Navy ATFLIR Tracks Cold Round Object, Gulf of Aden

Brief

Operating at 23,819 feet over the Gulf of Aden, a Navy ISR crew tracked an unidentified round contact for eight minutes (21:09–21:17Z) on September 4, 2020. The object was acquired via ATFLIR in black-hot IR mode, causing its cold thermal signature to display as bright white. It traveled on a heading of 168 degrees at 277 mph while executing several abrupt directional changes, with no propulsion system, markings, or airframe features observed. The report was sanitized by the SPEAR program and approved for release by USCENTCOM on March 16, 2026.

Metadata

Agency

Department of War

Release

5/8/26

Incident

9/4/20

Location

Gulf of Aden

Type

PDF • .pdf

Length

1 pages

Classification

UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO

Programs

SPEAR

Tags

round shape, cold IR signature, black-hot IR, abrupt directional change, Gulf of Aden, 2020, ATFLIR autotrack, night ISR, UAP

Key points

• Contact detected at 21:09Z and tracked continuously for eight minutes until 21:17Z on 04 SEP 2020.p.1
• The UAP was round in shape with a cold IR signature; in black-hot polarity it appeared bright white against the thermal background.p.1
• Object traveled on a heading of 168 degrees at 277 mph at approximately 22,000 feet altitude.p.1
• The contact executed several abrupt directional changes during the eight-minute track.p.1
• ATFLIR sensor was depressed 39 degrees below aircraft altitude, with a slant range of approximately 6.17 NM and ground range of 8.81 KM.p.1
• No propulsion, metallic surface, markings, wings, or airframe features were checked; 'Round' was the only shape box selected.p.1
• Reporting crew member held rank O-3, assigned to 1172 ATKS; the encounter occurred within USCENTCOM's Gulf of Aden area of responsibility.p.1
• SPEAR program strips all aircrew and squadron identifying information before the report enters analysis.p.1
• The form instructs the crew to preserve display tapes as .wmv files and upload them to a designated repository, indicating video evidence may exist outside this release.p.1

Verbatim

• Contact at 21 :09z to 21 :17z 04SEP2020.

  p.1

• While at 23,819 HAT over the ~ulf of Aden we tracked a round, cold object in IR traveling 168 degrees at 277 mph.

  p.1

• It made a few abrupt dir~ctional changes during the 8 minute contact.

  p.1

• The IR sensor was set to black hot and the obj ct in question was a bright white.

  p.1

• Our sensor was aimed -39 degrees below our altitude w th a slant range of 6.1 ?NM and ground range of 8.81 KM.

  p.1

• SPEAR sanitizes all r ports of identifying information. Absolutely no identifying information for aircrew or squadr, n will be recorded for analysis.

  p.1

Most interesting

• A cold IR signature is physically anomalous for a maneuvering aerial object — aircraft engines, missiles, and most known airborne platforms radiate heat. An object that registers colder than its surroundings while performing directional changes has no obvious conventional explanation.
• The AIM-9X Sidewinder is listed under 'Radar Equipped,' which is atypical — the AIM-9X is an infrared-guided missile, not a radar system. The field likely captures weapons configuration rather than an active radar type.
• The MGRS grid reference 38P L places the encounter in the northwestern Indian Ocean / Gulf of Aden corridor, a high-traffic maritime chokepoint near the Horn of Africa where both commercial and military traffic is dense.
• An eight-minute ATFLIR autotrack is operationally significant — the system maintained a stable lock through multiple reported abrupt directional changes, suggesting the object presented a consistent, trackable IR target throughout.
• The form instructs crews to save and upload display tapes as .wmv files, and the ATFLIR was in autotrack mode for the full contact duration, making it probable that recorded sensor footage exists in a separate repository not included in this release.