DOW-UAP-D101 PURSUE record-detail description

Source: U.S. Department of War, Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE), Release 05

Record URL: https://www.war.gov/UFO/release/05/?releaseDate=Release+05&release=05&agency=Department+of+War#DOW-UAP-D101-Intelligence-Information-Report-Unresolved-UAP-Report-Gulf-of-Oman-2021

Public release date: 2026-08-07

Captured: 2026-08-07

Extraction: complete record-detail text from the browser-rendered PURSUE page. Capitalization has been normalized from the page's visual all-caps presentation. The descriptive text and metadata below are otherwise verbatim.

DOW-UAP-D101, Intelligence Information Report, Unresolved UAP Report, Gulf of Oman, 2021

This document is an Intelligence Information Report (IIR), the primary standardized format utilized by the Department of War, military services, and the broader Intelligence Community to disseminate unevaluated intelligence information derived from human sources (HUMINT), open sources, and field collection activities. IIRs are not finished intelligence products; they serve as inputs for subsequent all-source intelligence assessments. This report accompanies the footage contained within DOW-UAP-PR117 through DOW-UAP-PR122.

This report documents an observation by the aircrew of a U.S. Special Operations Forces (USSOF) AC-130 Gunship on September 8, 2021, during a nighttime live-fire training exercise over the Gulf of Oman. The aircrew reported first observing two unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) after dropping a water-activated flare. The report describes the UAP as stationary, approximately four feet in diameter, 0-20 feet above the water’s surface.

Throughout the training sortie, the aircrew reported observing approximately 25 instances involving similar phenomena via infrared sensor, describing them as “cold orbs.” Aircrew visual estimates of the UAP’s apparent speed range from 250 to 1,300 miles per hour. The report characterizes the UAP’s behavior as “maneuvering aggressively,” “flying in various formations,” and appearing to react to deployments of the aircraft’s onboard weapons systems. The aircrew stated that they were unable to capture video footage of the phenomena because the aircraft’s digital video recorder was not functioning during the incident.

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.

Redactions have been made to protect the identity of eyewitnesses, the location of government facilities, or potentially sensitive information about military sites not related to UAP. No redactions have been made to any files released under President Trump's directive concerning information about the nature or existence of any encounter reported as a UAP or related phenomena.

Record metadata

Asset file name: DOW-UAP-D101, Intelligence Information Report, Unresolved UAP Report, Gulf of Oman, 2021
Release: 8/7/26 - Release 05
Agency: Department of War
Incident date: 9/8/21
Incident location: N/A
Document type: .pdf
VIRIN: 260807-D-D0360-1090
Related media: DOW-UAP-PR117 through DOW-UAP-PR122