The Nimitz Incident (2004)

Overview

In November 2004, pilots and radar operators aboard the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group reported multiple encounters with an unidentified aerial object off the coast of Southern California. The encounter produced three pieces of evidence that remain among the most analyzed UAP documentation in the public record: gun-camera FLIR footage, pilot eyewitness accounts, and corroborating radar data from multiple platforms.

The encounter is significant not for speculation about its origin, but because of what the official record confirms: the object exhibited flight characteristics that DoD pilots and analysts have publicly stated they cannot explain using known aerospace technology.

What the Record Shows

The FLIR1 Footage

On November 14, 2004, Commander David Fravor and Lieutenant Commander Jim Slaight were flying F/A-18F Super Hornets when they were directed to investigate an anomalous contact. A second flight crew — Lieutenant Chad Underwood and a weapons systems officer — subsequently filmed the object using the aircraft’s Advanced Targeting Forward Looking Infrared (ATFLIR) pod.

The resulting footage — designated FLIR1 and later officially released by the DoD on April 27, 2020 — shows an object maintaining a stable hover, then accelerating out of frame. The DoD confirmed the footage’s authenticity in its release statement.

Primary source: DoD official FLIR1 release statement, April 27, 2020

Commander Fravor’s Testimony

Commander David Fravor provided public testimony describing the object as approximately 40 feet long, white, oblong, and exhibiting no visible control surfaces, wings, or exhaust plume. He described it hovering above a disturbed patch of water before ascending to meet his aircraft, then departing at a speed he characterized as unlike anything he had encountered in 18 years of flying.

Fravor testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in 2023 as part of the UAP disclosure process.

Primary source: Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, July 26, 2023.

Radar Corroboration

The Nimitz strike group’s E-2C Hawkeye surveillance aircraft tracked the objects for two weeks prior to the visual encounter. The radar operator, Kevin Day, has given public testimony stating the objects descended from approximately 80,000 feet to sea level in under a second — a deceleration profile inconsistent with any known aircraft.

Official Status

The DoD has confirmed:

• The FLIR1 footage is authentic and was captured by U.S. Navy aircraft
• The footage was not authorized for public release and was leaked prior to official release
• The UAP depicted has not been officially identified

AARO (All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office) lists the Nimitz encounter in its historical case record. As of the most recent AARO report, the case remains uncharacterized.

Primary Sources

This case summary will be updated as new primary source documents are released.