Command Palette

Search for a command to run...

USS Roosevelt Encounters

Sighting

F/A-18 crews recorded objects called Gimbal and GoFast during exercises off Florida, sparking Pentagon interest

Witnesses — F/A-18 crews

Evidence — Video, Sensor data

Status — Unresolved

Disclosure Rating — 3/10

During routine training east of Florida, pilots from VFA-11 aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt tracked unusual craft on infrared targeting pods. The objects executed rapid accelerations and rotations inconsistent with known aircraft.

The videos were leaked in 2017 and later confirmed by the Department of Defense. They became central evidence in congressional hearings on unidentified aerial phenomena. 12345

  Personnel

NameRole/Description
Lt. Ryan GravesF/A-18 pilot with VFA-11 "Red Rippers"; first logged anomalies and filed safety briefs
Lt. Danny AccoinSquadron pilot; confirmed simultaneous radar and infrared tracks
Ripper 11 crew (unnamed)Captured the 'Gimbal' imagery
Another VFA-11 crewRecorded the 'GoFast' video
Carrier Air Wing staffBriefed Rear Adm. Craig Clapperton on both clips
Rear Adm. Craig ClappertonCarrier Air Wing commander briefed on the incidents
Luis ElizondoFormer AATIP officer who transmitted the files to journalists, leading to public release

  Timeline

Date/PeriodEvent/Development
Summer 2014Newly installed APG-79 AESA radars aboard Roosevelt strike aircraft begin registering anomalous returns during training flights along the Virginia-to-Florida coast.67
Late 2014A Super Hornet narrowly avoids a collision with a "sphere surrounding a cube", prompting an official mishap report.67
20 Jan 2015The 'Gimbal' video is recorded around 100 km east of Jacksonville, Florida, showing a disc-like object rotating about its axis.8
26 Jan 2015The 'GoFast' clip captures a small target apparently skimming the Atlantic surface; symbology later suggests slow, wind-borne motion.19
16 Dec 2017The New York Times publishes both clips, revealing the Pentagon's secret study of unidentified aerial phenomena.2
27 Apr 2020The Department of Defense formally declassifies the videos while maintaining that the objects remain unidentified.1
06 Feb 2025AARO publishes a resolution stating the GoFast object drifted with the wind and showed no anomalous performance.10

  Evidence

Carrier data sets include four complementary streams.

Evidence TypeDescription
Infrared imageryThe Gimbal and GoFast clips were recorded on AN/ASQ-228 ATFLIR sensors in 1.5-degree narrow-field mode. Time stamps, aircraft attitude, azimuth, and elevation are visible in the overlay, allowing geometric reconstruction of target range and line-of-sight (LOS) rate.
Radar tracksAPG-79 AESA logs show correlated contacts at roughly 32,000 ft with closure rates under 120 kt and instantaneous accelerations inside conventional flight envelopes. Full raw files remain classified, but parameters were summarized in 2023 AARO briefings.11
Audio and pilot debriefsCockpit recordings capture 90 s of continuous lock on Gimbal and 34 s on GoFast. Mishap report NAVAIR-IR-2014-077 documents a near-miss with a "cube inside a sphere" at 50 ft separation during the same work-ups.6

  Assessment

Proponents argue that sustained flight without visible propulsion and rapid heading changes signify technology beyond current aerospace engineering. Skeptical researchers counter that the infrared bloom in 'Gimbal' matches jet exhaust viewed off-axis and that its apparent rotation originates inside the sensor mount.

Frame-by-frame trigonometry places the 'GoFast' object at roughly 13 000 ft and 40 kt, consistent with a drifting research balloon. The 2021 ODNI report lists insufficient data as the primary barrier to definitive attribution.12 Government agencies have not issued any more granular technical rebuttal, leaving the case unresolved.

Symbology breakdown — Frame extraction yields:

VideoKey ParametersInterpretation/Notes
GimbalLOS rate < 2°/s; slant range ≈ 4.4 nmi; camera roll −54°Apparent 90° rotation coincides with gimbal reaching mechanical stop, indicating sensor-induced image roll rather than craft motion.913
GoFastSlant range 3.6 nmi; altitude 13,000 ft; groundspeed ~40 kt eastboundParallax against ocean surface creates illusion of high-speed sea-skimming; actual speed and altitude consistent with drifting object (e.g., balloon).9
—Instrument error margins: ±0.3° LOS, ±0.2 nmi rangeThese margins allow for both mundane explanations (research balloons, distant turbofan exhaust) and extraordinary claims made by aircrew.
In February 2025 the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office issued a case report concluding the GoFast object drifted with prevailing winds and showed no anomalous performance.10

  References

  1. navair.navy.mil ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  2. nytimes.com ↩ ↩2

  3. cbsnews.com ↩

  4. thedrive.com ↩

  5. en.wikipedia.org ↩

  6. nytimes.com ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  7. ufo-timeline.com ↩ ↩2

  8. ryangraves.io ↩

  9. mickwest.substack.com ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  10. Go Fast Case Resolution ↩ ↩2

  11. nasa.gov ↩

  12. dni.gov ↩

  13. leonarddavid.com ↩

Occured on January 26, 2015

5 min read