Pentagon UAP Task Force — Preliminary Assessment to Congress

On June 25, 2021, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released the Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena to the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Intelligence Committee. The report, prepared by the UAP Task Force (UAPTF) within the Office of Naval Intelligence, covered 144 reports from US government sources — predominantly military aircrews — collected between 2004 and 2021. Key findings: Of 144 reports, the UAPTF was able to explain only 1 as a large deflating balloon. The remaining 143 were unresolved. Eighteen of those 143 reports documented UAPs exhibiting 'unusual movement patterns or flight characteristics' including: remaining stationary in high winds at altitude; moving against the wind; maneuvering abruptly; accelerating at speeds that would crush a human pilot; and operating in apparent transmedium fashion across air and water. Some UAPs demonstrated hypersonic speeds without any sonic boom or thermal signature consistent with propulsion. The report acknowledged that UAP reports clustered in restricted airspace near US military operating areas. It identified five possible explanation categories: airborne clutter, natural atmospheric phenomena, US government programs, foreign adversary systems, and 'other.' The report explicitly did not confirm or deny the 'other' category. Congress mandated the creation of a permanent successor: the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), established 2022.