2020 DOW-UAP-D57, Range Fouler Reporting Form, Gulf of Aden, September 2020

Page 1 --- Range Fouler Reportin Form Please complete this form to the best of your ability. If you do n~ot have the requested information, please leave the field blank. Ifthere was more than one …’ aiBriefing: ’## Document Overview

The document is an unclassified U.S. military “Range Fouler Reporting Form,” completed on 04 September 2020, used to document an unidentified object encountered during an ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance) mission over the Gulf of Aden. The form was filed by a crew member from 1172 ATKS (Attack Squadron) to record sensor tracking data and visual/IR observations, following standard sanitization procedures to protect aircrew identity.

Source: Document metadata (UNCLASSIFIED, date 09/04/20) and OCR text (“Range Fouler Reportin Form,” “1172 ATKS,” “ISR,” “Gulf of Aden”).

What This Document Contains

• A structured report of an airborne contact, including time (21:09–21:17z), location (MGRS 38P, estimated lat/long), altitude (23,819 ft HAT), and sensor track details (direction 168°, speed 277 mph).

• Description of the object’s appearance (“round, cold object in IR,” bright white in black-hot mode) and behavior (“a few abrupt directional changes during the 8 minute contact”), along with sensor geometry (slant range 6.1 NM, ground range 8.81 km, depression angle -39°).

• Instructions for sanitizing identifying information and submitting the form to a designated email, indicating this is part of a formal range incursion analysis program.

Source: OCR extracted text from the form, including free-text description and submission instructions.

Key Observations

“While at 23,819 HAT over the Gulf of Aden we tracked a round, cold object in IR traveling 168 degrees at 277 mph. It made a few abrupt directional changes during the 8 minute contact. Our sensor was aimed -39 degrees below our altitude with a slant range of 6.1 ?NM and ground range of 8.81 KM. The IR sensor was set to black hot and the object in question was a bright white.”

Source: Direct quote from the “describe the contact” field in the OCR text.

Context & Significance

The form exemplifies the U.S. military’s standardized procedure for reporting unidentified aerial phenomena that may pose a hazard to flight operations or training. The 2020 date places it after the 2019 Navy UAP reporting overhaul, and the ISR context over the Gulf of Aden suggests a surveillance mission. The observed characteristics—’ keyFindings: [] tags:

• DOW
• Investigation
• Middle East relatedFiles: [] featured: false heroImage: /pdf-covers/dow-uap-d57-range-fouler-reporting-form-gulf-of-aden-september-2020.png documentType: Investigation region: Middle East decade: 2020s releaseBatch: Release 01 coverImage: /pdf-covers/dow-uap-d57-range-fouler-reporting-form-gulf-of-aden-september-2020.png archiveId: DOW-UAP-D57,_Range_Fouler_Reporting_Form,_Gulf_of_Aden,_September_2020 warGovUrl: https://www.war.gov/ufo/#DOW-UAP-D57, Range Fouler Reporting Form Gulf Of Aden September 2020 officialDescription: ’--- Page 1 --- Range Fouler Reportin Form Please complete this form to the best of your ability. If you do n~ot have the requested information, please leave the field blank. Ifthere was more than one “group ” please report each on a separate form for data collection purposes.’ evidenceLevel: Historical Record hasUAPObservation: false mentionsPhysicalEvidence: false mentionsBiological: false ocrQuality: high

[WARN] AI-Generated Summary: This summary is generated from publicly released government documents for informational purposes only. Always refer to the original document linked below for the complete unredacted record.

Document Overview

The document is an unclassified U.S. military “Range Fouler Reporting Form,” completed on 04 September 2020, used to document an unidentified object encountered during an ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance) mission over the Gulf of Aden. The form was filed by a crew member from 1172 ATKS (Attack Squadron) to record sensor tracking data and visual/IR observations, following standard sanitization procedures to protect aircrew identity.

Source: Document metadata (UNCLASSIFIED, date 09/04/20) and OCR text (“Range Fouler Reportin Form,” “1172 ATKS,” “ISR,” “Gulf of Aden”).

What This Document Contains

• A structured report of an airborne contact, including time (21:09–21:17z), location (MGRS 38P, estimated lat/long), altitude (23,819 ft HAT), and sensor track details (direction 168°, speed 277 mph).
• Description of the object’s appearance (“round, cold object in IR,” bright white in black-hot mode) and behavior (“a few abrupt directional changes during the 8 minute contact”), along with sensor geometry (slant range 6.1 NM, ground range 8.81 km, depression angle -39°).
• Instructions for sanitizing identifying information and submitting the form to a designated email, indicating this is part of a formal range incursion analysis program.

Source: OCR extracted text from the form, including free-text description and submission instructions.

Key Observations

“While at 23,819 HAT over the Gulf of Aden we tracked a round, cold object in IR traveling 168 degrees at 277 mph. It made a few abrupt directional changes during the 8 minute contact. Our sensor was aimed -39 degrees below our altitude with a slant range of 6.1 ?NM and ground range of 8.81 KM. The IR sensor was set to black hot and the object in question was a bright white.”

Source: Direct quote from the “describe the contact” field in the OCR text.

Context & Significance

The form exemplifies the U.S. military’s standardized procedure for reporting unidentified aerial phenomena that may pose a hazard to flight operations or training. The 2020 date places it after the 2019 Navy UAP reporting overhaul, and the ISR context over the Gulf of Aden suggests a surveillance mission. The observed characteristics—