Department of War PURSUE File
DOW-UAP-D38, Range Fouler Debrief, Middle East, May 2020
Arabian Gulf·5/14/20
Editorial summary
On the evening of May 14, 2020, a U.S. military operator conducting an Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) tasking in the Arabian Gulf observed a solid white object traverse the field of view of an airborne sensor system. The sighting occurred at approximately 20:40 UTC in the vicinity of latitude 28 degrees 31 minutes 4 seconds North and longitude 49 degrees 20 minutes East, in a designated working area designated 28314. The operator's account, submitted via the Navy's standardized Range Fouler Debrief form, represents an official record of the encounter as experienced by trained military personnel.
According to the file, the object initially passed through the sensor's field of view, resulting in a temporary loss of tracking. The crew reacquired the contact shortly thereafter and followed it as it executed what the operator described as erratic movements above the water surface. During the observation, the sensor operator obtained a four-times magnification zoom on the object but subsequently lost visual contact due to poor track placement. The operator's continuous manipulation of the sensor to maintain observation of the object is evident in the sensor footage, as evidenced by intermittent visibility of water waves in the background during the sequence.
The form indicates that one contact was detected, that it was moving, and that tracking proved intermittent. Radar correlation data fields are present on the form but appear to contain limited entries. The document includes a notation that display tape recordings of the entire interaction were to be preserved in video format and uploaded to an official repository, though those materials are not included in this release. No determination regarding the object's origin, characteristics, or identity is recorded in the debrief. The file was declassified and approved for public release in May 2026 as part of the Department of War PURSUE Release 01.
Editorial summary written by govweird from the declassified document text. The official government description follows below.
Government description
This document is a Range Fouler Debrief, a standardized reporting form the U.S. Navy uses to record the circumstances surrounding an unauthorized intrusion into controlled airspace during active military operations or training. These reports contain a narrative description of the observer’s experiences. A U.S. military operator reported observing a “solid white object [fly] through the [field-of-view]. The reporter described the UAP as making erratic [movements] above the water. 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
5/14/20
Incident location
Arabian Gulf
Release tranche
Release 01 (May 8, 2026)
Distribution
Cleared for public release