CIA-UAP-D022
Unidentified · motion explainedThe 3,800-knot contact off Puerto Rico (1964)
A Navy destroyer logs a contact above 3,800 knots and a fighter pilot sees a delta-shaped object leave him behind. The nearby air base says it was a secret spy plane; the CIA says it was not. When it analyzes the radar film, the real speed turns out to be about 485 knots.
- Date
- Nov 19, 1964
- Location
- North of Puerto Rico, Atlantic Fleet Weapons RangeApproximate: the records only say “north of Puerto Rico” and the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range.See the area on the globe →
- Platform
- Guided-missile destroyer USS Gyatt and Navy F-8 Crusader fighters [2 · p. 1–2]
- Sensor
- The Gyatt's AN/SPS-49 radar, under test, with a camera photographing the display · pilot observation in full moonlight [1 · p. 3–4][2 · p. 1]
- Official status
- Unidentified · motion explained: in 1965 the CIA analyzed the radar photographs and concluded there was no object of extraordinary speed and altitude; it never said which aircraft it was. PURSUE publishes it among unresolved cases [1 · p. 3–4][3]
01 Sensor readout
No recording has been released: the radar film the CIA analyzed went back to the Navy and is not in PURSUE. What remains are the memoranda describing it. [1 · p. 6]
02 Images from the file
Only images from the records themselves: official pages, charts and photos, and drawings the witnesses handed in. Artist's recreations and AI-generated images are not shown, even when the catalogue includes them.
03 Timeline
Nine days of sightings and radar tracks of unidentified aircraft begin near the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range (November 16, 17, 18, 19 and 24). [2 · p. 1][1 · p. 3]
At night, USS Gyatt is directing an F-8 at 35,000 feet and picks up a contact “in excess of 3,800 knots”. The object settles nine miles from the fighter; when the pilot lights the afterburner, it climbs at 20° and pulls away. In full moonlight, the pilot sees “a Delta shaped object about the size of a jet fighter”. [2 · p. 1]
Another fast, high target pulls away from a Crusader flying at Mach 0.99 and 45,000 feet. [2 · p. 1]
A Caribbean Sea Frontier cable tells the Atlantic Fleet that the commander of Ramey base has identified the object as a YF-12A. [1 · p. 6]
The CIA's special activities office, which runs the OXCART program, says it has convinced naval intelligence it was not a YF-12A and asks for the radar film to be analyzed. [1 · p. 6]
Scientific Intelligence concludes: “no high altitude ultra-high-speed UFO”. The real track moved at about 485 knots relative; it would be a delta-wing fighter of an unknown type. It points, without evidence, to possible MiG-21 reconnaissance from Cuba. [1 · p. 3–4]
PURSUE releases the memoranda and the notes, dated by the catalogue February 1, 1965. [3]
04 Hypotheses
Status as stated by the official sources cited. The archive takes no side.
- Compatible
Delta-wing fighter of an unknown type
The CIA's conclusion: “probably a delta-wing fighter” climbing better than the F-8C at 50,000 feet. It fits what the pilot saw and the radar speed. [1 · p. 4]
- Not assessed
MiG-21 reconnaissance from Cuba
The CIA raises it as possible (there were missile tests in the area and the destroyer was within MiG-21 range), but says it has no evidence either way. [1 · p. 4]
- Ruled out
YF-12A or another Lockheed aircraft
Proposed by the commander of Ramey base. The CIA, which ran that program, rules it out and says it convinced naval intelligence. [1 · p. 6]
- Ruled out
Object above 3,800 knots
The radar photographs show about 485 knots relative to the destroyer. The CIA concludes there was no object of extraordinary speed and altitude. [1 · p. 3]
05 Testimony
“UFO was identified as a Delta shaped object about the size of a jet fighter.”06 Editor's reading
The editor's opinion, not an official finding. It rests on the records cited and changes if they do.
- Conventional explanation likely
- Open
- Anomalous
- The figure that made the case famous does not survive the file: the radar display photographs give about 485 knots relative, not 3,800. [1 · p. 3]
- What the pilot saw, a delta object the size of a fighter, is what the CIA concludes: a delta-wing fighter that climbs better than the F-8. [2 · p. 1][1 · p. 4]
- The CIA's interest lay elsewhere: confirming its secret aircraft had not been seen. That does not weaken the radar analysis, but it explains why the case went through the OXCART channel. [1 · p. 6]
- Which aircraft it was remains unidentified. But nothing in the file calls for an unusual explanation. [1 · p. 4]
— Isaac Chaves, editor · Reading of
07 Discrepancies between sources
- The speed: “in excess of 3,800 knots” in the briefing notes; about 485 knots relative in the analysis of the radar photographs. [2 · p. 1][1 · p. 3]
- The identification: YF-12A according to the commander of Ramey base; “not YF-12A or similar category Lockheed Aircraft” according to the CIA; “probably a delta-wing fighter” according to its analysis. [1 · p. 4, 6]
- The altitude: the F-8 was at 35,000 feet according to the notes; the analysis compares performance at 50,000 feet. [2 · p. 1][1 · p. 4]
- The dates: the catalogue dates the case February 1, 1965, the date of a memorandum; the events took place November 16–24, 1964 (18–24, according to that same memorandum). [3][1 · p. 3, 6]
- The status: PURSUE presents it as unresolved; in 1965 the CIA had already concluded there was no extraordinary speed or altitude, though it did not identify the aircraft. [3][1 · p. 3]
08 The case in PURSUE
How PURSUE publishes this case: its official description and every record, with links to the files. Reproduced as is, catalogue errors included.
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.
Catalogue records · 2
CIA-UAP-D022 · Document · CIA · Aug 7, 2026 · Main record
Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965
2/1/65 · Caribbean Sea
CIA-UAP-D023 · Document · CIA · Aug 7, 2026
Briefing Notes for Mr. Walter Elder
Undated · Caribbean Sea
Official description
This document contains briefing material prepared for Mr. Walter N. Elder, Executive Assistant to the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), regarding a November 19, 1964, incident allegedly involving unidentified aircraft in the vicinity of Puerto Rico. The previous entry in this collection, CIA-UAP-D022, contains CIA memoranda on the same subject matter. The briefing includes additional details regarding that incident, including a characterization of the meteorological conditions and sensing capabilities of nearby U.S. military collection systems.
The briefing states that a radar system aboard USS Gyatt, a guided missile destroyer operating in the vicinity, detected a contact tracking more than 3,800 knots (approximately 4,373 mph) over a period of 21 minutes. The briefing contains visual estimates regarding the phenomenon’s apparent capabilities from the pilot of an F-8 Crusader who was present during the incident.
09 Sources
- [1]
Record · U.S. Department of War · PURSUE (Central Intelligence Agency) · Aug 7, 2026
CIA-UAP-D022 · Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965
Two CIA memoranda under the OXCART program's control system (6 pp.): the 1965-02-01 one asks for the USS Gyatt radar film to be analyzed; the 1965-02-11 one concludes there was no extraordinary high-altitude, high-speed UFO.
Checked on Oct 7, 2026 · Open the original ↗
- [2]
Record · U.S. Department of War · PURSUE (Central Intelligence Agency) · Aug 7, 2026
CIA-UAP-D023 · Briefing Notes for Mr. Walter N. Elder
Undated briefing notes (2 pp.) with the initial account: a radar contact above 3,800 knots, a delta-shaped object seen by an F-8 pilot and an estimated speed above Mach 3.
Checked on Oct 7, 2026 · Open the original ↗
- [3]
Record · U.S. Department of War
Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE)
Department of War program, supported by ODNI, that releases declassified records of unresolved UAP cases from several agencies in tranches. None of the three Navy videos is in it.
Checked on Oct 4, 2026 · Open the original ↗
May contain errors by the AI and the editor · always check the official source. · Privacy