US Navy Officially Acknowledges UAP Videos
The US Navy officially confirmed that three widely circulated infrared videos — FLIR1 (Tic Tac), Gimbal, and GoFast — depicted genuine encounters with 'unidentified aerial phenomena,' marking the first time the American military formally validated UAP footage.
Videos
Background
In September 2019, Navy spokesperson Joseph Gradisher confirmed that three infrared videos (FLIR1 from the 2004 Tic Tac encounter, Gimbal (2015), and GoFast (2015)) showed real unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) and had never been cleared for public release. This marked a significant official acknowledgment by the US Navy, shifting from decades of dismissal.
Official Confirmation
Joseph Gradisher first confirmed the UAP designation to The Black Vault on September 10, 2019. Over the following days, NBC News, the Washington Post and other outlets picked up the statement.
The videos depicted real unidentified objects designated as UAP, avoiding the stigmatized UFO label.
They had never been approved for public release.
Dates of the Three Videos
On September 11, 2019, Gradisher also gave The Black Vault the recording dates: FLIR1 was captured on November 14, 2004, during the Tic Tac encounter off California, Gimbal and GoFast on January 21, 2015. The Navy left open whether the two 2015 videos show the same incident.
Video History
The videos circulated since the New York Times exposé in December 2017.
To The Stars Academy also released them.
While authenticity was widely assumed, official confirmation held greater weight.
Paradigm Shift
The Navy's statement formally acknowledged pilots encountering unidentified objects.
This represented a shift from decades of dismissal.
Terminology Change
The Navy adopted UAP as the official term, replacing UFO.
- This linguistic shift removed cultural baggage
- It signaled treatment as a legitimate safety and intelligence concern
Updated Guidelines
The Navy updated reporting guidelines.
Pilots were encouraged to file UAP reports without fear of ridicule.
Disclosure Impact
The confirmation accelerated the disclosure timeline.
- Within two years, Congress established the UAP Task Force
- The DNI published its preliminary assessment
- AARO was created as a permanent investigative body
Significance
The Navy's 2019 confirmation was the tipping point in modern UAP disclosure. It transformed UAP from fringe topic to national security concern, helped popularize the 'UAP' terminology, and directly catalyzed the chain of events leading to AARO, congressional hearings, and ongoing legislation.