Department of War PURSUE File
DOW-UAP-D25, Mission Report, Greece, January 2024
Mediterranean Sea·1/25/24
Editorial summary
On January 25, 2024, a U.S. Air Force intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft conducting a mission over the Mediterranean Sea observed an unidentified aerial phenomenon that was visible only through the aircraft's Short-Wave Infrared sensor. The observation occurred at approximately 05:09 Zulu time while the aircraft was in transit, and lasted roughly two minutes. According to the file, the observer described the object as diamond-shaped with a straight, non-maneuvering probe extending from its bottom. The observer estimated the object's speed at approximately 434 knots, or roughly 499 miles per hour.
The mission report indicates the aircraft was flying at 25,000 feet on a heading of 162 degrees at a speed of 176 knots when the object was sighted. The observer recorded that the object maintained a steady flight path, increased and decreased altitude during the observation, but did not change its directional trajectory. The object did not respond to the observer's presence or any interrogation attempts. No third-party observers were reported, and the observer assessed the phenomenon as benign. The report notes that the object was not visible to conventional cameras or other sensors aboard the aircraft, only appearing in infrared imagery.
The mission report was filed by personnel from the 33rd Special Operations Squadron and was processed through U.S. Central Command channels. Full motion video collected during the encounter was later exploited by tasking authorities. The observer's full name and contact information were redacted from the declassified version. Weather conditions at the time were clear. The file makes clear that the observer's descriptive language reflects subjective interpretation at the time of the event and should not be treated as a definitive characterization of the object's actual features or performance characteristics.
This declassified report is now part of the public record through the Department of War PURSUE Release 01, made available May 8, 2026.
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, estimating its speed as “approximately 434 knots (499 mph)”. The observer described the UAP as diamond-shaped, with a non-maneuvering probe at the bottom. The observer noted that the UAP was only visible when viewed via an onboard Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) sensor. The observer reported that the event occurred over a duration of approximately two minutes. 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
1/25/24
Incident location
Mediterranean Sea
Release tranche
Release 01 (May 8, 2026)
Distribution
Cleared for public release