CIA-UAP-D022, Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965

Official Conclusion

Probably a delta-wing fighter of a type having a significantly higher climb performance than the F-8C at 50,000-foot altitude regimes; other objects reported during 16-24 November would appear to be unidentified aircraft.

Official Description

This file contains Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) memoranda exchanged between the Assistant Director for Special Activities (AD/SA) and the Assistant Director for Scientific Intelligence (AD/SI) regarding an incident allegedly involving unidentified aircraft in the vicinity of Puerto Rico. The AD/SI was then-responsible for analyzing foreign scientific advancements and technological threats, such as Soviet nuclear, chemical, and ballistic missile capabilities. The AD/SA managed the CIA’s classified overhead reconnaissance operations, including the deployment of advanced aircraft like the U-2 and A-12 OXCART. Together, these offices ensured the United States could both gather critical intelligence over contested territories and accurately evaluate the technical capabilities of foreign adversaries during the Cold War. The memoranda refer to an incident on November 19, 1964, in which a U.S. Naval aviator described observing an unidentified object as “delta-shaped, about the size of a jet fighter.” The pilot visually estimated the object’s velocity as Mach 3 (approximately 2,200 mph). A corresponding track from an AN/SPS-49 radar system aboard a U.S. Navy guided missile destroyer in the area, USS Gyatt, measured the object’s speed at 3,800 knots (approximately 4,373 mph). The memoranda indicate that, in the opinion of the AD/SI, the object was conceivably associated with foreign intelligence gathering activities, citing active missile testing within the AFWR, or Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range, as being an attractive reconnaissance target. The AD/SA and AD/SI also ruled out domestic experimental aircraft, such as the YF-12A OXCART, as a potential attribution.

Key Findings

• →A US Navy F-8C pilot on November 19, 1964 visually observed a delta-shaped object approximately the size of a jet fighter traveling at an estimated speed in excess of Mach 3 with significantly higher performance than the F-8C.
• →The USS Gyatt's AN/SPS-49 radar recorded a track in excess of 3,800 knots for the object, with radar photography showing a good track at over 300 nautical miles and a relative speed of approximately 485 knots relative to the Gyatt.
• →The CIA Assistant Director for Scientific Intelligence concluded the object was 'probably a delta-wing fighter of a type having a significantly higher climb performance' than the F-8C at 50,000-foot altitude regimes.
• →Apparently valid radar tracks and/or observations of unidentified aircraft were reported on November 16, 17, 18, 19, and 24, 1964, in the vicinity of the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range.
• →The CIA ruled out the UFO being a YF-12A or similar Lockheed aircraft, and assessed that the USSR MiG-21 reconnaissance configuration with AFA-39 aerial camera and possibly SIGINT equipment was within range, though no direct evidence supported Soviet or Cuban pilot activity.

Extracted Entities