The Global Threat (Full Episode) | UFOs: Investigating the Unknown

UFO Sightings

• Despite numerous reports of UFO sightings by pilots and air traffic controllers, the US government closed its formal study of UFOs in 1969.
• Civilian researchers have continued to investigate UFO sightings and have documented extensive evidence of the phenomenon.
• The National Aviation Reporting Center on Anomalous Phenomena (NARCAP) was founded in 1974 to collect and investigate reports of UFO sightings from pilots and air traffic controllers.
• NARCAP's research has shown that UFO sightings can pose a safety hazard to aviation, with some cases involving pilots having to make evasive maneuvers to avoid collisions.
• The Japan Airlines Flight 1628 incident is one of the most well-documented cases of a UFO sighting by a commercial airline. The incident was investigated by the FAA and the military, but no definitive explanation for the object was ever found.
• Despite the evidence of UFO sightings, the US government continues to downplay the phenomenon and has not conducted any official investigations since 1969.

Government Response

• Despite ridicule, filmmaker James Fox persisted in investigating UFO cases due to compelling evidence.
• The US government's response to the Phoenix Lights case in 1997 was inadequate and lacked transparency.
• Other countries, such as France, China, Russia, and South America, take UFO investigations more seriously.
• Fox collaborated with foreign governments and military personnel to gather information about UFO sightings.
• Some countries, like Chile and Costa Rica, release UFO-related information and photographs without secrecy.
• Fox shared information about foreign UFO agencies with John Podesta, a former Clinton administration official, to advocate for government transparency.
• A major UFO event with substantial data and credible witnesses is needed to galvanize the country and force government involvement.

Notable UFO Sightings

• On November 7, 2006, multiple trained aviation professionals at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, including pilots and ramp workers, reported seeing a metallic, grayish disc-shaped object hovering above the terminal complex.
• The object was estimated to be 30 to 40 feet in diameter and remained stationary for several minutes before suddenly shooting straight up, creating a hole in the clouds.
• Despite initial denials, both United Airlines and the FAA later acknowledged receiving reports of the sighting.
• Audio recordings from O'Hare Tower confirmed that the sighting was logged and that there was significant radio chatter among air traffic controllers and personnel on the airfield regarding the object.
• Former Arizona Governor Fife Symington, who had previously ridiculed the Phoenix Lights mass sighting, admitted to being a witness to the O'Hare sighting, prompting him to correct his previous statements.

Efforts to Raise Awareness

• Journalist Leslie Kean and filmmaker James Fox organized a major event in Washington, D.C., bringing together credible witnesses from around the world to share their experiences, including Iranian pilot Parviz Jafari and Japan Airlines pilot John Callahan.
• A press conference was held in 2017 by former high-level government and military officials to share their UFO sightings and call for a government investigation.
• Leslie Kane, an investigative reporter, wrote a book featuring firsthand accounts from military pilots and other witnesses, which became a New York Times bestseller and brought credibility to the topic.
• The success of the book led to Kane being invited to a meeting where she was given information about a secret Pentagon program researching UFOs, which was launched in 2007.
• The New York Times broke the news about the secret Pentagon program, generating significant public attention and raising questions about what the program had learned and whether information would be released to the public.