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UFO/UAP Incident
Evidence Dossier

Legacy category: UFO/UAP

USS Nimitz Tic Tac Encounter

Evidence Dossier: A record proves that a statement, transfer, examination, or result was documented. It does not automatically prove the anomalous interpretation attached to it.
OverviewEvidenceTimelineAnalysisSourcesMedia Context
2004-11-14
Pacific Ocean near the Southern California and Mexico operating area
3/10
9/10
Official public records document a November 2004 Navy observation and released infrared video, while the available dossier does not establish the target's identity or extraordinary flight performance.
The incident and public release are supported by official records, but case-specific analytical support is limited and does not establish speed, altitude, range, acceleration, propulsion, or origin.

Investigative Assessments

"The reported claim remains worth testing against the record: Official public records document a November 2004 Navy observation and released infrared video, while the available dossier does not establish the target's identity or extraordinary flight performance. The strongest documented reasons to keep the file open are: ODNI 2021 Preliminary Assessment: UAP: Supports only the general points that the reviewed government dataset includes reporting beginning in November 2004, that some UAP may be attributable to sensor anomalies, and that rigorous analysis requires adequate sensor data; AARO FY2024 Consolidated Annual Report on UAP: Supports the general analytic point that many AARO holdings remain unresolved because actionable data are missing and that apparent performance can arise from sensor effects such as parallax. Key unresolved lead: What produced the target-like image in the released infrared video?"
"Evidentiary limitations: The incident and public release are supported by official records, but case-specific analytical support is limited and does not establish speed, altitude, range, acceleration, propulsion, or origin. Note that: ODNI 2021 Preliminary Assessment: UAP fails to support: Does not name the Nimitz encounter, identify its witnesses, release case radar data, validate reported performance figures, or attribute the phenomenon to any origin; AARO FY2024 Consolidated Annual Report on UAP fails to support: Does not discuss or resolve the 2004 Nimitz event and does not provide its radar data, telemetry, witness records, or technical video analysis. Documented contradiction: The published claim asserted maneuvers beyond known aerodynamic capabilities, while the incident-specific slide says there was very limited data to support technical analysis and the local video lacks the measurements required for that conclusion. Leading conventional hypothesis: Sensor tracking, line-of-sight, or image interpretation effects"

Case Summary

A Navy-released briefing slide describes a Tic Tac case dated November 14, 2004, and the Department of Defense authenticated one released Navy video as taken in November 2004. The inspected records establish an officially documented observation and an associated public infrared video, but they do not provide the raw radar data, native sensor recording, range, altitude, or velocity needed to verify extraordinary performance or identify the observed phenomenon.

Evidence Locker

4 inspectable evidence items. Claims and source findings are kept separate.

Official intelligence assessment Local copy hash-verified

ODNI 2021 Preliminary Assessment: UAP

Analyst rating: Authentic complete official report that provides general UAP context but does not identify or analyze the Nimitz case.

“The dataset described in this report is currently limited primarily to U.S. Government reporting of incidents occurring from November 2004 to March 2021.”
Record locationPDF page 2
Evidence classGeneral government intelligence report
Relationship to claimProvides methodological and historical context only. It is not incident-specific evidence.
Authenticity assessmentHigh for file identity. The 104286-byte local PDF has SHA-256 ebad78e9f92db919be98343333007825a8bd8d5e8f0cac458badc38f125053f4, matching the manifest and live NARA file.
What this supportsSupports only the general points that the reviewed government dataset includes reporting beginning in November 2004, that some UAP may be attributable to sensor anomalies, and that rigorous analysis requires adequate sensor data.
What it does not supportDoes not name the Nimitz encounter, identify its witnesses, release case radar data, validate reported performance figures, or attribute the phenomenon to any origin.
ProvenanceODNI published the report on June 25, 2021. NARA preserves it as item 493495781 with record identifier 576UAP0003. The local file is byte-for-byte identical to the live NARA download inspected on August 6, 2026.
Chain of custodyODNI publication to NARA Record Group 615 item 493495781 to direct NARA download to local file. The local SHA-256 matches both the manifest and the live NARA file.
Source completenessComplete. The local 9-page PDF is byte-for-byte identical to the complete file currently offered by the NARA item page. The manifest does not declare document_completeness, so completeness was independently checked against the live archive file.
Known gaps: No known completeness gaps recorded.
Open Document (Local PDF Document) Download Copy Canonical Agency Record
Official annual report Local copy hash-verified

AARO FY2024 Consolidated Annual Report on UAP

Analyst rating: Authentic complete official report that supplies general analytic context and data-quality cautions, not Nimitz case findings.

“The majority of AARO's case holdings remain unresolved due to a lack of data needed to further analysis.”
Record locationPDF page 14, printed page 13
Evidence classGeneral government annual report
Relationship to claimProvides data-quality and analytic-method context only. It is not incident-specific evidence.
Authenticity assessmentHigh for file identity. The 557195-byte local PDF has SHA-256 587867ac76a95521f18ffdede4de57af5d5ca4a0166714e9d68fb71d0a232d8b, matching the manifest and live NARA file.
What this supportsSupports the general analytic point that many AARO holdings remain unresolved because actionable data are missing and that apparent performance can arise from sensor effects such as parallax.
What it does not supportDoes not discuss or resolve the 2004 Nimitz event and does not provide its radar data, telemetry, witness records, or technical video analysis.
ProvenanceAARO created the report in November 2024. NARA preserves it as item 493470289 with record identifier 576UAP0026. The local file is byte-for-byte identical to the live NARA download inspected on August 6, 2026.
Chain of custodyAARO publication to NARA Record Group 615 item 493470289 to direct NARA download to local file. The local SHA-256 matches both the manifest and the live NARA file.
Source completenessComplete. The local 18-page PDF is byte-for-byte identical to the complete file currently offered by the NARA item page. The manifest does not declare document_completeness, so completeness was independently checked against the live archive file.
Known gaps: No known completeness gaps recorded.
Open Document (Local PDF Document) Download Copy Canonical Agency Record
Public-release infrared video derivative Local copy hash-verified

FLIR1 Official UAP Footage from the USG for Public Release

Analyst rating: Central incident-associated visual record, but the local file is a low-resolution WebM delivery derivative rather than the native sensor recording or official release master.

“A small unresolved infrared target-like image appears within changing tracking symbology in the released display recording.”
Record location00:00.000 to 01:16.308
Evidence classPrimary imagery content preserved as a distribution derivative
Relationship to claimDirectly records an unresolved infrared target image, but lacks the measurements needed for a kinematic or origin claim.
Authenticity assessmentHigh that the local file exactly matches the Commons-hosted WebM and that DoD authenticated a November 2004 Navy video. No forensic comparison to the native sensor recording was possible, and no claim of no digital alteration is made.
What this supportsShows a 76.308-second infrared display recording containing a small unresolved target-like image and tracking or camera-state changes.
What it does not supportDoes not by itself establish target identity, physical shape, dimensions, range, altitude, speed, acceleration, propulsion, absence of wings, absence of exhaust, absence of a thermal signature, or extraordinary performance. Apparent image motion cannot be separated from sensor slew, line-of-sight change, zoom, or tracking behavior without additional data.
ProvenanceDoD stated on April 27, 2020 that it authorized release of one unclassified Navy video taken in November 2004. Wikimedia Commons credits a NAVAIR MP4 as the source of this WebM. The local bytes exactly match the Commons file. The conversion history from the official MP4 to this WebM was not independently documented.
Chain of custodyNavy recording to DoD-authorized public release to NAVAIR public MP4 as credited by Wikimedia Commons to Wikimedia WebM conversion to local hash-verified copy. The exact transcoding procedure and native sensor-file lineage are not available in the inspected records.
Source completenessComplete. The complete 5005966-byte Commons WebM was inspected and matches its canonical URL and manifest hash. It is complete as the published derivative, not as the native or highest-quality sensor source. The manifest does not declare document_completeness.
Known gaps: No known completeness gaps recorded.
Open Document (Local WEBM Media) Download Copy Canonical Agency Record
Navy-released briefing slide Local copy hash-verified

2004 TIC TAC Slide

Analyst rating: Incident-specific one-page briefing summary. It is not demonstrably contemporaneous, does not identify its author, and is not a substitute for underlying debriefs or sensor records.

“Although the debriefs of aircrew and other personnel within the Strike Group validated the event, there was very limited data to support technical analysis.”
Record locationPage 1
Evidence classIncident-specific derivative briefing record
Relationship to claimDocuments how a Navy briefing summarized the event and explicitly records the limit of available technical data.
Authenticity assessmentHigh that the local 32021-byte PDF matches the archived Department of the Navy FOIA file. Authorship, original creation date, and the evidentiary basis of the slide remain undocumented in the file.
What this supportsThe visible slide labels a Tic Tac case dated November 14, 2004, identifies Nimitz Strike Group elements, places it 30 nautical miles off Mexico southwest of San Diego, records a reported smooth solid-white object description, and says debriefs validated the event while very limited data supported technical analysis.
What it does not supportDoes not name individual witnesses, provide signed statements, establish radar-derived altitude or speed, document acceleration, verify removal of radar logs, establish absence of sonic booms or thermal signatures, or identify the object or its origin.
ProvenanceThe file was published at a Department of the Navy FOIA URL and preserved by the Internet Archive. The local bytes exactly match the January 13, 2023 archived response. PDF metadata shows a Xerox WorkCentre creation date of January 11, 2023, which dates the scan or PDF production and not the underlying incident or slide authorship.
Chain of custodyUnidentified Navy briefing source to Department of the Navy FOIA publication to Internet Archive capture to local hash-verified copy. The original slide file, author, creation date, and underlying debrief records were not provided.
Source completenessComplete. The complete one-page PDF exactly matches the archived Navy FOIA response and the manifest hash. It is complete as the published slide file, not as any larger briefing deck or underlying case record. The manifest does not declare document_completeness.
Known gaps: No known completeness gaps recorded.
Open Document (Local PDF Document) Download Copy Canonical Agency Record

Documented Timeline

  • 2004-11-14: The Navy-released briefing slide labels a Tic Tac case on this date and summarizes aircrew reporting, internal handling, and limited supporting technical data.
  • 2020-04-27: The Department of Defense authorized release of three unclassified Navy videos, including one taken in November 2004, and said the observed aerial phenomena remained characterized as unidentified.
  • 2023-01-11: PDF metadata dates the scanned one-page Tic Tac slide to this date. This does not establish when the underlying briefing content was authored.
  • 2025-03-19: DVIDS posted an official Naval Air Systems Command record titled FLIR UAP, with a listed length of 1 minute 16 seconds and a date taken of November 1, 2004. The page does not identify the crew or provide native sensor metadata.

Named Participants and Roles

  • Unidentified Nimitz aircrew summarized in the briefing slide, Pilots and other aircrew whose debriefs are referenced by the Navy-released slide. Account basis: Documentary-Only. Witness quality: Indeterminate. The slide says aircrew were debriefed but supplies no names, signed statements, interview text, timestamps, or direct quotations sufficient to rate individual accounts. Evidence: nimitz_briefing_slide
  • Unidentified F/A-18 aircrew associated with FLIR1, Crew associated with the infrared recording in official public media descriptions. Account basis: Documentary-Only. Witness quality: Indeterminate. The local video contains no embedded crew identity and no intelligible speech. The inspected official public pages do not provide a signed or contemporaneous crew account. Evidence: nimitz_flir1_video

Contradictions and Record Conflicts

  • The published claim asserted maneuvers beyond known aerodynamic capabilities, while the incident-specific slide says there was very limited data to support technical analysis and the local video lacks the measurements required for that conclusion.
  • The slide reports a visual description, while the infrared derivative resolves only a small target-like image. The inspected records do not establish that both modalities observed the same target at the same moment.
  • The two government reports discuss broad UAP datasets and methods, but the published case treated them as if they supplied incident-specific corroboration.

Conventional Explanations

  • Sensor tracking, line-of-sight, or image interpretation effects
    Evidence for: ODNI states that some UAP may be attributable to sensor anomalies and that vantage point matters. The local WebM shows tracking and camera-state changes but lacks independent kinematic data.
    Limits: This explanation does not by itself account for the separate aircrew description summarized in the briefing slide, and no incident-specific sensor reconstruction was inspected.
    Evidence: odni_2021_uap_assessment, nimitz_flir1_video, nimitz_briefing_slide
  • Airborne clutter or natural atmospheric phenomenon
    Evidence for: ODNI lists airborne clutter and natural atmospheric phenomena as established explanatory categories for UAP reporting and notes that moisture, ice crystals, and thermal fluctuations can register on sensors.
    Limits: No incident-specific weather data, object recovery, imagery comparison, or technical test in the inspected dossier attributes this event to clutter or atmospheric effects.
    Evidence: odni_2021_uap_assessment, nimitz_flir1_video
  • United States or foreign aerospace system
    Evidence for: ODNI identifies domestic developmental programs and foreign adversary systems as possible explanatory categories for UAP reports.
    Limits: Neither the incident-specific slide nor the video identifies an operator, and the inspected records provide no case-specific evidence connecting the observation to a domestic or foreign program.
    Evidence: odni_2021_uap_assessment, nimitz_briefing_slide, nimitz_flir1_video

Evidence Stance Matrix

HypothesisStanceRationaleEvidence IDs
Conventional object, atmospheric effect, or sensor interpretationMixedGeneral official reports establish these as plausible UAP categories and the video lacks the data needed to exclude sensor or line-of-sight effects. The briefing slide's separate aircrew description is not explained by the inspected records.odni_2021_uap_assessment, aaro_2024_report, nimitz_flir1_video, nimitz_briefing_slide
United States or foreign aerospace systemInconclusiveOfficial reports recognize domestic and foreign systems as possible categories, but no inspected case-specific record identifies an operator or links this event to such a program.odni_2021_uap_assessment, nimitz_briefing_slide, nimitz_flir1_video
Anomalous craft outside known human technologyInconclusiveThe event remains unidentified, but neither the slide nor the low-resolution video establishes extraordinary kinematics, nonhuman origin, or technology outside known capabilities.nimitz_briefing_slide, nimitz_flir1_video, odni_2021_uap_assessment

Missing Evidence

  • Native sensor recording and complete acquisition metadata for FLIR1
    A native file and its metadata are needed to evaluate image processing, frame history, sensor state, and any claim about target motion without relying on a distribution transcode.
  • Contemporaneous radar track files, radar configuration records, and operator logs tied to the event
    These records would be required to test claims about altitude, range, velocity, track continuity, or extraordinary acceleration. No such data are present in the inspected dossier.
  • Signed or recorded contemporaneous debriefs and mission records identifying the aircrew and exact sorties
    These would permit witness identities, roles, chronology, observation conditions, and the relationship between visual and infrared observations to be verified.
  • Authorship, original creation date, and source records for the 2004 TIC TAC briefing slide
    These are needed to determine whether the slide is contemporaneous or retrospective and to audit the basis for each summarized statement.
  • Authenticated records addressing alleged radar-log removal, sonic-boom observations, and thermal-signature claims
    Without such records, those claims cannot be treated as established facts, contradictions, or unresolved technical findings.

What Remains Unresolved

  • The identity of the phenomenon described in the briefing slide and represented by the infrared target-like image remains unresolved.
    The inspected public records do not provide the native sensor data, raw radar records, environmental data, or physical evidence needed to identify the source.
  • The target's speed, altitude, range, and acceleration cannot be determined from the local video.
    The WebM derivative lacks independent range and platform-state data, and apparent image motion cannot be separated from sensor slew, line-of-sight change, zoom, or tracking behavior.
  • The exact relationship among the reported visual observation, briefing slide, and released FLIR video is not fully documented in the local dossier.
    The inspected records do not provide mission identifiers, named crew records, synchronized timestamps, or a complete official chain linking each artifact to the same target and sortie.

Investigative Hypotheses

  • Conventional object, atmospheric effect, or sensor interpretation
  • United States or foreign aerospace system
  • Anomalous craft outside known human technology

Open Questions

  • What produced the target-like image in the released infrared video?
  • Can the native sensor recording and its complete technical metadata be obtained?
  • Are contemporaneous radar records, signed debriefs, and mission records available for independent review?
  • Can official records establish the exact flight, crew, and event linkage for the released video and briefing slide?

Archival Landing Pages and Evidence Corpus

Department of Defense Statement on the Release of Historical Navy Videos

Official Release

External URL: https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2165713/statement-by-the-department-of-defense-on-the-release-of-historical-navy-videos/

DVIDS FLIR UAP Record

Official Media Record

External URL: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/955825/flir-uap

AARO Official UAP Imagery

Official Media Index

External URL: https://www.aaro.mil/UAP-Cases/Official-UAP-Imagery/

NARA Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena

Official Archive Item

External URL: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/493495781

NARA FY2024 Consolidated Annual Report on UAP

Official Archive Item

External URL: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/493470289

Department of the Navy FOIA 2004 TIC TAC Slide

Official Foia Record Local Source Verified

External URL: https://www.secnav.navy.mil/foia/readingroom/CaseFiles/UAP%20INFO/UAP%20DOCUMENTS/2004%20TIC%20TAC%20Slide.pdf

Open Local Artifact (PDF Document) · Download Copy

Wikimedia Commons FLIR1 WebM Derivative

Public Media Archive

External URL: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FLIR1_Official_UAP_Footage_from_the_USG_for_Public_Release.webm

Media Context

Editorial context only: These media listings document broadcasts, adaptations, documentaries, or cultural references. They do not constitute evidence, corroboration, or investigative testimony.

Secrets of the State (2021)

television episode direct documentary treatment

An episode of UFO Witness examining military encounters with Tic Tac-shaped objects.

IMDb ID: tt13333006 · Verified 2026-08-05

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