Today, the Pentagon has just declassified and released three videos of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) that were taken by US Navy pilots. In an official statement, the Department of Defense (DOD) made it clear that whatever was in the video still remains “unidentified”.
To clarify, this is not an evidence of extraterrestrial life as conspiracists would like to believe. However, it does mean that American pilots have encountered aerial phenomena that remains unclear. The oldest video of the three was the so called ‘Tic Tac’ footage taken in 2004.
The second and third video were footages from the same event that took place in 2015. Over the coasts of Jacksonville, Florida, navy pilots visually identified a UFO, after which one pilot blurted “What the [expletive] is that thing?”
The DOD explained that these videos have been circulating online via unauthorized sources. The New York Times was the first major newspaper to publish the story in December 2017, which sparked numerous conspiracy theories. In September 2019, the Navy confirmed that the released footage was authentic.
In their official statement, DOD stated that they were releasing the footages to clear two questions that have been posed to them. First, the videos that have been circulated by sources such as NYT is authentic Navy footage. Second, the Navy does not have any additional footages to report.
They also emphasized that the release took place only after “a thorough release”. By the protocols of the Department, videos and all other materials can only be released to the public when it has been cleared – meaning that it does not compromise security of any sort.
Former US Senator from Nevada and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid expressed his support for the Pentagon’s decision. Reid said through his Twitter post that he is glad for the release yet it “only scratches the surface”. This seems to contradict the DOD statement.
Last year, the DOD reportedly briefed US senators on the footages that were taken by the pilots. The Navy prefers the term Unexplained Aerial Phenomena (UAP) rather than the much more commonly used term UFO.
These briefings seem natural as the Pentagon is known to continue its Aerospace Threat Identification Program according to the Daily Mail. By its nature, not much is known about the details of the program.
Could it be that we are not alone in this universe? You can see the videos here. Share this article with your friends and follow us on Facebook for more news like this one.
Replaced!