Among the 162 documents released by the Department of War on May 8, 2026 under the PURSUE program is a formerly classified eyewitness statement designated SECRET//NOFORN. The document records a multi-hour UAP encounter that took place in 2025 at a redacted location involving federal and state partner personnel, two individuals identified in the document as "senior US intelligence officials," and military helicopter crews. The date, site name, coordinates, witness names, and callsigns are redacted throughout. All other content below is drawn directly from the declassified text.
The Mission
At approximately 1700 hours, two individuals identified as senior US intelligence officials — designated Witness 1 and Witness 2 — along with Federal Partners 1 and 2 and pilots from a State Partner Organization, departed an Operations Center in a helicopter designated Call Sign 1 to conduct a daytime aerial search of a mountain range west of a classified site. The stated reason for the search was previous eyewitness reports from personnel who had observed orbs and lights near specific coordinates and heard sounds described as something hitting the ground.
The document notes that earlier the same day, an unspecified office had completed a successful test at the same site.
At 1751 hours, Call Sign 1 spotted a large cavern entrance and conducted a short orbit. At approximately 2050 hours, Call Sign 1 landed and dropped off Witness 2 with Federal Partner 3 personnel before heading to the site to refuel. At 2141 hours, Call Sign 1 lifted off again toward debris spotted by a Listening Post/Observation Post using Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) and Night Vision Goggles (NVG), located approximately four miles east of the classified site. A search of the area in near-total darkness returned negative results.
Initial Contact
At approximately 2149 hours, Call Sign 1 received notification from the LP/OP of sensor hits approximately four miles from their position. The aircraft moved to intercept.
At 2202 hours, Call Sign 1 arrived at the coordinates and spotted what appeared to be an aircraft on the horizon moving away to the west. The LP/OP confirmed the sighting and then reported that under FLIR they had spotted an orb described as "super-hot," hovering at ground level. The LP/OP reported the orb then headed east, then south at a high rate of speed, and split into two objects. Call Sign 1 was directed south to intercept.
At 2207 hours, the Joint Operations Center reported five military aircraft from a separate unit were in the airspace conducting a training mission.
Call Sign 1 searched the intercept location with FLIR, NVG, and the naked eye without locating the orb. The LP/OP reported the orb had gained elevation, came within ten feet of Call Sign 1, and then headed east. Call Sign 1 moved to intercept again, but the LP/OP reported the orb had continued southeast and was estimated to be more than 20 miles from the aircraft's current position. Call Sign 1, unable to match speed, broke off pursuit. The co-pilot reported seeing, under NVG, something emerge from the two objects and travel in a different direction at high speed.
The Swarm and Orb Formations
At 2218 hours, while awaiting instructions, the pilots using NVG and Witness 1 using the naked eye spotted what the document describes as "a swarm of lights, too many to count," moving in all directions but generally headed south. Visual was lost at 2227 hours.
Also at approximately 2227 hours, while in proximity to the classified site, Witness 1 using the naked eye and both pilots using NVG spotted two large orbs appear in close proximity to the helicopter, above the rotor disk. The document records the description as follows: the orbs appeared to flare up and remain stationary side by side, appearing oval-shaped, orange in color with a white or yellow center, emitting light in all directions. After a few seconds, a third orb flared up below the two, then another, until there were four or five total. The orbs then flared down in reverse order.
At approximately 2228 hours, the same observers spotted four or five similar orbs to the west over the mountains, above the military aircraft from the separate unit. The orbs flared up one at a time in a horizontal formation and then flared down in reverse order.
At approximately 2233 hours, a similar orb formation was observed to the east in the direction of a nearby town. At approximately 2241 hours, a single orb flared up to the west of the classified site over a mountain and flared down after several seconds. At 2249 hours, a swarm of lights with three distinct orbs in a triangle formation was observed. At 2252 hours, five to six orbs flared up in a horizontal formation approximately ten miles north of the classified site. At 2257 hours, four orbs flared up over the military aircraft as they descended to land.
At 2316 hours, Call Sign 1 returned to the Operations Center, low on fuel.
Witness 1 Statement
The document closes with direct comments from Witness 1. The witness noted that the pilots had indicated they were recording, but that many sightings were above the helicopter and therefore outside the FLIR camera's angle of view. The witness further noted: "Some things I could not see with the naked eye, but I recall the pilots calling out sightings." The final comment reads: "The orbs appeared to break off from [Call Sign 1] and pursue the [Military Aircraft]."
Document Details
The document carries the original classification SECRET//NOFORN. It was declassified and released as part of PURSUE Release 01 on May 8, 2026, and is available at war.gov/UFO. The declassifying authority, site name, coordinates, witness identities, callsigns, and exact date remain redacted. No conclusion regarding the nature of the observed phenomena is offered in the document or by this archive.