Bagram, Afghanistan — August 7, 2026 — A former U.S. military pilot, now speaking to the FBI in March 2024, described a 2002 incident during his deployment in Afghanistan that remains unexplained. The account, detailed in an FBI FD-302 form, recounts a night in June 2002 when he and another pilot observed a silent, triangular object moving from west to east over Bagram. The object, estimated at 500 feet in size, had no visible lights and traveled at approximately 150 knots.
Both pilots noted the event, though they did not discuss it further afterward. The witness stated he never found any information to explain the sighting and remained unaware of others who might have seen it.
This 2002 encounter is just one part of a broader series of unexplained aerial phenomena reported by pilots in recent years. The same witness, who has flown commercially since then, described recurring sightings of white lights in 2023 and 2024. These lights, which he first observed in October 2023 while flying from Boston to Dublin, appeared as dim white orbs that brightened before fading.
They ranged in number from one to four, moving in straight lines or erratically, often changing direction without coordination. The lights were consistently higher than his aircraft, which he estimated at 37,000 feet, and he placed them between 200-500 miles away.
He captured video of the phenomenon on February 2024, showing 10 or more lights near Sioux Falls, North Dakota, at 4:36 AM. The footage, taken from his cockpit with cockpit lights off, showed the lights brighter in person than on camera. What connects these accounts is the absence of conventional explanations.
The pilot ruled out Starlink flares, satellites, or meteors during his interviews. He noted the lights’ behavior—intensity fluctuations, erratic movement, and lack of coordination—did not match known phenomena.
Similarly, the 2002 triangle remains unclassified. The witness, who has not shared details with others, emphasized that he never felt threatened by the lights or the triangular object. He also mentioned that discussions about such events were minimal, both during his deployment and in recent years.
“Not a lot of people were talking openly about it,” he said. “People just weren’t used to it.” The FBI has not commented on the 2002 triangle or the 2023-2024 light sightings.
The documents released in the PURSUE tranche on August 7, 2026, contain no conclusions or recommendations. They are presented as raw interview data, accompanied by a digital rendering of the lights described in the 2023-2024 incidents. The rendering, labeled FBI-UAP-D025, visually interprets the witness’s account but adds no new factual claims. The agency’s role here is purely archival, not investigative.
For context, the 2002 incident occurred during the U.S. military’s presence in Afghanistan, a time when reports of unexplained phenomena were rare and often dismissed as folklore. The witness’s account, while isolated, aligns with a pattern of similar reports emerging in recent years.
Pilots across the U.S. have since come forward with similar descriptions, though the FBI has not publicized any official stance. The lack of a unified explanation leaves these events as anomalies within official records. As of now, no government agency has attributed the lights or the triangle to a known source, leaving the questions unanswered.
