{"type":"documents","slug":"2026-pursue-release-02-064-odni-uap-d001-usper-narrative-senior-usic-official","title":"ODNI-UAP-D001, USPER Narrative, Senior USIC Official","url":"https://disclosdex.com/documents/2026-pursue-release-02-064-odni-uap-d001-usper-narrative-senior-usic-official","description":"First-hand account by a senior U.S. intelligence official describing UAP encounters during a late 2025 investigation at a sensitive military facility in the western United States.","date":"2025-01-01T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["Testimony"],"updated":"2026-05-22T00:00:00.000Z","disclosureRating":7,"connectionCount":0,"content":{"markdown":"ODNI-UAP-D001 is a first-hand written account by a currently serving senior U.S. Intelligence Community (USIC) official, documenting a series of UAP encounters during a late-2025 reconnaissance operation at a sensitive military facility in the western United States. The document was released as part of PURSUE Release 02 on May 22, 2026, by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). It represents one of the most detailed first-person UAP accounts to enter the public record from an active senior intelligence officer. [^1][^2]\n\n<PDF src=\"https://www.war.gov/medialink/ufo/052226/release_02/documents/ODNI-UAP-D001_USPER_Narrative_Senior_USIC.pdf\" />\n\n## Provenance and Chain of Custody\n\nThe document carries the identifier ODNI-UAP-D001 and is designated a USPER (U.S. Person) Narrative. It was authored by an active senior official within the U.S. Intelligence Community whose identity is not disclosed in the released text. The account was posted to the PURSUE collection on May 22, 2026. A typographic correction followed on May 26, 2026: the original release contained the phrase \"map-of-the-earth\" in the second paragraph, which was corrected to the proper military aviation term \"nap-of-the-earth.\" ODNI noted this correction explicitly in an addendum to the document.\n\nThe account is described by ODNI as being accompanied by infrared imagery taken during the same exercise by other federal officials from the ground. That imagery was originally released on war.gov/UFO on May 8, 2026, as part of PURSUE Release 01. The narrative therefore serves as a first-person testimonial layer keyed to previously released sensor data, providing an eyewitness correlate to imagery that was already in the public domain before this account appeared.\n\nNo classification markings are specified in the publicly available text, consistent with the document being an unclassified written account prepared for release. [^3]\n\n## Mission Context\n\nIn late 2025, the narrator -- a senior USIC official -- participated in a search and reconnaissance operation launched from a Joint Operations Center (JOC) situated on a mountain test range with a documented history of weapons testing in the western United States. The mission was triggered by a pattern of loud thuds heard in the remote mountains that coincided temporally with multiple reported UAP sightings on preceding nights. The operation aimed to locate any physical debris or evidence that might account for both the acoustic anomalies and the sightings.\n\nInitial search phases produced debris that was identified as rocket and projectile remnants from historical weapons testing activity on the range. Ground teams also located a large cave entrance of indeterminate depth in the mountainous terrain. The cave's remoteness and the absence of safe landing options near its entrance precluded direct investigation, but the site was noted and orbited by air for aerial observation. This phase of the operation produced no UAP contact but established the operational environment: remote mountain terrain, documented military history, active ground teams, JOC radar support, and multi-sensor observation assets.\n\n## Helicopter Operations\n\nThe narrator and one unnamed colleague departed the JOC aboard a helicopter flown by two unnamed pilots. The aircraft type is not identified in the available documentation. The helicopter operated at low altitude using a nap-of-the-earth flight profile and maintained various hovering positions throughout the mission. The crew employed Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) and Night Vision Goggles (NVG) for observation, while the narrator supplemented these with naked-eye assessment. Fuel constraints were an ongoing operational variable that shaped tactical decision-making throughout the encounter and ultimately forced the crew to break contact and return to base.\n\nThe pilots are described as professional in their responses to real-time radar cues and shifting tactical priorities. After the mission concluded, the narrator observed that the pilots were \"virtually speechless\" -- a characterization the narrator appears to offer as an index of the encounters' impact on experienced aviation personnel.\n\n## Radar Support and Initial UAP Contact\n\nThe JOC provided continuous radar support throughout the operation. Radar operators detected hits several miles up-range from the helicopter's position, in areas that correlated geographically with zones where UAP activity had been reported on prior nights. These detections directed the helicopter's movements and shaped crew responses throughout the mission.\n\nThe first UAP contact came when ground teams reported spotting an object on FLIR. The object was described as \"super-hot\" in thermal signature and was positioned low to the ground. It moved east and then south at high speed. It then exhibited anomalous behavior: it split into two discrete objects, with a smaller object separating from a larger primary. As the helicopter approached, the primary object rose from the ground, came within approximately ten feet of the aircraft, then dropped below the helicopter and accelerated away at a speed that exceeded the helicopter's performance envelope. The pilots independently observed the split through NVG, corroborating the ground team's FLIR observation. The helicopter briefly attempted pursuit before breaking off. The narrator coordinated with the JOC to request assistance from fighter jets then launching on a training mission in the operating area.\n\n## Orb Formations\n\nThe bulk of the narrative is devoted to three distinct observation sequences involving orange orbs at higher altitude, each corroborated across multiple observers and sensor types.\n\n**First major display:** At a hovering position approximately 700 feet above ground level, the narrator and pilots observed what the narrator described as \"countless orange orbs swarming in all directions\" against the backdrop of the mountain. The display persisted for several minutes before fading from view. The orbs were observed through both night vision goggles and with the naked eye.\n\n**Second major encounter:** Based on fresh radar detections from the JOC, the helicopter relocated to a new hovering position, again at approximately 700 feet AGL. Both the pilots (using NVG) and the narrator (using naked eye) observed two large orbs flare up side-by-side, positioned stationary just above the helicopter's rotor disk to the right of the aircraft. The orbs were described as oval-shaped, orange in color with white or yellow centers, emitting light in all directions. Below these two primary orbs, a third orb flared up, then a fourth, creating a formation of four to five orbs arranged in a \"T\" pattern with the original pair at the top. The dimming sequence reversed the activation order. The orbs remained stationary throughout until they vanished. This sequence lasted 10 to 15 seconds. The narrator elected not to photograph the encounter, stating that attention was maintained on assessing any potential threat posed by the objects.\n\n**Fighter jet interaction:** As the helicopter continued operations, fighter jets entered visual range at approximately 23,000 feet above ground level, identifiable by their navigation lights. Simultaneously, orbs of the same type appeared directly above the fighters and flared up one at a time in a horizontal formation. The orbs matched the jets' speed and flight path precisely for 10 to 15 seconds before dimming sequentially and disappearing from view. This behavior repeated several times as the jets transited the airspace and eventually landed. The narrator remarked to the pilots that the orbs appeared to be \"chasing\" the fighters.\n\nDuring extended hovering operations, additional orbs continued to flare up and down for several minutes. A distinct triangle formation was observed before the objects vanished.\n\n## UAP Characteristics as Reported\n\nAcross all observed encounters, the unidentified orbs demonstrated consistent properties as described by the narrator.\n\nThe orbs were orange in color with white or yellow centers and oval in shape, emitting light in all directions. They were capable of distinct flaring and dimming sequences that could occur in coordinated succession across multiple objects. They maintained coherent formations -- pairs, \"T\" configurations, horizontal lines, triangle arrangements -- and executed synchronized activation and deactivation. In pursuit scenarios they exceeded the helicopter's performance envelope. In the fighter jet interaction they matched the aircraft's speed and heading precisely for sustained periods. No loud noise, physical contact, or overtly hostile action was reported during any encounter. The objects consistently vanished rather than transitioning to a different flight regime or descending to a landing.\n\n## Multiple Independent Observers and Sensor Correlation\n\nA significant feature of this account is the degree of corroboration across independent observers and sensor modalities. Ground teams on FLIR detected the initial low-altitude object independently of the helicopter crew. The pilots on NVG and the narrator with the naked eye independently observed the same orb formations. JOC radar detected objects in the same areas where visual and infrared observations were being made. The account does not rest on a single witness or a single sensor; it describes a multi-platform observation environment in which separate observers and instruments converged on consistent observations during the same operation.\n\nODNI also notes that the companion infrared imagery -- captured by other federal officials on the ground during the same exercise -- was released in PURSUE Release 01 on May 8, 2026. The narrator's written account thus exists alongside sensor data from the same event collected by other participants, though a direct frame-by-frame correlation between the narrative and that imagery is not established in this document.\n\n## Mission Conclusion\n\nWith fuel critically low, the helicopter crew returned to the JOC. Upon landing, the narrator exchanged brief words with the pilots, noting their apparent shock at what they had collectively witnessed. The narrator then entered the JOC for a quick debrief before departing. No photographs were taken during any phase of the observations. The narrator's stated rationale was a deliberate choice to maintain focus on threat assessment rather than documentation.\n\n## What The Record Supports\n\nThis record establishes that a senior, currently serving U.S. intelligence official has submitted a formal written account of multiple anomalous aerial observations during a late-2025 operational mission at a western U.S. military test range. The account documents corroboration across multiple independent observers -- the narrator, two pilots, and ground teams -- and multiple sensor modalities including naked eye, NVG, FLIR, and ground radar. The objects described exhibited characteristics that the narrator assessed as anomalous: extreme thermal signatures, apparent splitting behavior, speeds exceeding helicopter performance, coordinated formation behavior, and apparent responsiveness to the presence of military aircraft.\n\nWhat this record does not establish: the physical nature or origin of the observed objects. The absence of photographs means no independent image analysis is possible from this document in isolation, though the companion FLIR imagery from PURSUE Release 01 may offer partial corroboration. The narrator's identity and those of the pilots, ground teams, and JOC personnel remain undisclosed, precluding independent verification. The specific location is described only as a mountain test range in the western United States. No physical debris, instrument recording from the helicopter, or post-event sensor data is referenced in the narrative. The objects remain unidentified and their behavior, while extensively described, is unresolved.\n\n## References\n\n[^1]: [Department of War PURSUE page](https://www.war.gov/UFO/#release)\n[^2]: [Department of War PURSUE data file (uap-data.csv)](https://www.war.gov/Portals/1/Interactive/2026/UFO/uap-data.csv)\n[^3]: [ODNI-UAP-D001, USPER Narrative, Senior USIC Official remote release asset](https://www.war.gov/medialink/ufo/052226/release_02/documents/ODNI-UAP-D001_USPER_Narrative_Senior_USIC.pdf)","readingTime":"9 min read"},"relatedRecords":[],"citation":{"canonicalUrl":"https://disclosdex.com/documents/2026-pursue-release-02-064-odni-uap-d001-usper-narrative-senior-usic-official","title":"ODNI-UAP-D001, USPER Narrative, Senior USIC Official","publisher":"Disclosdex","retrievedFrom":"https://disclosdex.com/api/v1/documents/2026-pursue-release-02-064-odni-uap-d001-usper-narrative-senior-usic-official","license":"CC-BY-4.0"}}