‘Look at that thing, dude’ … US fighter pilots track UFO in new video from Pentagon’s secret vault

Just before leaving his job as the US Defence Department two months ago, intelligence officer Luis Elizondo quietly arranged to secure the release of three of the most unusual videos in the Pentagon’s secret vaults: raw footage from encounters between fighter jets and “anomalous aerial vehicles” - military jargon for UFOs.

The videos, all taken from cockpit cameras, show pilots struggling to lock their radars on oval-shaped vessels that, on screen, look vaguely like giant flying Tic Tacs.

The strange aircraft - no claims are made about their possible origins or make-up - appear to hover briefly before sprinting away at speeds that elicit gasps and shouts from the pilots.

Elizondo, in an internal Pentagon memo requesting that the videos be cleared for public viewing, argued that the images could help educate pilots and improve aviation safety. But in interviews, he said his ultimate intention was to shed light on a little-known programme Elizondo himself ran for seven years: a low-key Defence Department operation to collect and analyse reported UFO sightings.

The existence of the programme, known as the Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Programme, was confirmed officially for the first time Saturday by a Pentagon spokesman. The acknowledgement came in response to media inquiries, which were generated in part by a start-up company Elizondo has joined since retirement. The private company specialises in promoting UFO research for scientific and entertainment purposes.

Current and former Pentagon officials confirm that the Pentagon programme has been in existence since 2007 and was formed for the purpose of collecting and analysing a wide range of “anomalous aerospace threats” ranging from advanced aircraft fielded by traditional US adversaries to commercial drones to possible alien encounters.