USS Theodore Roosevelt — GIMBAL and GOFAST Encounter Series

The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) Carrier Strike Group, operating in the Atlantic off the US East Coast during 2014–2015, experienced a sustained series of UAP encounters. Pilots from VFA-11 Red Rippers and other air wing squadrons reported near-daily observations of unidentified objects operating in restricted military training airspace. Pilot Ryan Graves testified to Congress in 2023 that the objects appeared 'every day, every day, for at least a couple years.' The objects were described as white or dark cubes inside a translucent sphere (based on one close visual observation), capable of hypersonic speeds and hovering. Two specific encounters were captured on F/A-18 FLIR cameras: GIMBAL (recorded January 2015) shows an object rotating against the airflow direction — a rotation not explained by any known aerodynamic effect; and GOFAST (recorded February 2015) shows an object moving at very high speed at low altitude over the ocean surface, with the FLIR tracking data indicating the object's ground speed is exceptionally high relative to the aircraft. Both videos were classified. They were leaked in 2017 and officially declassified and released by the Pentagon in April 2020. Graves also reported that a near-miss between an F/A-18 and an unidentified object was reported to supervisors. The encounters prompted VFA-11 pilots to formally report through Navy safety channels.