about the objects remained unknown or unrecorded: their size, shape, color, markings, propulsion means, physical description, and anomalous characteristics were not documented in the report.
The mission lasted approximately 20 hours and 43 minutes from takeoff to landing, with 17 hours and 17 minutes spent on station. The aircraft was equipped with targeting and imaging systems, and sensor data was processed by the Defense Intelligence Agency. The objects were not interrogated by radar or other active sensing methods, and no third-party observers were reported. During the mission, the crew received a professional radio call from Iranian air defense requesting safe distance from the border, to which they responded that they were conducting routine coalition operations in international airspace. The call concluded without incident.
This mission report is part of the Department of War PURSUE release, a collection of declassified records on unidentified anomalous phenomena made available to the public following their declassification in September 2025.
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