Type: Radar Data
Source: Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released approximately 2.8 million radar returns from five Texas sites in July 2008 in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests filed by the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) regarding the January 8, 2008 sightings in Stephenville, Texas.
Analysis of this data by MUFON investigators Glen Schulze and Robert Powell revealed an unidentified object exhibiting flight characteristics inconsistent with known civilian or military aircraft. Key findings from the radar data include:
The object was detected traveling at speeds up to 2,100 mph without creating a sonic boom and was capable of rapid acceleration and hovering.
The craft lacked a transponder beacon, distinguishing it from the F-16 jets that were also tracked in the area on that night.
The radar track showed the object moving on a direct course toward the Crawford Ranch, President George W. Bush’s private residence, located approximately 10 miles away from its last radar contact at 8:00 PM.
The release of this data was considered significant because it corroborated hundreds of witness reports of a massive, silent craft, and analysts noted the FAA's unusual transparency given the object's trajectory toward a high-security presidential site.